PUCCIA OF POACHED EGG, RICOTTA & SPINACH

A puccia is a kind of Pugliese pitta, and a mainstay of the lunch menu at Vico, one of my London restaurants. We bake ours with pizza dough, but you can use pitta pockets from supermarkets or Middle Eastern grocers. Stuffings of rare steak, grilled sausage or fried fish are all equally delicious.

Serves 2

2 pitta pockets 250g (9oz) spinach (or other greens such as chard) 2 garlic cloves, peeled and finely chopped 1 red chilli, chopped (remove the seeds if you don’t want it hot) 2-3tbsp extra-virgin olive oil Salt and black pepper 4 eggs White wine vinegar 6-8tbsp ricotta cheese A large pinch of dried chilli flakes Open up the pitta pockets, leaving a hinge attached for easy eating if you prefer. Roughly chop the spinach. Fry the garlic and chilli in half the olive oil until just beginning to colour, then add the spinach. Fry over a low heat for 4-5 minutes, seasoning with salt and pepper.

Now poach the eggs – heat a shallow pan of salted water until simmering, add a dash of vinegar and break the eggs into the pan. Cook for about 3 minutes, leaving the yolks runny. Warm the pittas in a toaster. Spread half of each one with ricotta, cover this with spinach and top with the eggs. Drizzle with the remaining olive oil, sprinkle with chilli flakes and top with the other halves of the pittas to make two sandwiches. Serve warm – beware of oozing egg yolk!