Judy recognized it immediately as the Bullseye I learned to love (and cook) at dear old Camp Cherokee. Other names offered by readers were Port Hole, Toad in the Hole, Shotgun Toast, Gas House Eggs, Birdie in the Nest, and Egg in the Window. One mother wrote in that when her kids were little she added a slice of melted cheese on top and called it Egg in a Hole with a Blankie. I loved that one!The essential component of any of these variations is that you cut a hole in the bread and cook an egg (or 2) in and on the toast. You can add bacon, cheese, or other favorite ingredients.
It put me in the mood to cook up one of these old Camp Cherokee standards. And this is how it went, step by step.
Getting ready: Canola oil, one slice of wheat bread (use white, if you prefer), two eggs (one will suffice)
Neatly cut out the "bullseye." Or recruit your young "camper" for this fun task.
Since I was doing two eggs, I cracked one first and let it get almost done before adding the bread.
Bread over the egg makes an easy target.
I wasn't going to redo this over and over until a got a pretty picture. What you see is what you get. Egg number 2 scores a direct hit. Another bullseye.
I'm not a purist, and I like to mix my yolk with the egg white, so my final product looks more like a mini-omelet on hole-y bread. But it's still a bullseye in principle. And it still tasted delish!
Now for a little more on my special memories of Bullseyes at Camp Cherokee. This wasn't something we cooked up while at camp. It was reserved for overnighters. And especially, as in the picture below, we took a large group to a favorite place like Courthouse Creek or Cherokee, NC. There, it was easiest to set up an assembly line. Selected campers had the tasks of cutting the holes in the bread, cracking the eggs, etc. It was the only way to feed dozens of campers and counselors fast. My first bullseye was cooked by camp patriarch John McConnell, respectfully known as Great White Father. And if your bullseye wasn't quite perfect, John Mac wasn't the sort of person you'd mention it to. But they were always perfect. Camping food always is!
I hope a lot of my readers today are former Cherokees visiting from Facebook. I'm going to be posting a lot more blogs in the future about cherished camp memories. I think all my readers will find some connections.
