The All Day British Breakfast

Serves 2

This may not be absolutely the healthiest breakfast in the world but it’s a great way to serve up bacon and eggs that looks different, tastes great and is a lot better for you than the greasy spoon.

It’s perfect for a Sunday brunch, an early snack or a midnight feast. And it looks pretty impressive too.

2 very large firm Beefsteak tomatoes
8 rashers of rindless streaky bacon, preferably organic
8 oz button mushrooms
2 medium organic eggs
1 tsp butter
freshly ground black pepper


Cut the top off each tomato, scoop out all the contents carefully without piercing the wall. Leave upside down on kitchen paper to drain.

Dry fry the bacon till crisp, remove from pan and leave to drain on kitchen paper. Chop the mushrooms, add to the pan and cook briskly until just going crispy. Set aside to drain.

Crumble the bacon, putting half into each tomato.

Add the mushrooms, place tomatoes in a lightly oiled ovenproof dish and break one egg into each.

Dot the egg with a little butter, add freshly ground black pepper and put the dish in a preheated oven 180C/350F/gas mark 4 till the eggs are cooked (15-20 minutes).

Michael’s tip:
Don’t waste the inside of the tomatoes. Add to any vegetable juice, tomato sauce, or soup.

An easy way of hollowing out the tomatoes is to use a very sharp grapefruit knife.