Bacon, Egg, and Cheese Sandwich, New York City Deli-Style
Makes 1
As most city parents know, at an all-too-early age, your kids rush out in the early morning on their way to school. You beg them to eat breakfast first but instead, if anything, they stop before school at the bagel shop or snack truck for fast food. When I watched our oldest son and his friend spend their entire junior year in high school perfecting a bacon, egg, and cheese breakfast sandwich to rival that of their favorite deli version, a lightbulb went off: replicate the sandwich, wrap it just right in parchment or foil, and hand each boy a portable breakfast as he heads out the door in the morning. As I learned from the boys, the magic combination is two eggs, not scrambled (but yolk broken), with melted cheese on each egg, served on a lightly buttered, griddled (not toasted) “everything” bagel.
INGREDIENTS
- 1 everything bagel, or other bagel of choice
- 1 tablespoon unsalted butter, plus more for buttering bagel
- 2 large eggs
- 1 thin slice cheese, such as American or cheddar
- 2 to 3 slices cooked bacon
- Hot sauce and/or ketchup, for serving
DIRECTIONS
- Slice bagel in half. Butter cut sides of each half and toast in a toaster oven or on a griddle (if using a pop-up toaster, butter halves after they are toasted).
- Meanwhile, heat a cast-iron or nonstick skillet. Add butter to skillet. Carefully crack both eggs into skillet. When whites begin to set, immediately puncture yolks.
- Top one egg with cheese and bacon. Place remaining egg, yolk-side down on top of bacon (like an egg-on-egg sandwich). Transfer eggs onto one toasted half of the bagel; top with remaining bagel half and lightly press together. Serve immediately with hot sauce or ketchup, or wrap halfway in parchment paper or aluminum foil for a portable breakfast.
cook's note
Abbreviated breakfast sandwich: If you’re in a hurry and your guys are about to run out the door, pile a couple of scrambled eggs on a toasted and buttered roll. Sprinkle on some salt and pepper, wrap in foil or parchment, and tuck a bit of paper towel in one of the outside seams. Put it in their backpacks or hand them off as they go.
Quick bacon: When you have some extra time, cook a pound or two of bacon. If you are cooking a lot of bacon, bake it in the oven [see page 45]. If pressed for time and making a smaller amount, use a skillet, but pay close attention since bacon goes from barely cooked to burned very easily. Drain, cool, and wrap in plastic, three strips per package. Freeze and pull out as needed for a quick breakfast or sandwich. Ten seconds in the microwave or a minute in a preheated pan and the bacon is ready to use.
Bagels: Buy fresh bagels in quantity when possible. As soon as you get home, cut each one in half, place the two halves in a sealed bag, and freeze immediately. Optimum freshness will be preserved, and frozen bagel halves can go straight into the toaster—a much better alternative to day old dry bagels or whole bagels you have to defrost before toasting. One caution: Beware the poppy seed bagel—it sheds its seeds in the freezer after a boy rips the bag, which one inevitably will do.
Quick bacon: When you have some extra time, cook a pound or two of bacon. If you are cooking a lot of bacon, bake it in the oven [see page 45]. If pressed for time and making a smaller amount, use a skillet, but pay close attention since bacon goes from barely cooked to burned very easily. Drain, cool, and wrap in plastic, three strips per package. Freeze and pull out as needed for a quick breakfast or sandwich. Ten seconds in the microwave or a minute in a preheated pan and the bacon is ready to use.
Bagels: Buy fresh bagels in quantity when possible. As soon as you get home, cut each one in half, place the two halves in a sealed bag, and freeze immediately. Optimum freshness will be preserved, and frozen bagel halves can go straight into the toaster—a much better alternative to day old dry bagels or whole bagels you have to defrost before toasting. One caution: Beware the poppy seed bagel—it sheds its seeds in the freezer after a boy rips the bag, which one inevitably will do.
pantry
Need help with the ingredients? Check our pantry list:
Photo by Mikkel Vang