Six year-old egg fanatic invents new egg recipe

A young boy from Gloucestershire may be the new Jamie Oliver after inventing a new egg recipe and embarking on a virtual culinary tour of the world following life-saving heart surgery.

Six year-old Barnaby Reid from Bussage near Stroud was diagnosed with a hole in his heart and two leaking heart valves in June 2010 and had open heart surgery at Bristol Children’s hospital three months later.  

When he came home from hospital, he was put on daily tablets to manage his blood pressure – one side-effect of which is a strong metallic taste in his mouth, affecting his experience of certain flavours.

Eggs in all their forms provided the solution for the brave cook whose favourite dish – poached eggs and ham with broccoli and cheese sauce on English muffins – dubbed ‘Eggs Barnaby’ – has been snapped up for publication on the British egg industry’s official website, which receives more than 100,000 visits every year.

In true Jamie style, Barnaby has embarked on an ambitious culinary journey to enjoy egg dishes from around the world. The inventive young cook may not be leaving his kitchen, but has already ‘travelled’ to 1940s New York to enjoy Eggs Benedict; stopped off for quiche in France; tried Irish scrambled eggs and egg fried rice from China.
Barnaby’s mum, Fiona Reid and siblings Joshua (8) and Cassia (3), are helping Barnaby with his virtual tour of the world by cooking a different egg recipe each week and recording the details on a self-made chart, Barnaby’s Egg Tour of the World, which is also available on the British Egg Information Service website.

Barnaby says: “My best day of the week is Saturday because that’s when we try a new egg recipe. It’s fun to decide which recipe to cook next and my brother and sister help out too. Mummy stuck the ‘Egg Tour of the World’ in a scrapbook and we put a tick next to the recipes we make. My favourite so far is Eggs Benedict – it’s what gave me the idea for Eggs Barnaby.”

Fiona Reid says: “After the surgery we worried that Barnaby would be downhearted about not being able to enjoy sweet foods, but he simply decided that he likes ‘first courses’ better than puddings. When he was allowed his first food after surgery at Bristol Children’s Hospital, he asked for ‘banger eggs and soldiers’ which is our name for soft-boiled eggs and toast fingers. The lovely nursing staff scoured the hospital to produce some egg sandwiches for him - the closest thing they could find. Barnaby was delighted!”

Barnaby’s Eggs Barnaby recipe and Egg Tour of the World feature on www.eggrecipes.co.uk/youngcooks, a new website featuring egg recipes and tips for young cooks.

Sara Emanuelson from the British Egg Information Service says: “To invent a new egg recipe at such a young age is very impressive indeed and the virtual egg tour is a great idea. We hope Barnaby’s journey will inspire other young cooks to experiment in the kitchen.”