Along the same lines as, although perhaps no more frequent than, the "Rachel Reads" features on this blog, I have decided to bring you "Rachel Cooks"! According to my mother, I come from at least three generations of fabulous cooks and bakers - so I figure you, my readers, should benefit from that immense amount of cooking wisdom.
I'm not convinced, however, that I have inherited the cooking gene, as in college I used to call my grandparents for cooking help so often that my grandmother started answering the phone, "Betty Crocker Hotline"! I was particularly embarrassed the day I called for help hard-boiling an egg, and since my nana wasn't home, my papa quickly rattled off the instructions. Never the less, there are definitely some specific dishes that I have mastered - and this is one of them.
I am most definitely a cooking-with-pictures kind of girl. If I wasn't, this entry would be titled "Rachel Cooks...yummy apricot chicken that she made on Wednesday night but forgot to take a picture of"! Next time I make that recipe, I will remember to take pictures of it and share it with you.
Shakshuka is my favorite "Israeli" food. When other people are at a falafel stand eating laffas full of falafel or shwarma or even shnitzel, I'm ordering shakshuka. I'm told that the origin of shakshuka is Middle Eastern/North African - which makes sense when you see that its main ingredients are vegetables (which are amazing and very fresh here) and eggs (which are plentiful in farming communities).
Here is my recipe for shakshuka - think of me when you make it!
Ingredients:
garlic
peppers - I used yellow and red, but green is great too
eggs
oil
tomato paste
salt and pepper - to taste - I don't use any, but you probably will want some!
Chop the veggies and oil the pan...
Cook the veggies first, before adding the tomato paste and garlic. When they are browned to your satisfaction, pour in the tomato paste. After the tomato paste has had a chance to heat up, crack two eggs (or more, depending on how many people you are feeding) into the mixture:
(notice the whole garlic cloves and the two cracked eggs)
Let the pan simmer for a while, as the eggs cook. You may want to flip the eggs or cover the pan, to allow the eggs to cook more to your liking.
Serve with bread - and since I love avocado, particularly with anything tomato based, I added that too. When I buy shakshuka at a falafel stand, I usually get french fries added to my sandwhich - and as I was eating this, I was thinking, "wow, potatoes would go so well with this! why hasn't anyone thought of that yet?!" - and then a light bulb dawned..."french fries ARE potatoes, Rachel!"....right....
So although I didn't make this with potatoes, I highly recommend it! Try making this and come back here and let us all know what you think!
Recent Comments