Spicy Eggs

Debu and I love this place in Manhattan! Its called Hummus and serves up (you guessed it!) hummus and the freshest pita bread. The menu has a total of 5 things on it, 3 of which are hummus with different toppings. And then there is Shakshuka, a heavenly blend of tomatoes, garlic, peppers and egg. Its piping hot, spicy and dunkable making it perfect food after a workout or while nursing a hangover.

The original version

Its a drive away, not a long one but a drive anyway, and there are days when I'm too lazy to look for the car keys, who I should mention, have a mind of their own and prefer hiding in tiny places to staying on a key hook. So I found an easier recipe in a cookbook I got recently. Its not perfect coz I hear the authentic version takes time to cook up and I need breakfast on the table like an hour ago! Its a hearty dish and a different take on a breakfast staple.

My version- bigger and badder. It can kick your version's ass to Russia!

Ingredients

1 shallot, sliced
2 garlic pods. peeled and chopped fine
1 tomato, diced
2 chili peppers
olive oil
basil leaves
salt and pepper to taste

Saute the shallots in the olive oil lightly. Throw in the garlic pods and chili peppers and saute for another minute. Put in the diced tomatoes. and cook a little bit. Add salt, pepper and any dried or fresh herbs you have on hand. Add a little bit of water, just 1 teaspoon or so. Don't make it too watery. If the tomatoes give off enough liquid to cook the eggs, don't bother adding water. Let the mixture cook. Crack two eggs in bowl and slide them one by one into the skillet. Don't stir it. Sprinkle some salt and pepper onto the egg yolks. Scatter the basil leaves on top. At this point if you have an oven proof skillet, slide it into a pre-heated oven and cook till egg whites are firm. If you don't have an oven just cover with a lid and cook on a really low flame till the whites are set and the yolks are slightly runny. I didn't have pasteurized eggs this time so I cooked the eggs completely through. Serve hot in the skillet with some crusty bread.

Carbs are so pretty...sigh!

Serving suggestion: Serve with a glass of freshly brewed mint iced tea.

Mediterranean Pasta

I tasted a Mediterranean pasta somewhere and since then I've been dying to try it at home. It seemed really simple, a different take on pasta and the flavors really exploded. The restaurant where I first tasted it had a base of pesto and pasta tossed olive oil, artichoke hearts, sundried tomatoes, feta cheese and olives.

I skipped feta cheese and artichoke hearts since I didn't have any and added capers because I love them! I also had half a red bell pepper, so I roasted that and added it.

1/2 cup of pesto

4-5 sundried tomatoes cut up in slivers

4-5 olives, halved

4-5 capers, drained

1//2 bell pepper, roasted and chopped

a handful of pasta, any shape

2 tsp olive oil

To make pesto, grind together basil leaves, garlic, pine nuts, parmesan cheese and stream in olive oil till it forms a smooth paste. Add some salt for taste and keep 1/2 cup aside at room temperature. Cover the extra pesto with olive oil and it will keep in the fridge for atleast a week.

Cook the pasta in boiling, salted water and drain and toss it while hot with olive oil. In a bowl put a couple of table spoons of the starchy pasta water, pesto sauce and add hot pasta and rest if the ingredients. Toss again. Garnish with basil leaves, more parmesan cheese and serve.

I have to confess I was a little too generous with the salt. So with the salty parmesan, salty capers, salty olives and salty pasta water the end product was..yes-you-guessed-correct-and-no you-don't-get-a-prize...salty!

Nevertheless, I'm not giving up on this pasta. I hope I have a better sense of proportion the next time round though.

Update! I made it again, skipped the pasta water, adjusted my scary proportion of parmesan and it turned out just the way I wanted.