Oeufs en cocotte

Baked eggs in cream-filled ramekins creates a richly flavored dish and it is very pretty presentation for the table.  The word cocotte has dual meanings:  a kind of pot and a flirtatious lady of a certain sort.  It is covered in cream and cooked in small ramekins, concealing its true nature, a bit like the second definition.  This is a sexy dish on its own, but a popular variation is to add chopped, blanched spinach to the cream, basil and peeled, seeded and diced tomatoes.

(4 servings)

INGREDIENTS:

2 cups of your favorite filling (about 1/2 cup per ramekin). Try sautéed or blanched veggies such as those suggested above, or crumbled bacon, diced prosciutto, cooked sausage

[optional, as it is just as easily omitted.] 8 eggs
¼ c. grated Comte, cheddar or parmesan cheese
4 t heavy cream (1 t per ramekin and you can substitute 1 t. milk and 1 t. butter if you don’t have heavy cream on hand)
Salt and pepper
4 (6-8 oz) ramekins

INSTRUCTIONS:

Preheat oven to 350°F with rack in middle.

Distribute filling evenly among 4 ramekins, after coating each with a bit of butter. Put the cream (or milk and butter in the bottom).  Crack 2 eggs into each ramekin. Sprinkle grated cheese among ramekins and dot the surface with olive oil. Season lightly with salt and pepper.

Put ramekins in a shallow baking pan and bake, rotating pan halfway through baking, until whites are just set but yolks are still runny, about 15 to 20 minutes. Serve with toast for dipping.