Recipe: Ostara in Leith tells us how to make their customers' favourite brunch dish of mushroom baked egg

This easy (and extremely cheesy) dish is perfect for breakfast or brunch

Mushroom baked egg

This dish was put on Ostara’s autumn menu as a grown up egg and soldiers when Scottish chanterelles were available. Customers were pretty upset when the season ended and we took it off, so we kept it on with mushrooms changing throughout the year. For the poached egg element, the fresher they are, the better they will poach. Add about 10ml of white wine vinegar to the poaching water. Use a deep pot so the egg can form into a droplet shape as it falls through the water. It should be a Champagne bubble simmer. Too much of a boil and the aggravation in the water will push the egg apart and make the water all cloudy, not enough and the egg will spread as it heats and falls to the bottom of the pot.

Serves 1

150g seasonal mushrooms, if possible, or 2-3 different types for texture and flavour, sliced

100g grated Scottish smoked cheese (reserve about 20-30g for topping the egg)

2 tbsp herb pesto

1 medium organic or free range egg, as fresh as possible

Ostara's mushroom baked egg

70-100ml of double cream

salt and ground black pepper

sourdough toast soldiers for dipping

a sprig of basil to serve

1 Pre-heat the oven to 180oC.

2 Cook the sliced mushrooms in a frying pan on a medium heat for 3-4 minutes. Add 1 tablespoon of the herb pesto, the double cream and 70-80g of the smoked cheese. Turn down the heat and stir until the cheese has melted into the cream and thickened. Season with salt and pepper.

3 Turn off the heat and set aside while you poach an egg for two to three minutes, depending on your preference.

4 Place the mushroom and cheese mixture in a small crock pot or pie-dish, then place the poached egg on top. Sprinkle 20-30g of grated cheese over the egg, then bake until the cheese has melted. If you like your yolk soft, a few minutes should do.

5 Finish the dish with the remaining herb pesto on top of the melted cheese, and serve with a sprig of basil on top and the sourdough soldiers on the side.

52 Coburg Street Leith (0131 285 8019, www.ostaracafe.co.uk)

A message from the Editor:

Thank you for reading this article. We're more reliant on your support than ever as the shift in consumer habits brought about by coronavirus impacts our advertisers.

If you haven't already, please consider supporting our trusted, fact-checked journalism by taking out a digital subscription.