Breakfast for my Valentine

Take classic Egg In A Hole to the next level like I did when I made breakfast for my Valentine. Heart-shaped bacon is fun and cute, too!

Here’s a fun, simple way to surprise your loved ones this Valentine’s Day or any day of the year. This was breakfast for my Valentine the other day and it was such a hit that I’ll be serving it again and again. No printable recipe here, but you get the idea through the photos as I go from start to finish in all of about 20 minutes.

Start with the bacon hearts. I got this cute and clever recipe at The Paper Mama. All you do is cut your bacon in half and arrange in the shape of a heart. I sprinkled mine with a little fresh black pepper, then baked for about 15-20 minutes in a preheated 400F degree oven.

While the bacon is cooking, heat a non-stick pan over medium and melt about 1/2 tablespoon of butter in the pan. Using a cookie cutter, I cut out a heart shape in the middle of his favorite slice of bread. I also put a tiny bit of butter on both sides of the bread to help it toast quickly. Place the bread and cut-out into your heated pan.

After a minute or two, turn the bread over and carefully crack an egg into the center of the heart. Once the egg starts to turn opaque at the place where it’s touching the pan, flip it over with a spatula (careful not to break the yolk) and continue cooking until the egg reaches anywhere from soft to well-done, whatever the preference. That’s almost it!

Now you have your bacon hearts cooked and your heart-egg is ready to plate. Last but not least, melt about 2 tablespoons of chocolate chips in your microwave until you can stir smooth (45 seconds to one minute). Add a few drops of light oil to make the chocolate easy to write with (do NOT use water). Pour the chocolate into the corner of a small Ziploc bag and cut a very, very small corner of the bag. Write whatever message you want on the outside of the plate and serve it with all your love! By the way, the bacon tastes like a decadent treat when dipped in the chocolate message. I hope you enjoy it as much as we did.

Cook’s note: One variation that you might enjoy; cook the heart-egg into the center of a thick slice of French toast. For French toast, turn the bread twice before adding the egg.