Like most children, my kids love Dr. Seuss and we go through serious Seuss phases where we read a Seuss book every night. (My personal favorite is The Butter Battle Book). As you might imagine, when they were slightly younger, Green Eggs & Ham was a favorite for both kids. While there are many green eggs & ham recipes on the Internet, this benedict version is intended to be a bit more grown-up. 

Most Green Eggs & Ham recipes involve dying the eggs a bright green color which is cool as a gimmick, but not exactly what I want for breakfast. So, I decided to make a more natural green eggs & ham recipe that centers around a deliciously light green hollandaise sauce that gets drizzled over the whole plate.

It’s a fantastic flavor combo and the hollandaise is actually easier to make than the classic version. The whole thing can be done and on the table in less than thirty minutes and would actually be a great alternative to the classic Easter brunch! Thanks Sam-I-Am!

How are green eggs made?

Spoiler: There are no green eggs in nature. Well, if you do find one, I wouldn’t eat it. 

There are two basic ways you can make actual green eggs. First, you could just add green food coloring to the eggs as you scramble them. This will give you that cartoonish green you might be looking for. 

If you want a more natural (but still very green) version of scrambled eggs, you can blend spinach into the eggs using a really good blender and you’ll end up with fairly bright green eggs. Check out this version from Eating Richly for a good walk-through on that process. 

I take a little different approach for my version. Since I’m poaching my eggs, I didn’t really want to dye them green so I turned to making a nice green sauce!

How to make green sauce for benedicts?

Technically, neither the eggs nor the ham are green for this recipe, but because you slather everything in this delicious green hollandaise it all ends up being green.

Green Eggs and Ham Hollaindaise
Avocado mix.

This hollandaise is ridiculously easy to make. Instead of dealing with the whole egg yolk thing, just toss half an avocado in a blender with some hot water and lemon juice. Plus, add in some paprika, salt, and pepper.

Pulse that together and then add in some fresh parsley (extra green) and drizzle in melted butter or extra-virgin olive oil as the blender runs.

Perfect sauce! I would recommend tasting the sauce and adjusting the seasoning to your liking.

Green Eggs and Ham Sauce
Nice color

If your version is too thick, you can always thin it out with more hot water by the tablespoon.

How to make excellent poached eggs

I  make a lot of poached eggs. I prefer to add a little vinegar to my lightly simmering water and then add my eggs to a small bowl to avoid shells in the water. Slide the eggs in the hot water and poach for about three minutes. That should give you set whites with a still runny yolk. 

Poached Eggs
Egg biz.

Drain the eggs on a few paper towels and you are ready to serve.

Finishing the Green Eggs and Ham

Toast an English muffin and sear some ham slices in a skillet with a little olive oil. Nothing fancy here. Top everything together and drizzle lots of that green sauce on top!

Seared Ham Steak
Ham!

Garnish the dish with some chopped parsley or green onions.

Say hello to a green eggs and ham that you’ll actually want to eat. Yes, on a plane and yes, on a train!

Green Eggs and Ham Benedict.

Substitutions for this Green Eggs and Ham

There are lots of options for substitutions here!

  • For a vegetarian version, you can leave out the ham (and exist the world of Dr. Seuss) and substitute something like sauteed mushrooms or kale.
  • To up the green element even more, add some pesto to your toast or english muffin before serving.
  • Add more toppings to the green eggs and ham like parmesan cheese or more fresh herbs for color and flavor. 

What to serve with these green eggs and ham

This is a pretty hardy breakfast as-is so there isn’t a need to necessarily serve it with something else, but if you are feeling like it I would serve this with something light like this Fruit Tapioca pudding. As an alternative to the English muffin you could serve the whole thing on these potato nests! Of course, home fries would always be good as well! Any other ideas for serving? Leave a comment!

Green Eggs & Ham

5 from 1 vote
Author: Nick Evans
Servings: 2 Servings
Prep Time: 10 minutes
Cook Time: 15 minutes
Total Time: 30 minutes
An upgrade for the classic green eggs and ham, this recipe is a nod to the Dr. Seuss book of the same name. All-natural ingredients in this benedict version!

Ingredients 

Green Hollandaise Sauce:

  • ½ avocado
  • ½ lemon, juice only
  • ½ teaspoon paprika
  • Pinch salt and pepper
  • 2 tablespoons fresh parsley
  • cup hot water
  • 4 tablespoons melted butter or olive oil

Other stuff:

  • English muffins, toasted
  • Ham steak, seared
  • 4 eggs, poached
  • White vinegar
  • Parsley, garnish

Instructions

  • For sauce, add avocado, lemon juice, hot water and seasonings to a blender and pulse a few times. Then, with the blender running, slowly drizzle in olive oil or butter. Then add fresh parsley. If sauce seems too thick you can add more water. Set aside for later.
  • Toast English muffins and sear ham in a skillet with a little olive oil.
  • For poached eggs, add a few inches of water to a wide pan with a glug of vinegar. Bring it to a light simmer. Crack in eggs gently and cook for about 3 minutes until whites are set in the eggs, but yolks are still soft.
  • Remove eggs and drain on some paper towels.
  • Place seared ham on toasted english muffins and top with poached eggs. Pour over green hollandaise and fresh parsley. Eat immediately!

Notes

Avocado Hollandaise inspired by this Food & Wine recipe.

Nutrition

Serving: 2benedicts | Calories: 418kcal | Carbohydrates: 8g | Protein: 13g | Fat: 39g | Saturated Fat: 18g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 4g | Monounsaturated Fat: 14g | Trans Fat: 1g | Cholesterol: 388mg | Sodium: 314mg | Potassium: 443mg | Fiber: 4g | Sugar: 1g | Vitamin A: 1837IU | Vitamin C: 25mg | Calcium: 77mg | Iron: 2mg
Course: Breakfast & Brunch, Main Dishes
Cuisine: American

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Tag @crunchtimekitchen