Man in the Moon
February 11, 2009
My dad used to make these eggs for us growing up, and we called them “man in the moon.” This dish may be the most widely-nicknamed food in the universe: a quick search yields dozens of ways to call an egg cooked inside a piece of toast. Egg in a basket may be more common, but J.’s family called it “man in a boat” and our good friend swears they are “gas house eggs.” The Kitchn at Apartment Therapy also points out that these eggs have been made famous in several movies. Whatever you call them, they’re good, and I made them for dinner last night.
I keep my wheat bread frozen, and lightly butter both sides while it is still rock-hard from the freezer. Then, using a glass (a shot glass works well), cut a circle out of the center of each slice. Place the bread and cut-outs in a skillet over medium heat, and put a dab of butter in the empty circle area — once it’s melted, crack an egg on top of it. You can season the egg with salt and pepper if you want, but I don’t. Cook until the bread is lovely and toasted underneath, then flip and continue cooking on the other side. I like my eggs a little runny, but for the boys I cook them all the way through.
G. was very excited that I was making man in the moon for dinner, and requested that I make his without the egg. So, you want bread fried in butter? Sorry buddy, but the egg is part of a package deal.
The boys ate around the egg for the most part. But I was happy because A. ate all the honeydew and blueberries on his plate and then asked for more honeydew. I attribute his willingness at least in part to me calling it “sports candy,” which is what Sportacus, the super-fit main character in LazyTown, calls fruit. A. got a chuckle out of that, and it was enough to make him try it. He’s been on a bit of a fruit and vegetable strike lately (even more so than usual) so I was glad to see him enjoying something other than a carbohydrate.
Doesn’t the plate look pretty?
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Filed under: Breakfast,Things I Love,Veggie Mains
I'm Dara, the Chick in the Kitchen. Living in the suburbs of Manhattan with my two school-aged boys and husband. Feeding my family something more diverse than a different shape of pasta each night. Read more 
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7 Comments
1.
Aunt Barbara | February 11, 2009 at 4:36 pm
Your plate sure does look pretty! (We always called it “Egg in a Hole.”)
2.
LP | February 11, 2009 at 10:05 pm
My Italian neighbors from when I was a kid always made this with Italian bread, natch. Whenever I see this dish it reminds me of the breakfast scene in “Moonstruck.” (Can you guess my heritage?) I’m so tired of cereal for breakfast, so I think I’ll give this a try this weekend!
3.
Jodi | February 12, 2009 at 10:14 am
G always cracks me up! I like your tip about starting with frozen bread…i’ll try that next time because when make this the eggs tend to run all over under the bread on one side and that irritates my kids;) I’ve always known it as “toad in the hole” which is just gross.
4.
Margie | February 13, 2009 at 9:34 am
We called it “toad in the hole” too! I love your photo! Makes me hungry!
5.
Julie | February 13, 2009 at 10:28 pm
I was just about to write in about our “egg in a hole”, but I see my mom beat me to it! I’ve actually made this several times lately!
6.
Sharon | February 16, 2009 at 8:56 am
This is a breakfast favorite around here, and we call them “Man on the Moon”. The kids love the circle toast!
7. Gas House Eggs | The Blog&hellip | February 27, 2010 at 12:24 am
[...] Whole Wheat Bread makes a great Gas House Egg [...]
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