Try Pesto Eggs – They are all the rage!

Margaret Hudson
Présidente et directrice générale des Fermes Burnbrae
4^e génération d'agriculteurs

Fans of eggs already know that they taste great with so many different flavour combinations, from savoury to sweet. So it’s always fun when a new egg-based trend comes along to tantalize taste buds and mix things up in your egg routine. Enter pesto eggs.

This winning combination has skyrocketed in popularity. A quick search on social media shows the #pestoeggs hashtag trending on TikTok with 174,000,000 views already (and it’s probably even more since the time we hit “publish” on this post!).

It all started with a recipe video for pesto eggs by TikTok user Amy Wilichowski, which soon went viral with over 11 million views. Soon everyone was trying pesto eggs!

Why is it so popular? It likely has to do with the winning combination of flavours when you balance eggs with rich and savoury pesto, a traditional Italian sauce made with basil, pine nuts, Parmesan, garlic and olive oil.

Whether it’s store-bought or homemade, pesto is simple, yet elegant and delicious. In this recipe idea, you use pesto as the fatty base when frying or scrambling eggs. Because pesto contains oil, it can replace the usual knob of butter that you add to the pan. What a great idea!

Want to get in on the trend? Try this simple recipe:

Pesto Fried Eggs on Toast

Ingredients

-   2 tbsp basil pesto

-   2 eggs

-   2 slices toast

-   Salt, pepper and red chili flakes, to taste

Instructions

Add pesto to a frying pan set over medium heat. Once hot, carefully crack eggs into frying pan. Cook until egg whites solidify, and yolk is cooked to your liking. Slide onto your toast, and top with salt, pepper and a pinch of chili flakes.

If fried eggs aren’t your preference, you can follow the steps above, but scramble the eggs instead. Another delicious option is to hard-boil the eggs, chop them and mash them with pesto in place of mayonnaise. Scoop into a pita pocket or sandwich, pile into a pita pocket or spread on your favourite sandwich bread for a new twist.

Change Up Your Pesto

As I was digging into this trend, I found so many variations of pesto to suit people who have different food preferences, grocery budgets, food allergies or intolerances. Here are some tips if you want to change up your pesto:

-   Pine nuts can be expensive. Try replacing them with blanched almonds, cashews, walnuts or pistachios. If you have a nut allergy and want to use seeds instead, try sunflower or pumpkin seeds in your pesto. They work well!

-   If you don’t have Parmesan on-hand, you can replace it with pecorino, asiago or Grana Padano cheese. If you are not eating dairy, you can replace the Parmesan with a vegan Parm option, or a few tablespoons of nutritional yeast, which is a flaky, non-active savoury yeast condiment.

Other Yummy Variations

Once you master the basic pesto egg recipe, you’ll want to experiment with these amazing flavour combinations. Here are some other ideas to try:

-   Top your pesto scrambled eggs with a slice of bacon.

-   Melt mozzarella cheese on your toast and top it with pesto eggs, sliced tomatoes and fresh basil.

-   Top your salty and savoury pesto eggs with a drizzle of sweet honey for a flavour explosion.

-   Add mashed avocado and spinach to your toast base and top with pesto eggs.

-   Make an omelette using pesto as the base. Fold shaved parmesan, fried mushrooms and tomatoes into the middle.

-   Make breakfast bowls on a base of quinoa and kale. Add the pesto egg on top, and sprinkle with salt, pepper, feta cheese and chili flakes

Pesto eggs are great at breakfast, brunch, lunch or dinner. Enjoy!

Margaret Hudson,

President, Burnbrae Farms