I love pesto sauce, like all Summer sun worshippers and Italophiles and these Pesto Potatoes with Soft-Boiled Eggs encourage pesto for breakfast. And this time of year, when basil is still abundant, but it’s time to thinking about preserving Summer’s abundance, I make lots and lots of pesto and freeze it. After all, there’s only so much pesto al pasta and pizza with pesto sauce that you can eat in any given week, but when you make it and freeze it for winter, the number of pesto dishes a person is able to consume is (thankfully) greatly increased. But it doens’t have to be pasta that you make for pesto all winter long. When you need some variety, these Pesto Potatoes with Soft-Boiled Eggs are a delicious use that makes Pesto great for an easy weeknight dinner, or even a great brunch. It’s really simple; we’re just making an alternative potato salad and then topping it with soft-boiled eggs, instead of my standard poached. Pesto Potatoes with Soft-Boiled Eggs are also a great shoulder season meal, as the potatoes feel a little more substantial and fall, or perfect for getting to enjoy some of your fresh basil in the dead of Winter. If you can find quail eggs, this can be a very cute and special brunch dish for Easter. Pesto Potatoes with Soft-Boiled Eggs is definitely a four-season meal.
- ½ cup pesto sauce + a little more if you like
- 4 cups boiled potatoes
- soft-boiled eggs (1 - 2 per person)
- fresh basil for garnish
- salt and pepper to taste
- Cut the potatoes into bite-sized cubes.
- Bring salted water to a boil. Reduce to a simmer. Add the room temperature eggs right into the pot and boil for 5-7 minutes. 5 minutes will be still a little runny in the yolk- these are more difficult to peel. 7 minutes will be starting to firm up in the yolk. Experiment until you know what you like; just keep in mind that soft-boiled eggs should not be stored for later, unlike hard-boiled eggs (they're not cooked completely, so there's a food safety risk). Remove eggs from water and run under cold water for a minute or so to stop the cooking. Peel. Meanwhile cook potatoes until they're fork tender.
- I like them a little soft for this potato salad, so they mush together a bit when you add the pesto. Remove to a large bowl and stir in the pesto.
- Season with salt and pepper and garnish with fresh basil. Slice the eggs in half and top the potato salad.
