By Janice R. Edwards
Contributing Writer
April 16 was National Eggs Benedict Day. Emily Banks Wooten drew that fact to our attention in her April 12 Bite by Bite column. With Mother’s Day on the horizon, I guess a lot of us are contemplating making some version of Eggs Benedict for the moms in our lives. But if you have ever tried your hand at this culinary delight, you know the essence of the dish is the Hollandaise Sauce. And if you ever attempted making it, you know how tricky it is to make the perfectly smooth velvety sauce. At least half the time, if you are not careful, it will curdle on you – and you’ll have to begin again.
I’d like to share with you a no-fail instant Hollandaise Sauce I learned years ago when Roy and I lived on the coast. I’d like to share that recipe and the story that goes with it which proves it never fails. OK, I’ll also give you the recipe for the Trout Marguery I was making the sauce for.
The proof this Hollandaise Sauce will not curdle:
On a sunny summer’s day, Roy and I were hosting Michael and Virginia Falson (friends Roy worked with from the Harris Co. Sheriff ’s Dept.) for a weekend of night fishing off our dock. The Speckled Trout were in and all four of us had caught our limit, so the next day we decided to cook something special with those trout – Trout Marguery – one of those sinful New Orleans-style fish recipes whose soul is the sauce. The base for this sauce was – you guessed it – Hollandaise Sauce.
I don’t know if any of you have ever made that sauce, but it takes an act of Congress and holding your mouth just right to make it without curdling. And trust me, I messed up more than one batch of Hollandaise sauce by trying to rush it. I had just found this “Instant” Blender Hollandaise Sauce recipe and had decided to try it out on this occasion. Virginia and I were in the kitchen cooking while the boys were cleaning up and taking a break on the deck.
The fish was baking, and all other prep work for the Trout Marguery was complete. Roy and I had recently purchased one of those retractable awnings to cover our deck and it was pulled out sheltering the guys from the merciless coastal sun when a front started through. The winds picked up and Roy decided that the awning had to retract or we’d lose it. Just as I started to pour the melted butter into the blender to finish the sauce, a gust came up and the awning became a giant sail. The guys screamed for Virginia and me to hold down the awning while they rolled it up. With no trees or any other wind break for miles, the gusts were strong and once even lifted Virginia and me off our feet. Working together, we managed to get the awning retracted without losing it. Meanhile, the half-made Hollandaise sauce lay in the blender. I just knew we’d have to start it all over again.
Then I realized there were not enough lemons to start again. So, I heated up the butter and finished up the sauce in the blender. It was … perfect. No curdles. So, I’ve kept that recipe for “instant” Hollandaise Sauce – used it on Eggs Benedict a couple of times and this fish dish a few times as well. It’s always perfect.
Note of caution: Don’t cut corners with this recipe. ALWAYS use real butter and squeeze the lemons for fresh juice.
With no more ado, here’s my “secret” sauce – followed by the fish recipe. Enjoy.
Instant Blender Hollandaise Sauce (this will not curdle on you)
2 sticks butter (NEVER MARGARINE)
4 egg yolks
2 tablespoons fresh squeezed lemon juice
1/8 teaspoon cayenne
½ teaspoon salt
Melt the butter in a small skillet and set it aside. Place the egg yolks, lemon juice, cayenne, and salt in a blender, and mix them at the lowest speed. Pour in the butter slowly, blending all the while. When the mixture has absorbed all the butter and fluffed out, it’s done.
Trout Marguery
4½ pound fillets of trout (or 8 small ones)
1 stick butter
¼ cup dry white wine
1 cup shrimp, boiled, peeled, and chopped
1 cup crab meat
1 cup fresh mushrooms, sliced and cooked in butter
Cayenne
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
2 cups of Hollandaise sauce
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Melt butter in a flat-bottomed oven pan and add the wine.
Season the fillets with salt, pepper, and a little cayenne, and lay them in the pan. Bake in the oven for 15 to 20 minutes, or until the fish flakes when tested with a fork. While the fish are cooking, make two cups of Hollandaise sauce. Heat the chopped shrimp, crabmeat, and mushrooms in a small saucepan, and add them to the Hollandaise sauce, stirring rapidly to mix well. Place the trout fillets on preheated serving plates, put a blanket of the sauce over them and serve immediately. The dish is so rich that the wine you serve should be VERY, VERY dry.
