Sunday, August 30, 2009

Foods of Durham Past: Peek-a-Boo Eggs

Like a lot of dads, mine had certain things he made all the time, and he made them really well. When Dad was in the kitchen, he made English Toffee (not often enough), lime lemon ice cream, custard, Swedish pancakes, oatmeal (although I really think mine is better -- sorry Dad) and, of course, "peek-a-boo" eggs.

A lot of parents try to make food fun for their kids by making it into animal shapes or putting faces on it. I guess this dish brings the classic game of peek-a-boo to the breakfast table.

I was just thinking, I have this memory of being at my great-grandma's house in Payson when I was seven or eight years old. We were eating breakfast and I watched her dip toast in her eggs and thought that was the strangest thing in the world. I guess it only made sense to me if the egg was fried directly into the center of the toast.

Anyway, I loved it when Dad made these. Asking Dad to make something for you was often not worth the trouble because the favor usually came with a list of conditions that involved making sure the kitchen was spotless, the garbage was taken out and any other earmarked items he could throw in.

BUT, if I was lucky, I would be up in my bed in the morning, still waking up and I would hear my dad come out of the kitchen and yell, "Laur? Do you want a peek-a-boo egg?" And I did.

Try it. They're fun.

Would I eat it again? Sure.
Would I make it again? Yes.
Would I feed it to friends? Only special ones.

9 comments:

carter said...

the coolest part is cutting the circle out with a drinking glass.

Saule Cogneur said...

That's a fun title. Officially, I think you call them an "egg in a basket."

Steph said...

Funny, my family called it "eggs in a frame"

Sue S said...

Laura, I think it's time to bring out the puffed-rice candy, unless of course your mom never made it at your house. It was a favorite when we were growing up, so maybe an homage to Grandma would work here.

Lisa Marie Trent said...

I don't remember them ever looking that good.... yours looks all buttery and delicious. Mine usually had bits of burned char on it.

That one looks tasty.

Laura Lee said...

Mike, I doubt there's an "official" name for these.

Susan, my mom never made those for us. In fact, when we made them for our little Christmas party thingy that was the first time I ever tried those.

Lisa, it was the best one I ever made. Probably because I didn't skimp on the butter.

Ilene said...

I remember you making this during college and wondering if it was worth the trouble.

But this is coming from a girl who doesn't like fried eggs.

What is it with men and breakfast foods? My dad was the one who made us wheat pancakes and Dan makes the best scrambled eggs.

Kristi said...

Can we have a dinner some night where we eat all the things you've been talking about? Something to think about.

Lisa Marie Trent said...

Next I think you should do dad's grated cheddar cheese on a plate, then microwaved, and eaten with a fork.

UGh.