Date Night Dinners - Shakshuka

10/10/2014 tringel 0 Comments

Warning: If you don't like tomatoes, this dish is likely not for you.
               
Looking at the list of ingredients and directions, you would think this conclusion would be fairly obvious, after all the base of the dish is a tomato sauce. Brenden, however did not think quite this far ahead. Now, he doesn't hate tomatoes like he used to, but they definitely are not on his list of top ten vegetables to eat...or would it be the fruit list. Anyhow, he was quite shocked and unpleased with the  bold taste of tomato he received in each bite.


The other day Brenden and I were driving home from a beautiful wedding in Connecticut, when we stopped to grab some food. I tried to get as balanced of a meal as possible at the rest stop on the New Jersey Turnpike, while and Brenden filled up on his typical plate of carbs and more carbs. So naturally I thought I was going into shock from tainted rest stop food when I heard Brenden comment on the large amount of empty carbs he was consuming, and claim he wanted to try an 'empty' carb free diet for 30 days. He asked if I thought he could do it, and being the supportive girlfriend I am, I replied with a definitive "No." (Don't worry, we both chuckled at this. The man loves his carbs!) And, with that Brenden was ready to take on the challenge which is how we got to this very interesting date night recipe.

As we were brainstorming ideas for this weeks meal, we came a across a few options. Brenden suggested meatball subs without the sub part. I reminded him that there are breadcrumbs in those. But, being inspired and once on a very strict diet I was determined to find something that was both interesting and delicious. I ran with the meatball idea, in hopes that Brenden wouldn't be too discouraged about the no carb thing, but when I came across a dish called Shakshuka that looked rather appetizing, we knew it would be our recipe of choice this week.

It looked simple and delicious. What could go wrong? Oh wait, Brenden is not the biggest fan of tomatoes, but did that stop him from quickly selecting this dish from our list of recipes to try? Nope. I know I have built it up, but it really did not end up that badly. He even took the leftovers for lunch. Tomatoes-1:Brenden:0.


This was a fairly simple recipe, with easy ingredients, easy cooking, and easy clean up. It was a one pot masterpiece. We cooked the dish up as instructed and anxiously awaited. It looked really good and smelled great. When it cooled down enough for us to endure only mild burns on our tongue we took our first bite. And it was...okay. As I stated, and you can see, the base is all about the tomato and that was what the taste was all about. Again, for some reason, we just weren't expecting it to be that strong. But that didn't stop us from eating it and brainstorming ideas to make it better next time.

The dish reminded us of a mild chili. Next time we would definitely amp up the seasonings to give the flavor a bit more depth. I of course thought that all it need was a little bit of shredded cheese and it would make this into a star. Brenden disagreed, saying the cheese isn't necessary but suggested adding ground meat to give it more umph. So, basically a shakshuka chili is what we want to turn it into. But we will have to wait at least 30 days to try our adjustments, when Brenden is carbo loading again, so we can finish it of with a couple thick slices of bread, to soak up the juices, spices, and really round out the meal.

Shakshuka
Recipe adapted from toriavey.com, Shakshuka


Ingredients

• 1 Tbsp olive oil
• 1/2 medium yellow onion, peeled and diced
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 medium red bell pepper, chopped
• 2 - 14 oz cans diced tomatoes
• 2 Tbsp tomato paste
• 1 tsp chili powder
• 1 tsp cumin
• 1 tsp paprika
• Pinch cayenne pepper, optional but recommended
• Pinch brown sugar, optional but recommended
• Salt and pepper to taste
• 6-8 eggs
• Chopped parsely for garnish, optional

Directions

1. Heat a fairly deep, large skillet with olive oil added, on medium.
2. Add the onion and sauté for a few minutes, until onion begins to soften.
3. Add garlic and continue to sauté until the mixture is fragrant
4. Add the bell pepper and sauté for another 5-6 minutes until softened.
5. Add tomatoes and tomato paste to the skillet, stirring to blend.
6. Stir in all of the spices and sugar until combined.
7. Simmer the mixture over medium heat for 5-7 minutes, until it begins to reduce.  Add more seasonings to taste at this point.
8. Crack the eggs, one at a time directly over the tomato mixture, spacing them evenly over the sauce.
9. Cover the pan and allow mixture to simmer for 10-15 minutes, or until the eggs are cooked how you desire. Note: the eggs will cook in an overeasy-like fashion, cook for less time if you like them runny and more if you prefer fully cooked eggs. Also make sure the sauce does not reduce too much which will lead to burning.
10. When the eggs are cooked to your preference, remove from heat, garnish with parsley, and serve.