Soft-Boiled Eggs

I have been on a soft-boiled egg kick lately. You know why? Because after 22.5 years on this planet I finally learned how to consistently make them. There is nothing more frustrating than getting up early to make Buttery Herb-Gruyere Toast (which smells of heaven), then cutting into the egg only to find out the yolk is hard and totally not dip-able. Heartbreak tastes of delicious garlic gruyere toast and crumbly yolk, friends. It does not taste good.

I changed my mind soon after I bee-lined for the new issue of Cook's Illustrated on Sue's kitchen counter a few week ago and stumbled upon the feature on soft-cooked eggs. CI definitely has a knack for making things unnecessarily complicated. Who wants to read three pages of instruction for such a simple dish? (I do!) I can see how it's a turn-off to most people. Let me distill it to 3 sentences for you.

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Fill a pot with enough water to come up roughly 1/2 inch, and bring to boil. Gently lower the eggs in the water (which won't cover the eggs), cover the pot, and boil/steam for 6 minutes and 30 seconds. Run cold water over the eggs, peel, and enjoy the runny yolk goodness.

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Whole wheat tortilla and avocado is entirely optional. Freshly ground pepper is not.