This week’s Food Network Chef’s Challenge hosted by I Blame My Mother is Mario Batali. He is famous for his Italian cuisine and orange crocs. He has a massive list of recipes all of which look amazing but many have hard to find ingredients and/or don’t seem like something we would love to try, and for goodness sakes I stepped far out of the box last week with the Spaghetti Puttanesca.
That and we have no less than 3 dozen eggs in the fridge so I opted for a slightly less ambitious meal and went with Eggs in Tomato Sauce. The verdict is that this was a delicious change to the usual eggs in the morning. Think Huevos Rancheros with a Italian twist. The yummy cooked tomato sauce pairs wonderfully with the eggs and crunchy toast.
Please be sure to stop by I Blame my Mother to see what everyone else cooked.
Ingredients: 2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil, 1 onion, coarsely chopped, 1 sprig parsley, left whole, plus 1 sprig, finely chopped (I used cilantro), 6 mint leaves plus 12 more, for garnish (I used basil), 1 clove garlic, crushed, 1 tablespoon white wine vinegar, 1 (16-ounce) can San Marzano tomatoes and their juice, crushed by hand (I used frozen tomatoes from our freezer), 3 fresh basil leaves, finely chopped, 8 large eggs (I used 5)
To start in a large skillet (lidded)pour a couple of tablespoons of olive oil
then add in the diced onion and garlic
and a few spring of parsley (I only had cilantro so that what I used). Cook until the onions have softened about 5 minutes.
Meanwhile I took my frozen garden tomatoes, and gave them a rough chop. Feel free to use canned tomatoes. But I have massive amounts of tomatoes still in my freezer from last summer.
Once the onions have softened add 1 tablespoon of vinegar, I used red wine vinegar because it’s what I had. Cook until the vinegar has evaporated.
Then add the tomatoes
and bring to a boil .
Cook until slightly reduced about 15 minutes.
Then add in remaining roughly chopped cilantro and basil.
Crack each egg gently over the tomato mixture so the yolks don’t break.
I used 5 eggs and I thought this was just right for the amount of tomato sauce.
Cover and cook for about 5 minutes.
Until the whites are cooked and still soft but the yolks are still runny.
Remove from the heat and let sit another 5 or so minutes, and the whites will be completely cooked with runny yolks.
Serve with sprinkled basil and crusty toast.
The yolks were runny
and the toast was just perfect for sopping up all the yolk and tomato sauce, yum!
Uova in Brodetto: Eggs in Tomato Sauce
Recipe copyright 2000, Mario Batali. All rights reserved.
Ingredients
2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
1 onion, coarsely chopped
1 sprig parsley, left whole, plus 1 sprig, finely chopped (I used cilantro)
6 mint leaves plus 12 more, for garnish (I used basil)
1 clove garlic, crushed
1 tablespoon white wine vinegar
1 (16-ounce) can San Marzano tomatoes and their juice, crushed by hand (I used frozen tomatoes from our freezer)
3 fresh basil leaves, finely chopped
8 large eggs (I used 5)
Directions
In a 10 to 12-inch saute pan, heat the olive oil over medium heat. Add the onion, 1 sprig parsley, mint, and garlic. Cook, stirring, until the onion starts to soften, about 5 minutes. Add the vinegar and allow it to evaporate completely.
Add the tomatoes and their juices. Bring to a boil over medium-high heat and cook until slightly reduced, about 15 minutes. Remove the garlic and parsley and discard.
Add the remaining parsley and the basil to the sauce and stir in. Gently break the eggs into the sauce, cover and simmer 5 minutes. Remove the skillet from the heat and let rest for 5 minutes. Serve hot with grilled bread and garnish with fresh mint leaves.