Hey there, y'all! I hope you enjoyed a fabulous and sunny St. Patrick's Day (I know I did, not least of all because I am now DONE with the MPRE aka future-lawyer-mandatory-ethics-exam).
I have some (slightly) exciting news: Torts & Tarts has now passed the 1000-views mark! So thanks to all of you for checking it out, and pinning to it on pinterest, and "liking" it on facebook, and all that good stuff.
When I looked at the "stats" tab just now, in addition to the number of pageviews I was able to see some basic data re: who has been checking out the blog. I learned:
- some not-surprising things (the Bailey's Cupcakes got more hits than the Healthy Egg Salad)
- some slightly surprising things (Torts & Tarts is huge in Ukraine. Like, it is BLOWING UP. It looks like the blog was linked to on a dating site. So uhm, привіт.)
- some VERY surprising things (some people found the site by Googling "torts and tarts porn movie"- whattt?)
Moving on. I hope all of you (friends, family, single Ukranians and porn aficionados alike) enjoy today's recipe: Moroccan Pepper, Tomato, and Egg Stew aka Shakshouka.
I'm no arbiter of Moroccan authenticity, but I spent a chunk of time in Morocco before law school and the flavors of this stew took me right back to the Maghreb. I ate something very similar a couple of times in the South, where it is prepared in a tagine and called a "Berber omelette." Variations of the dish are served all over North Africa and the Middle East. The recipe calls for harissa, which I don't have, so I used a combination of hot sauce and sweet paprika along with ground cumin and turmeric to give the stew its color and flavor.
Moroccan Shakshouka
adapted from Olive Trees & Honey
You know what one of my favorite foods in the world is? Bell peppers. You know what one of my least favorite kitchen tasks is? Deseeding and deribbing bell peppers. C'est la vie.
Heat 3 tbs of olive oil in a large saucepan and add 1 large onion (chopped) and 1 or 2 cloves of garlic (minced).
Cook for approximately 5 minutes, until slightly translucent.
Add the peppers and cook for another 5 minutes or so, until the peppers are "crisp-tender"- until they have started to soften but just barely.
There are no pics with the tomatoes because seriously, I butchered them. It was a fight to the death, and despite having several large, sharp knives in my arsenal I lost. Badly. But take my word for it that after the peppers are crisp-tender you should add the tomatoes, 1 tsp salt, 1 tsp ground cumin, 1/4 tsp turmeric, a dash of sweet paprika and a healthy pour of hot sauce (or harissa if you have it). Bring it all to a boil and then reduce heat to medium-low and cook for about 15 minutes, until the tomatoes are soft.
Using a spoon, create 4 indentations in the stew. One at a time, crack 4 eggs into a small bowl and then pour into the indentations. Cover the saucepan and cook until the egg whites have set but the yolks are still runny (the recipe says 5 minutes, but for me it took about 10-15).
I don't like runny yolks so I cooked the eggs almost all of the way through- you can shorten the cooking time if you are more of a sunny-side-up type
Serve immediately. To add some extra color and flavor put a drop of hot sauce on each egg and sprinkle each plate with some extra paprika.
The recipe serves 4-6 people as a side dish, and 2-3 people as a main course (although there might be some fighting over the last egg).
I have to say, I absolutely loved this dish. Not only did it give my tastebuds a strong dose of nostalgia, it was delicious. The eggs were perfectly cooked- soft and tender as only poached eggs can be, but kicked up a notch with all the spices. The stew is low-carb and low-calorie and yet very hearty and filling. The amount of harissa/paprika/hot sauce can be adjusted to taste.
And its always nice to have yummy leftovers.
adapted from Olive Trees & Honey
The major ingedients in this simple stew are peppers, tomatoes, and eggs. You'll need 4 green bell peppers, as well as 1 1/4 lbs. (3 cups) of peeled, seeded, and chopped plum tomatoes. I absolutely massacred my tomatoes and ended up well short of 3 cups- next time I'll buy a few extra tomatoes as insurance.
You know what one of my favorite foods in the world is? Bell peppers. You know what one of my least favorite kitchen tasks is? Deseeding and deribbing bell peppers. C'est la vie.Heat 3 tbs of olive oil in a large saucepan and add 1 large onion (chopped) and 1 or 2 cloves of garlic (minced).
Cook for approximately 5 minutes, until slightly translucent.
Add the peppers and cook for another 5 minutes or so, until the peppers are "crisp-tender"- until they have started to soften but just barely.
There are no pics with the tomatoes because seriously, I butchered them. It was a fight to the death, and despite having several large, sharp knives in my arsenal I lost. Badly. But take my word for it that after the peppers are crisp-tender you should add the tomatoes, 1 tsp salt, 1 tsp ground cumin, 1/4 tsp turmeric, a dash of sweet paprika and a healthy pour of hot sauce (or harissa if you have it). Bring it all to a boil and then reduce heat to medium-low and cook for about 15 minutes, until the tomatoes are soft.
Using a spoon, create 4 indentations in the stew. One at a time, crack 4 eggs into a small bowl and then pour into the indentations. Cover the saucepan and cook until the egg whites have set but the yolks are still runny (the recipe says 5 minutes, but for me it took about 10-15).
I don't like runny yolks so I cooked the eggs almost all of the way through- you can shorten the cooking time if you are more of a sunny-side-up type
The recipe serves 4-6 people as a side dish, and 2-3 people as a main course (although there might be some fighting over the last egg).
One or two eggs with a heap of veggies is the perfect serving size for a hungry guest!
I have to say, I absolutely loved this dish. Not only did it give my tastebuds a strong dose of nostalgia, it was delicious. The eggs were perfectly cooked- soft and tender as only poached eggs can be, but kicked up a notch with all the spices. The stew is low-carb and low-calorie and yet very hearty and filling. The amount of harissa/paprika/hot sauce can be adjusted to taste.
And its always nice to have yummy leftovers.
