WOW Your Friends With A New Brunch Masterpiece – Introducing Shakshuka

Cooking adventures with friends fuel my fire to pursue healthier options when meal planning for the week. While discussing our next culinary adventure, my friend mentioned Shakshuka. I know what you’re thinking – I can’t even pronounce this so how in the hell am I going to prepare it? Shakshuka is an Israeli dish of eggs poached in a sauce of tomatoes, peppers, and onions, spiced with cumin. – are you salivating yet? After binge reading recipes, we gathered with tons of ingredients and the desire to create our own spin on this traditional dish. Hope you enjoy this recipe as much as we did.

Ingredients:

• 3 tablespoons EVOO
• 1 large white onion, diced
• 1 large jalapeño, seeded and thinly sliced
• 3 garlic cloves, thinly sliced
  • We used 5 or so roasted garlic cloves- more flavor and less intense
• 1 teaspoon ground cumin
• 1 teaspoon sweet paprika
• ⅛ teaspoon cayenne, or to taste
• 1 (28-ounce) can diced tomatoes
• Just a dab of tomato paste
• ¾ teaspoon salt, more as needed
• ¼ teaspoon black pepper, more as needed
• 5 ounces feta cheese, crumbled (about 1 ¼ cups)
  • We used spiced feta for an extra kick
• 5 or so large eggs
•  Chopped cilantro, for serving

Optional Ingredients:

• Mushrooms, diced
• Any cheese you want to pull from the fridge
• Roasted Eggplant, diced
• Shallots, diced

Let’s Make It Happen:

1. Heat oven to 375 degrees.
2. Heat EVOO in a large, cast iron skillet over medium-low heat. Add onion and jalapeño. Cook gently until onion is translucent and soft, about 15 – 20 minutes. Add garlic and cook until tender (if raw), 1 to 2 minutes; stir in cumin, paprika and cayenne. Throw in the remainder of ingredients you scraped together from the fridge.
3. Pour in tomatoes and a dab of tomato paste. Toss in salt & pepper; simmer until tomatoes have thickened, about 10 minutes. Stir in crumbled feta and other cheeses.
4. Using a spoon, make 5 (the number of eggs you’re using) indentions in the tomato mixture. Gently crack eggs into skillet in designated holes. This may or may not works so don’t beat yourself up if it isn’t perfect. Season with salt & pepper. Transfer skillet to oven and bake until eggs are just set, 7 to 10 minutes. Sprinkle with cilantro and serve.

Our crew toasted a little Lavash for dipping or it can be served over a toasted, crunchy piece of the bread of your choice. We accompanied the dish with sliced avocado and a fruit salad. HEAVEN!

This recipe doesn’t have anything to do with diabetes, it’s just one of my favorite, new culinary creations. Shakshuka is a healthy combination of veggies, eggs for protein and spices which doesn’t leave me feeling guilty or sluggish. In my T1D world – it’s a winner.