Foaming Hollandaise

I tend nearly always to make this version of Hollandaise Sauce now. What happens here is that the egg whites are whisked to soft peaks and folded into the sauce as soon as it's made. The advantages are legion: firstly it lightens the sauce, so not quite so many calories, and you get a greater volume, so it goes further. It will never curdle because the egg whites stabilise the whole thing, which means you can happily keep it warm in a bowl fitted over simmering water. That's not all: you can also re-heat it in the same way, which means you can make it the day before. Finally, it will even freeze, which means that anything left over can be stored for a rainy day. This supremely wonderful sauce can be used for serving with asparagus or artichokes, or with any kind of grilled or poached fish or my Smoked Fish Creams recipe. And served with Eggs Benedict, it's a positive star.

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This recipe is taken from How to Cook Book One

Method

Begin by placing the egg yolks in a small bowl and season them with a pinch of salt and pepper. Then place them in a food processor or blender and blend them thoroughly for about 1 minute. After that, heat the lemon juice and white wine vinegar in a small saucepan until the mixture starts to bubble and simmer. Switch the processor or blender on again and pour the hot liquid on to the egg yolks in a slow, steady stream. After that, switch the processor or blender off.

Now, using the same saucepan, melt the butter over a gentle heat, being very careful not to let it brown. When the butter is foaming, switch the processor or blender on once more and pour in the butter in a thin, slow, steady trickle; the slower you add it the better. (If it helps you to use a jug and not pour from the saucepan, warm a jug with boiling water, discard the boiling water and then pour the butter mixture into that first.)

When all the butter has been incorporated, wipe around the sides of the processor bowl or blender with a spatula to incorporate all the sauce, then give the sauce one more quick burst and you should end up with a lovely, smooth, thick, buttery sauce. Now whisk the remaining 2 egg whites to soft peaks in a large clean mixing bowl and fold into the sauce immediately.

Note: this recipe contains raw eggs