Boxing Day Bubble and Squeak

1. Set the oven to a low heat, and gently warm 2 or 3 plates in it. Place a large frying pan over a medium heat. If using, add the pancetta, bacon or ham and sauté briskly, until crisp. For the last couple of minutes of cooking, add the diced white parts of the spring onions and cook until slightly softened. (If you’re not using meat, just sauté the spring onion in butter or flavourless cooking oil.) Remove from the heat and lift out the meat and onion, leaving the fat behind. Place in a large bowl with the green parts of the spring onions, the leftover potatoes and vegetables, the greens and some salt and pepper. Mix, then use a potato masher to roughly crush the potatoes and vegetables.
2. Place the frying pan back over the heat. When hot, add the vegetables to the pan and spread out, pressing the mixture down to form a fairly even layer. Cook without stirring until the vegetables begin to brown and caramelize on the bottom. Gently flip the mixture over — it won’t hold together, don’t worry — so that the top is on the bottom.
3. Meanwhile, poach a couple of eggs per person.
4. When the bottom of the bubble and squeak is golden brown, remove from the heat and arrange a couple of spoonfuls of it on each warmed plate. Top with the poached eggs, a spoonful of hollandaise and a sprinkling of the chopped fresh herbs. Season with a little salt and some black pepper just before serving.

Easy hollandaise:

1. Place the butter in a small pan set over a medium heat and melt.
2. Meanwhile, place the egg yolks, lemon juice, vinegar and 1 teaspoon of cold water in a small cup or jug, into which you can snugly fit the head of an immersion blender — it won’t emulsify if you use a bowl. Blitz until smooth and combined.
3. Once the butter is bubbling merrily, remove from the heat and allow to cool just until the bubbles subside. Spoon 1 teaspoonful of hot butter into the cup and run the immersion blender until the butter is completely combined with the yolk mixture. Repeat 3 times. The butter will emulsify into the egg yolks. Now, you can drizzle the warm butter into the cup with the immersion blender running — you might need an extra pair of hands for this, to hold the cup still. The milk solids will have settled in the bottom of the pan; omit this from the sauce. The mixture will thicken and form a rich hollandaise.
4. The sauce will probably be a little thick at this point, in which case gradually add 2 or 3 teaspoons of cold water, or more, to thin it. Next, taste the hollandaise. Depending on your butter, it may need a little more salt, or it could need a little more lemon or vinegar, but add them very conservatively, tasting as you go.
5. Use on the day you make it, ideally straight away, as once chilled, it can’t easily be warmed up again.

1. Set the oven to a low heat, and gently warm 2 or 3 plates in it. Place a large frying pan over a medium heat. If using, add the pancetta, bacon or ham and sauté briskly, until crisp. For the last couple of minutes of cooking, add the diced white parts of the scallions and cook until slightly softened. (If you’re not using meat, just sauté the scallion in butter or flavourless cooking oil.) Remove from the heat and lift out the meat and onion, leaving the fat behind. Place in a large bowl with the green parts of the scallions, the leftover potatoes and vegetables, the greens and some salt and pepper. Mix, then use a potato masher to roughly crush the potatoes and vegetables.
2. Place the frying pan back over the heat. When hot, add the vegetables to the pan and spread out, pressing the mixture down to form a fairly even layer. Cook without stirring until the vegetables begin to brown and caramelize on the bottom. Gently flip the mixture over — it won’t hold together, don’t worry — so that the top is on the bottom.
3. Meanwhile, poach a couple of eggs per person.
4. When the bottom of the bubble and squeak is golden brown, remove from the heat and arrange a couple of spoonfuls of it on each warmed plate. Top with the poached eggs, a spoonful of hollandaise and a sprinkling of the chopped fresh herbs. Season with a little salt and some black pepper just before serving.

Easy hollandaise:

1. Place the butter in a small pan set over a medium heat and melt.
2. Meanwhile, place the egg yolks, lemon juice, vinegar and 1 teaspoon of cold water in a small cup or jug, into which you can snugly fit the head of an immersion blender — it won’t emulsify if you use a bowl. Blitz until smooth and combined.
3. Once the butter is bubbling merrily, remove from the heat and allow to cool just until the bubbles subside. Spoon 1 teaspoonful of hot butter into the cup and run the immersion blender until the butter is completely combined with the yolk mixture. Repeat 3 times. The butter will emulsify into the egg yolks. Now, you can drizzle the warm butter into the cup with the immersion blender running — you might need an extra pair of hands for this, to hold the cup still. The milk solids will have settled in the bottom of the pan; omit this from the sauce. The mixture will thicken and form a rich hollandaise.
4. The sauce will probably be a little thick at this point, in which case gradually add 2 or 3 teaspoons of cold water, or more, to thin it. Next, taste the hollandaise. Depending on your butter, it may need a little more salt, or it could need a little more lemon or vinegar, but add them very conservatively, tasting as you go.
5. Use on the day you make it, ideally straight away, as once chilled, it can’t easily be warmed up again.