The Art of Eggs

Who doesn't love eggs for brunch?

Team Habitare hails from Melbourne, and Melbourne is a city that loves a brunch. Poachies, sourdough and the assorted sides that can range anywhere from the humble smashed avocado to whipped tofu or house cured sriracha maple bacon.

But sometimes, especially during these chilly winters, we like to entertain at home, and we all know how annoying it can be to poach eggs en masse. That's literally why we go out for brunch right?

But what of baked eggs? Now, we will admit that we do have an ulterior motive in sharing these following recipes with you, in that we hope you will become as hopelessly obsessed with our traditional copper Turkish Sahan as we are!

MENEMEN

Turkish scrambled eggs, with tomatoes, onions and green capsicum. Yum!

Ingredients

1 x onion, diced

1 x green capsicum, diced

2 x large vine-ripened tomatoes, diced

1/4 cup of tomato paste

4 x large eggs, beaten

1/2 teaspoon Aleppo pepper

1/2 teaspoon dried oregano

1/4 teaspoon dried mint

Chilli flakes to taste

Olive oil

Salt and pepper to taste

Method

Add some olive oil to a pan, sauté the onion and green capsicum with salt flakes to taste and cook until softened. Add the tomato paste, tomatoes and herbs and cook until the tomatoes have softened. Once this has happened, push the mixture to the side of the pan and add the beaten eggs. Cook the eggs until just set, and then fold back into the tomato mixture. Garnish with a sprinkle more chilli flakes, some black pepper and a glug of extra virgin olive oil. Serve with crusty bread.

You could of course use any pan for this recipe, and then decant the eggs onto individual serving plates, but this dish is perfect to cook and serve in our traditional copper sahans. It is a true stove to table dish, and the sahans are so beautiful you will want them at the centre of the table.

SHAKSHUKA

The baked eggs that have become a brunch staple in many the Melburnian establishment.

Ingredients

1 x onion, diced

1 x red capsicum, diced

2 x cloves of garlic, finely chopped

4 x large eggs

1 can of diced tomatoes

1 tablespoon smoked paprika

1/2 teaspoon cumin powder

1/2 teaspoon cumin seeds

1/4 teaspoon coriander powder

1/2 teaspoon chilli flakes

Olive oil

Salt to taste

Optional, fresh coriander and parsley finely chopped to garnish.

Method:

Add some olive oil to a pan and while the oil is cold, add the garlic. Once the oil begins to heat up, add the onion, capsicum and salt to taste, and sauté until soft. Add the the spices and cook for a further couple of minutes until fragrant. Add the tomatoes and cook until soft, using a wooden spoon the squash the tomatoes helping them break down. Taste and add more salt if necessary, and then allow to simmer on a low heat until thick. While the sauce is simmering, preheat your oven to 180°C. When the sauce is nice and thick, use a spoon to make little wells in the mixture, and then gently crack your eggs into the holes, pop in the oven and bake for 5-8 minutes depending on how well done you like your eggs. We love to garnish with a dollop of labne, a sprinkle of fresh herbs and sumac, and of course some crusty bread.

Again, you could of course use any pan for this recipe, and then decant the eggs onto individual serving plates, but we love to pop this in the centre of the table and let everyone dig in. It looks amazing on the table, and once people have finished their eggs, nobody can resist going back into the pan to mop up that delightful sauce with their bread.

We hope that these recipes warm your home and heart this winter!

Team Habitare