Chilling your hollandaise gives it the texture of soft butter, perfect for spreading on split biscuits, to top with a poached quail egg. If you like, add a bit of sliced deli ham or smoked salmon under the egg as well.

Ingredients

8 quail eggs

Hollandaise

3 large egg yolks
1 tbsp lemon juice
1 tsp Dijon mustard
Pinch salt
1/2 cup butter

Biscuits

1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1 tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp each salt and freshly ground black pepper
1/3 cup butter, cold
1/2 cup milk or cream
1/3 cup grated parmesan or asiago

Make It

Make the hollandaise: put egg yolks, lemon juice, mustard and salt into a blender; cover and pulse until blended. Melt butter on stovetop or in microwave, then, with blender running, slowly pour warm butter through the hole in the top. Blend until mixture thickens to a creamy consistency. (Alternatively, do all this in a measuring cup with a hand-held immersion blender.) Refrigerate until firm to the consistency of soft butter.

Make the biscuits: Preheat oven to 400 ̊F. In a medium bowl, stir together flour, baking powder, salt and pepper. Grate in butter using the coarse side of a box grater, add cheese and toss to combine. Add milk and stir just until dough comes together.

Gather it up, pat into a 6- to 7-inch square on a parchment-lined sheet and cut in quarters length- wise and crosswise, making 16 small square biscuits. If you like, brush the tops with a little milk. Bake for 15 to 18 minutes, or until golden.

Meanwhile, bring a pot of water to a boil, and have a bowl of ice water ready. Gently lower quail eggs into the boiling water and cook for 3 minutes; remove with a slotted spoon, transferring directly to the ice water bath. Once cool enough to handle, peel and cut each in half lengthwise.

Split each biscuit and spread bottoms with chilled hollandaise; top with half a quail egg and set biscuit lid leaning off to one side. Serves 8.