An Egg Cooked in a Hole in a Slice of Bread

[chezcherie]

as far as cutting goes, in our home, the hole MUST be cut with an ancient, slightly bent heart-shaped cutter.

I want to tell you how much I appreciate your sharing this with us. Although it seems so obvious, it's something I had never thought of doing. After reading your post, I dug through an old forgotten box of cookie cutters left to me by my grandmother years ago and found a heart, star, four-leaf clover, Christmas tree, among other things. Although it's too late to use them for my own children (they are all grown and gone), I am now going to make a tradition of using them for my grandchildren. I think it's going to be great fun (especially the toasted bits in the cut-out shapes), and I really, really thank you.

And what shall I call it... Egg O' My Heart? Toad in a Tree?

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i'm so glad this resonated with you. let me suggest a different cutter for each grandchild. it will be so special for each of them to have their own shape, and you won't be in the position i'll be in soon....which kid is favored enough to get the rusty, bent ol' toad in the hole cutter!

[ChrisOC]

It's amazing. One egg, one slice of bread 1,000 names.

I think I like one eyed jack the best. Since I make toad in the hole (sausage and Yorkshire pudding) I couldn't use that name.

[Susie Q]

Daddy's side of the family called them "One Eyed Jacks". Mama's side called them "Hen's Nests".

I use both.

[star792]

We make this all the time! I always add oil to the pan and fry it that way and then the last step in to melt cheese on top. we call it eggy cheese- it was named when our son was little. We use drinking glasses or cookie cutters for the hole. I have used lots of different shapes. The cheese covers it up so if I am doing a fun one, I will skip the cheese. My husband has a drawing he did at 4 and it is a brown square with a yellow egg in the middle.

Edited July 13, 2009 by star792 (log)

[Fat Guy]

For those who don't flip, I have a question: how do you avoid making the bread soggy? In other words, if you griddle one side of the bread, flip it, add the egg and cover to finish, doesn't it get all steamy in there?

[andiesenji]

It seems that other people have had a similar discussion ongoing at several sites:

In the movies!

Kitchen Parade

The Blog that Ate Manhattan

And these were just three out of ten when I did a Google search for "gas house eggs."

And here is one from Saveur.

And one that mentions a movie in the '40s in which gas house eggs were prepared and also other alternate names for the dish.

Gas House Eggs

A Betty Grable film that was recently shown on TCM.

Odd convergences, don't you think?

Edited July 13, 2009 by andiesenji (log)

[chezcherie]

For those who don't flip, I have a question: how do you avoid making the bread soggy? In other words, if you griddle one side of the bread, flip it, add the egg and cover to finish, doesn't it get all steamy in there?

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i only cover it for about a minute, to set the egg a bit more, and the bread doesn't get soggy in that time. for some reason, i use a glass lid for this (and nothing else--it's the toad in the hole lid!) while it steams up, i can still kinda see what's goin' on in there, and a minute usually sets the yolk enough for the princess daughter's finicky preference.

[Reignking]

Never had it, never seen it, never heard of it.

Grew up in Philly & DC.

Edited July 13, 2009 by Reignking (log)

[divalasvegas]

I grew up in DC and we had these all the time and called them "Toad in a Hole."

Cooked in bacon fat and butter. I actually would just kind of pinch out a hole in the middle (the holes were always fried as well). Then put the bread in the pan adding a dot of butter inside the hole, letting it melt, before pouring in the egg. Served with bacon and sometimes the flipped side was topped with cheese.

FatGuy we never covered these after flipping so they never got soggy.

[Marlene]

I've found that an inverted glass only works well with soft, thin bread either from the supermarket bread shelf or crafted in that style (or brioche-type breads), not with most of the bread I eat, which tends to be fairly chewy sourdough, whole grain and bread of that sort, sliced thick. Bread like that, when you bear down on it with an inverted glass, you compress more than you cut. You've got to work on it with the tip of a knife, and that's harder to do if you've already buttered it.

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I agree with JAZ that a biscuit cutter would work, although I haven't tried it. See below.

Never had it, never seen it, never heard of it.

Grew up in Philly & DC.

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I thought perhaps I was the only one on the planet who has never had this. Must experiment soon.

[Jaymes]

FatGuy we never covered these after flipping so they never got soggy.

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Yeah, we never covered ours either. Not sure why you would, really.

And when I was young and newly married and we had a bunch of big partier friends, this was often what we served everybody for "breakfast" around three in the morning.

It's been a couple of decades since I was serving a crowd of slowly sobering up drunks breakfast around three in the morning.

But if any of you are still doing that, these eggs in bread are perfect.

[Doodad]

I thought perhaps I was the only one on the planet who has never had this.  Must experiment soon.

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Not at all. That is what got me fascinated. I was making it for my wife and she kept saying "what?" She had never seen it in a house that was both southern and northern. Go figure.

And then I discovered the army name I had always associated with it is a complete anomoly.

[Fat Guy]

i sometimes flip and sometimes don't. when i don't, i toast one side of the bread in the butter, then flip and add the egg. i then cover the pan for a little bit of the cooking time, to help the egg cook through. works great.

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This is what I was referring to when I asked if covering promotes sogginess.

[Reignking]

I grew up in DC and we had these all the time and called them "Toad in a Hole."

Cooked in bacon fat and butter. I actually would just kind of pinch out a hole in the middle (the holes were always fried as well). Then put the bread in the pan adding a dot of butter inside the hole, letting it melt, before pouring in the egg. Served with bacon and sometimes the flipped side was topped with cheese.

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I should qualify, then, that my family's culinary slant is towards Philly/NJ. Obsessed with sandwiches

[Lapin d'Argent]

I thought perhaps I was the only one on the planet who has never had this.  Must experiment soon.

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Not at all. That is what got me fascinated. I was making it for my wife and she kept saying "what?" She had never seen it in a house that was both southern and northern. Go figure.

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I had heard of it, but never had it, since I was never much of an egg person.

But my DH, who loves eggs, and is from NJ, has never even heard of it! But of course, as soon as I told him about it, he wants some now. Preferably with a dinosaur cut-out.

[chezcherie]

i sometimes flip and sometimes don't. when i don't, i toast one side of the bread in the butter, then flip and add the egg. i then cover the pan for a little bit of the cooking time, to help the egg cook through. works great.

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This is what I was referring to when I asked if covering promotes sogginess.

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i only cover it for about a minute, to set the egg a bit more, and the bread doesn't get soggy in that time. for some reason, i use a glass lid for this (and nothing else--it's the toad in the hole lid!) while it steams up, i can still kinda see what's goin' on in there, and a minute usually sets the yolk enough for the princess daughter's finicky preference.

this was my reply. not sure if you missed seeing this, fat guy, or if i misunderstand your post.

[Fat Guy]

Missed your post.

[nyokie6]

Toad in the hole-Brooklyn, New York-but the 1st time I had it was at Girl Scout Camp. We used to have precooked bacon in a can sometimes and would put that in the pan then the bread with the hole cut out and then add the egg. Turned briefly. All done over a wood fire and the favorite breakfast choice.

[divalasvegas]

I grew up in DC and we had these all the time and called them "Toad in a Hole."

Cooked in bacon fat and butter. I actually would just kind of pinch out a hole in the middle (the holes were always fried as well). Then put the bread in the pan adding a dot of butter inside the hole, letting it melt, before pouring in the egg. Served with bacon and sometimes the flipped side was topped with cheese.

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I should qualify, then, that my family's culinary slant is towards Philly/NJ. Obsessed with sandwiches

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Hi Reignking. I'd love to get obsessed with some Philly sandwiches, especially real Philly steak and cheese and that sandwich I've never had with roast beef, provolone, and Italian greens I think? I'd like one of those right now as a matter of fact.

Anyway back to the toad in a hole, I just wanted to ask how everyone likes the egg part? I prefer the egg to be runny which is why I was somewhat confused about the covering the pan part of cooking. In my very humble opinion, the cooking on one side to get the bread light brown--yes my preference--then the flip should be all that's needed to cook the egg, unless one likes it completely cooked through which would be an absolute heresy in my household.

[Jaymes]

Anyway back to the toad in a hole, I just wanted to ask how everyone likes the egg part? I prefer the egg to be runny which is why I was somewhat confused about the covering the pan part of cooking. In my very humble opinion, the cooking on one side to get the bread light brown--yes my preference--then the flip should be all that's needed to cook the egg, unless one likes it completely cooked through which would be an absolute heresy in my household.

Totally with you. We're an "over easy" family.

[Fat Guy]

The issue is that if you don't flip the egg, you're essentially cooking it sunny-side-up, which pretty much requires a cover for at least a minute or two.

[divalasvegas]

The issue is that if you don't flip the egg, you're essentially cooking it sunny-side-up, which pretty much requires a cover for at least a minute or two.

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Oh, okay, I understand but................ No, No NO-O-O-O-O!!! I can't understand since that's just plain wrong. So what, you end up with a tasty, crispy side and a soft, moist, squishy side? Oh well, to each their own, but still..........................

Edited July 16, 2009 by divalasvegas (log)

[Fat Guy]

The sunny-side-up people are saying they put the bread in the pan without the egg, griddle one side, flip the bread, add the egg, cover and let the egg set to sunny-side-up. Both sides of the bread get cooked. One side of the egg gets cooked. I haven't tried it.

[divalasvegas]

The sunny-side-up people are saying they put the bread in the pan without the egg, griddle one side, flip the bread, add the egg, cover and let the egg set to sunny-side-up. Both sides of the bread get cooked. One side of the egg gets cooked. I haven't tried it.

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Thanks for the clarification. Heck, I might even try it myself, although I've never really been a sunny side up person. And if I could, I'd be honored to make a "test" batch for the both of us--with bacon of course.

[maggiethecat]

I'm a sunny side up girl all the way, except in Eggs in a Hat. Covering the egg will soggy the bread. Gotta do that flip.