One of my favorite scenes in any movie EVER is the scene in Moonstruck when Olympia Dukakis is making breakfast and makes the Italian version of Toad in the Hole with roasted red peppers, crusty Italian bread and an egg in the middle. It's so simple but no matter how many time I see that scene, it always sends me straight to the kitchen.
Since good Italian bread is hard to come by in Oakland, I substitute my homemade focaccia and since I like my eggs spicy, I use Calabrian chiles to give me that nice peppery hit. I get my eggs from Glaum Egg Ranch every week and they are delicious. When you're making something so simple, best ingredients are of utmost importance.
Breakfast for Dinner
1 slab of focaccia or 1 piece of crusty Italian bread, sliced about 1" thick
butter
olive oil
hot calabrian chile or roasted red pepper
ranch egg
salt & pepper
heat your skillet over low heat. Add a knob of butter and a slug of olive oil and heat gently. Cut a hole in the middle of the focaccia or bread, making sure it's wide enough so the egg is not too thick (not taking care to do this will result in runny whites). Add the bread to the pan and heat until the bread starts to become crusty. Add another small knob of butter into the middle of the hole and place the chile or pepper pieces in the center. Crack an egg into the hole and season with salt & pepper. Cook the egg until it starts to set towards the middle. Carefully flip the bread and cook the other side until the white of the egg is cooked through but the yolk is still liquid. Dust with salt & pepper. You can serve this with bacon, sausage or ham but I like to dip the crispy, buttery bread into the yolk. Mmmm.
5 comments:
Please come and make this for me. I know it's simple, but it tastes better if you do it. Also - what exactly is a calabrian pepper?
you're right. . .everything tastes better when someone else makes it!
These are my favorite calabrian chiles:
http://twitpic.com/101agp
but you can get them at any REALLY good Italian deli. . .
Please post focaccia recipe.
please start working on your recipe book. We need you.
Good lord woman, this is just a big ol food porn blog. I love it!
What if I have issues with runny yolk? Can I make this a lil less yolkie?
xoxox
will post focaccia recipe soon. . am working out kinks in SMALL recipe for at home use. . .
If you don't like fried eggs, you can make some cheesy scrambled eggs. . I'd still suggest you make a hole in the bread, pan fry the bread and chiles in lots of butter, cook your eggs a little softer than usual, put them in the hole, let them cook on one side for about a minute, flip quickly, then cook again for about 30 seconds. that would be REALLY good! :)
Post a Comment