You say winter, I say Fuck off. Or let's Shakshouka.
Darlings, Winter is here. The snow, the cold, the bundling up, the dry skin, the static-y hair, it's all here. And sometimes it feels like we live in a storybook. But most days, it just feels annoying.I'm not entirely sure how I ended up living in one of the coldest places in America. Well, I know how - but I'm often dumbfounded by the fact that we have lived here this long and that I have made it through so many winters without actually going insane.Every winter I swear that it's the last, refuse to buy any new warm weather gear, and start researching places where I can go and make a living enough to pay Sallie Mae and have a roof over my head by selling hollowed out coconuts by the ocean.But darlings, as you know, I am often a traitor to my generation, so I will most likely never do that. I will most likely live the rest of my life on the east coast where the winters are horrible, the summers are sweaty and the springs and falls are kind of perfect in the most Rockwellian way.And so, you get used to the way the seasons manipulate your mood, your wardrobe and your relationships. And you learn how to manipulate them right back.One of my favorite ways to manipulate a winter night is with a little Shakshouka. A dish with multiple background stories, my first brush with it was in Israel where they say it rivals hummus and falafel as a national favorite during the winter. It has roots in Tunisia, Morocco, Algeria, Libya and Egypt. And it very well may be my most favorite meal for when things get really cold and thus really down.It's basically peasant food - eggs poached in spicy tomatoe sauce. Some nights I get fancy and add some feta, but most nights it's really about the spicyness of the tomatoe and the richness of the egg yolk mixing to make even the coldest nights feel a little better.Last winter when I was essentially living out of hotel rooms in New York, I would often order shashouka from the nearest middle eastern restaurant and sit in my fluffy, white hotel bed with a robe and wet hair and just gorge. I always feel like finding something at least somewhat healthy to eat your feelings helps. Then even when you have a lot of feelings (and darlings, I ALWAYS have a lot of feelings) you can eat them all.Shakhouka, as told by LCF INGREDIENTS 1 bulb garlic, peeled and cloves sliced1 onion, sliced thin2 jalapenos, sliced in rounds1 28oz can crushed tomatoes2 tablespoons cumin2 tablespoons coriander1 tablespoon red pepper flakes1 teaspoon cayenne pepper6 eggsOlive oilSaltMETHOD
- Let's make some zhug. Zhug is an Israeli hot sauce and it's the base for my shashouka. So get some olive oil hot in a pan (cast iron is probably best). Throw your garlic, onions and jalapenos in there and saute until onion is translucent.
2. Take cooked onions/peppers/garlic and pulse them a few times in a blender or food processor until blended almost completely. It will look something like this:
3. Add tomatoes and spices.
4. Stir until combined and let simmer for 40 minutes. Salt to taste.5. Add eggs and cover for 6-7 minutes until poached.
6. Serve with whatever you'd like, but you know my default is avocado. So that's what we had last night.
Now darlings, this is a spicy Shakshouka. I need the spices to awaken my tastebuds, my lifebuds, all of it. As always, this recipe is but a suggestion - make it your own. It's super easy to change the flavors a little. For instance - red peppers are de rigeur, but I wanted more heat, so I swapped them for jalapenos (certainly not traditional).Darlings, I hope you are keeping warm, surrounded by people you love, food that tastes good and a show/book/song that makes you happy.xoxolcf