The Bagel Egg in a Hole, the Best Thing Since Bagels and Eggs

Many bread-like products can be the hole for a toad/egg: the classic piece of toast, but also a donut, biscuit, grilled cheese, pizza slice, pancake or waffle, kouign amann, or quesadilla. These options are fun, they probably taste good—but whether they're better than the sum of their parts is debatable. 

On the other hand, a bagel egg in a hole is better than eggs and bagels on their own. And this is saying a lot: I eat more eggs than anything else, and I chose my apartment in Oakland based on its proximity to a bagel shop (my last name also rhymes with bagel, which seems like an important detail).

The Bagel Egg in a Hole is nearing brilliance because:

• It takes approximately 3 minutes and exactly 5 ingredients to create. 
• The bagel gets cut in half before hitting the pan, so its belly griddled (h/t Marian Bull). It’s like diner toast, crisp with butter—but the inner depths of the bagel are pillowy and warmed. What did a toaster ever do for you?
• The egg yolk stays soft while the white parts get crispy. Don’t believe me? Lift up the bagel when it’s done and you’ll see a griddled bagel and little crackly brown bits of egg white. 
• It’s easier to make and eat than an egg sandwich: The yolk is contained in its hole and, when broken into, is immediately surrounded by bagel to mop it up. There’s also no flipping or moving of delicate egg—or layering of components while preserving said sensitive egg (some mornings, this is really hard. You know it).
• It's amenable to your bagel sandwich preferences: Melt cheese on top, add on bacon or greens, slather it in hot sauce and ketchup. The Bagel Egg in a Hole could be your end game—or your canvas.
• Stale bagels can get a second life—possibly as something more interesting than their first.
• One bagel feeds two people (this is more an option than proven fact. I have always eaten both halves.)

Bagel Egg in a Hole

Makes 2

1 bagel
1 tablespoon butter
2 eggs
Salt and freshly ground pepper

See the full recipe (and save and print it) here.

Photos by James Ransom