Shakshuka
On our third day of Hanukkah, what could be better than a Shakshuka, an israeli specialty dish for dinner? But first, what is Hanukkah? It is a eight day festival of light that celebrates the triumph of light over darkness, of purity over adulteration, of spirituality over materiality. Therefore every night you need to light a candle on the menorah (the seven branched candelabrum) read a prayer and eat specialities such as Shakshuka (egg poched in spicy tomato sauce) and Sufganiyot (doughnut). Ma grandma makes this dish every year therefore I would never have thought that it could one day becomes so popular on the food-blogger world. This dish is the perfect meal as it combines many positive aspects that nothing can keep you from doing it: it tastes really good, spread a fantastic smell in your kitchen, is super easy to make, is budget-friendly and can be done for breakfast, brunch, lunch and dinner. Moreover, you can add pretty much everything to the recipe, your leftovers can perfectly make it as long as you have tomatoes, spices and eggs. I love switching and matching ingredients I have in my fridge such as making green shakshaka with kale and coriander but I have to admit that my grandma recipe is the best:
Recipe for 3 - Preparation 30 minutes
- A drizzle of organic olive oil
- 1 yellow onion, chopped
- 2 cloves garlic, chopped
- 1 red bell pepper, sliced
- 3 eggs
- 6 mushrooms, sliced
- 60 grams of fresh spinach
- 300 grams can whole plum tomatoes
- 2 large handful fresh basil leaves, chopped
- 1 red chili pepper, stemmed, seeded and finely chopped
- 2 tablespoons of paprika
- 1 tablespoon of cumin
Drizzle some olive oil on a skillet over medium-high heat.
Add onion, red chili pepper and red bell pepper and cook, stirring occasionally, until soft and golden brown, which should take about 6 minutes.
Add mushrooms, garlic, cumin, and paprika and cook, stirring frequently for about 4 more minutes.
Meanwhile place spinach and tomatoes in a food processor or blender and process until you reach the consistency of a finely chopped tomato sauce. Pour the tomato sauce mixture in the skillet and let cook, covered, for 15 minutes to simmer.
Season sauce with salt and pepper and 1 handful of fresh basil leaves, keep the other for the end of the preparation, as a topping.
Make small divots in the sauce and crack eggs over so that eggs are evenly distributed across sauce’s surface. Cover skillet with a lid and cook until yolks are just set, about 5 minutes. Sprinkle shakshuka with fresh basil leaves and serve.
Happy Hanukkah
