Kaya Toast & Soft-Boiled Eggs

📝 Ingredients

• 5 eggs (1 for the kaya, 4 for the soft-boiled eggs)
• 50 ml coconut cream
• 25 g brown sugar
• ¼ tsp vanilla extract (instead of pandan)
• 4 slices wholemeal bread (about 35 g each)
• 10 g unsalted butter, well chilled
• 2 tsp soy sauce
• Fine salt, white pepper

🍴 Utensils

• Heatproof bowl
• 2 saucepans
• Whisk
• Flexible spatula
• Toaster
• 2 small bowls

📖 Steps

1. The day before, make the kaya: in the heatproof bowl, whisk 1 egg with the brown sugar and a pinch of salt for 1 min, until the sugar has almost dissolved. Add the coconut cream and vanilla, then whisk until smooth.
2. Set the bowl over a pan containing 3 cm of simmering water, without the bottom touching the water. Cook over a low heat for 12 to 15 min, stirring constantly with the spatula and scraping the sides well, until the mixture thickens and coats the spatula like pastry cream.
3. If the kaya has a few lumps, whisk it vigorously off the heat. Pour it into a small jar, leave to cool, then cover and keep in the fridge: it thickens further as it cools and keeps for 5 days.
4. In the morning, take the 4 eggs out of the fridge 15 min ahead to stop them cracking. Bring 1 litre of water to the boil in a pan, remove from the heat, gently lower in the eggs with a spoon, cover and leave to stand for 7 min.
5. Meanwhile, toast the slices of wholemeal bread in the toaster until nicely golden and crisp. Immediately spread two slices with a generous layer of kaya right to the edges, and cover the other two with thin slivers of cold butter.
6. Sandwich the slices together in pairs, filled sides facing in, pressing lightly, then cut each sandwich into two or three soldiers. The cold butter against the kaya is what makes this toast so special.
7. Take one egg out of the water and crack it sharply into a small bowl: the white should be barely set and the yolk runny. If it's still translucent, leave the others in the hot water for 1 to 2 min more, then crack them in turn, 2 eggs per bowl.
8. Season each bowl with 1 tsp soy sauce and a pinch of white pepper, stir lightly and serve immediately with the still-warm toast, for dipping straight into the eggs.