SOUTHERN SHAKSHUKA

Southern From Scratch is not your typical regional cookbook. Ashley English gives you a collection of foundational recipes and techniques that will allow you to build southern style cuisine with unmatched authenticity, even when the end result is a riff on something quite exotic. A North African dish of eggs poached in a tomato sauce, shakshuka is intended to be eaten with bread right out of the pan, typically pita.

2 tbsp (30 mL) extra-virgin olive

oil

1 onion, diced

1 bell pepper, diced

3 garlic cloves, minced

1 qt (1L) canned tomatoes

2 tsp (10 mL) sea salt

2 tsp (10 mL) smoked paprika 1 tsp (5 mL) rubbed sage

1 tsp (5 mL) dried thyme Freshly ground black pepper Hot sauce

1 lb. (454 g) cooked black-eyed peas

1 lb. (454 g) cooked corn

7 eggs

¼ cup (60 mL) chopped cilantro

4 pickled okra, quartered

4 oz (114 g) crumbled goat cheese

1. Warm olive oil over medium heat in a large skillet. Add onions and peppers, and saute for 10 minutes, until they start to brown around the edges.

2. Stir garlic into onion mixture and cook for 2 minutes.

3. Stir in tomatoes, salt, paprika, sage, thyme, several grinds of pepper, and hot sauce to taste.

4. Simmer for 20 minutes, stirring occasionally to avoid sticking. Add black-eyed peas to the sauce.

5. Cook for 5 minutes and then add the corn.

6. Stir and cook for 5 minutes longer, stirring occasionally.

7. Crack eggs into separate small bowls, without breaking their yolks. Stir the sauce and then use a large spoon to make seven evenly sized indentations across the surface of the sauce.

8. Carefully pour the eggs into the indentations, and then cover the pan with a lid.

9. Cook for 6 to 8 minutes, until the eggs are set.

10. Top with the fresh herbs, okra pickles, and crumbled goat cheese.

11. Serve with hot sauce and hoecakes or biscuits.

Makes: 4 servings