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Hollandaise sauce

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And although many cooks suggest using white pepper to avoid having a black speckled sauce, I still prefer to use black. Traditionally, hollandaise is made with lemon juice only, but the addition of vinegar gives it a lift.

Ingredients

200 g	Unsalted butter, at room temperature
50 ml	Water
75 ml	White wine vinegar
3	Eggs, yolks
½	Lemon, juice
1 to taste	Salt and freshly ground black pepper

Directions

Cut the butter into tablespoon-sized chunks. In a small saucepan, reduce the vinegar and water to one tablespoon.
Transfer this reduction into a bowl with sloping sides that will sit easily on a pot of barely simmering water.
Make sure the water does not touch the base of the bowl or you may end up scrambling the eggs.
Add the egg yolks to the bowl and whisk until thick. Add the butter gradually, whisking continuously until the sauce is thick and creamy.
If the sauce becomes too thick, add a tablespoon of hot water.
Season with the lemon juice, salt and pepper.

For hollandaise variations, try:

BÉARNAISE: use tarragon vinegar instead of wine vinegar, and add freshly chopped tarragon to the finished sauce. The classic partner to grilled fillet steak.

MOUSSELINE: fold 75ml of whipped cream through the finished hollandaise. Fabulous served over cold poached salmon.

PALOISE: add 2 tbsp of chopped mint. Magnificent with roast lamb.

MALTAISE: replace the lemon juice with blood orange juice, but normal orange juice will suffice. Perfect with new season's asparagus.