- Will Ferrell enjoys soft-scrambled eggs with Parmesan from his backyard chickens.
- He says breakfast with family is a daily moment of connection and comfort.
- His culinary tastes now span Swedish feasts to white-truffle pasta at The River Café.
Watching him pour candy over spaghetti as Buddy in Elf, it never crossed our minds that Will Ferrell might be a sophisticated food lover. The funnyman’s unforgettable roles in movies like Anchorman, Talladega Nights and Barbie may live rent-free in our minds and barroom conversations, but when he’s at home, he’s more likely to be gathering eggs than belly laughs.
Yes, eggs. In a newly re-released appearance on podcast “Ruthie’s Table” from January 2024, Ferrell shared with host Ruthie Rodgers—owner of The River Café in London—that he and his family have a chicken coop at their house. When farm-to-table chef Rodgers asked the comedian what his favorite comfort food is, he told her that “there’s nothing more satisfying than going and getting the fresh eggs.”
But we’re even more impressed with the elegant simplicity of what Ferrell does with those eggs once he’s gathered them in the kitchen. “I don’t know if scrambling up eggs is the hardest thing to do from a cooking standpoint,” he begins, but he says that starting the day with his wife, Viveca, and sons, Magnus, Mattias and Axel, over eggs laid at home is a “connective moment.”
“[We] just kind of gently scramble them and maybe put a little Parmesan cheese on the top, and toast a couple pieces of bread and just sit and kind of talk as we have breakfast,” says Ferrell. “I love the connection of all that together.”
Rodgers calls the recipe for Ferrell’s perfect morning a combination of “food and love,” but it’s a healthy way to start the day even if you’re consuming it solo. After all, Parmesan and eggs pack in a bit of protein for staying power, and you can even whip this breakfast up in a matter of minutes.
Another bonus of the morning scramble? You can toss in whatever other ingredients you have on hand. If you have some veggies or fresh herbs lurking in your fridge, give them a toss and add them to your cheesy eggs. The same goes for the cheese—eggs are a great blank canvas that can be utterly cozy and delicious with whatever you have on hand.
If you’re eating your soft-scrambled eggs over toast, as Ferrell and his family do, dietitians say that there’s nothing wrong with embracing the bread. Just choose wisely. Our go-to is thinly sliced whole-wheat bread. Not only do the whole grains contribute a satisfying chewiness to each mouthful, they also add some filling fiber to help you power through the day.
For those of us who prefer something a little less simple than Ferrell’s relatively plain scramble but with similar benefits, try our recipe for Parmesan Cloud Eggs. The pillowy dish requires you to split your whites and yolks. Beat the whites until they’re stiff peaks, almost like making meringue. Fold in Parmesan and scallions for flavor and additional nutritional value, then bake, first without the yolk, then after adding it. The result is an airy delight that goes great over toast, as well.
It’s a far cry from what Ferrell recalls as his lowest culinary ebb: Eating pasta with mustard in his post-college days because it was the only thing he had to sauce it. And so is Ferrell’s menu in the current era. Since he’s married to a Swede, he recounts hosting Swedish Christmas parties where guests are treated to everything from Swedish meatballs with lingonberries to herring.
The episode ends with Rodgers discussing Ferrell’s favorite dish from The River Café, white-truffle tagliarini. The buttery pasta definitely seems like an upgrade from noodles with mustard. Want to make your own pasta with Parmesan and the earthy flavors of truffle? Try our Gnocchi with Truffle Parmesan Sauce.
