Eggs Poached in Spicy Tomato Sauce

I love eggs. They're so versatile, healthy, an inexpensive - even if you buy the organic ones! (I definitely recommend organic eggs, there really is a difference in the flavor of the yolk!)

Anyway, I've been craving this dish all day. It's similar to shakshuka, because it's a touch spicy, and you poach the eggs in a tomato sauce, but I didn't have any feta or jalapenos (who keeps that sort of thing on hand???) so I mocked up my own version. It was so perfect - a touch spicy, and a little bit sweet because of some carrot puree, and once I cut the egg into the sauce, it took on an almost cheesy and creamy quality. Eggs poached in tomato sauce may seem strange, but I think it would make the most wonderful comfort food in the middle of the winter.

Oatmeal Galore!

One of my favorite breakfasts is oatmeal - especially in the morning during the week, and even more in the winter. It's cheap, it's healthy, and it's quick - no more than 5 or 6 minutes to prepare, toppings included. The photo above is maple syrup (the real stuff!), brown sugar, and walnuts, but there are a million different combinations I like to make. Check out below for my oatmeal base and some other suggestions for toppings...

Super-Easy Roasted Vegetables

As the title states, these delicious roasted veggies are super easy to make perfectly. I could never figure out how to roast veggies properly. They never cooked right, and there was always a very burnt element combined with a very undercooked element, combined with too much or too little salt. However, Jim did these as a part of the Valentine's dinner he surprised me by cooking, and I couldn't stop eating them. Seriously. He ran to the bathroom while they were cooling and I kept sneaking crispy bits of brussel sprouts out of the dish. Is there a better vegetable than perfectly roasted crispy brussel sprouts? I don't think so.

Spicy Veggie Dumpling Soup for One

I recently bought (on a whim) a bag of veggie dumplings from Jungle Jim's. These are one of my FAVORITE frozen purchases ever. I don't generally buy a ton of frozen food, but these swayed me because they're so simple: the ingredients are kimchi (spicy cabbage), sliced radish, onion, ginger, soy, and wheat flour. Real food! I've been snacking on them a lot, and last night I decided I wanted to try my hand at a broth-based soup. I threw it together without a real recipe, and I was pretty pleased.

Ingredients

Serves 1 for a meal, 2 for a side

1/4 cup matchstick carrots

1/4 cup matchstick zucchini

1/4 cup roughly cut onion

1/2 clove onion, minced

1 cup chicken broth (I used homemade broth, but if you're buying it definitely get low sodium)

1 cup water

6 frozen veggie dumplings

salt to taste

splash of soy sauce

red chili paste to taste

Directions

1) Put broth and water into a medium-sized cooking pot. Add onion and garlic, and bring to a rolling boil. Cook for approximately 5 minutes.

2) Add carrot and soy sauce, boil for another 5 minutes. 

3) Turn heat down to a simmer, add zucchini and dumplings. Cook until dumplings are done (follow your packaging)

4) Serve in a bowl, and garnish with your desired amount of red chili paste.

There are a couple things I would do differently if I made this soup again: 

1) I'd add some sesame oil or miso for a little more depth. This was pretty one dimensional, even with the added layer of the chili paste.

2) I'd slice up a little ginger, and maybe add in some mushrooms for some extra earthiness.

I think this would also be really good with udon noodles instead of dumplings, and you can always add whatever vegetables you have lying around. Yum!

Best Chocolate Chip Cookies Ever (SERIOUSLY I'M NOT EVEN KIDDING)

In honor of Valentine's day, and because I just baked these for my boyfriend, I give you cookies. You might think I'm lying, but these really are the best chocolate chip cookies I have EVER made. They're in the top 3 chocolate chip cookies I've ever eaten. Maybe top 2, but we'll say top 3 just to be generous.

They're huge and soft - gooey if you pull them out at the early end of the baking time, soft and brownie-like if you leave them in for the whole 17 minutes.

I haven't even tried another chocolate chip cookie recipe since I found this. Let's get into the details...

Monday Night: Box Wine

Each Monday night, I'm going to highlight something that might help bring a little more pleasantness to your week. This week it's BOX WINE!

*as a disclaimer, I know nothing about wine, except what I like and don't like. 

Chunky Tomato & Pea Sauce

I know this looks a lot like the salsa from yesterday's post, but I promise it's not! Like canned black beans, I also buy LOTS of canned tomatoes - especially in the winter, when tomatoes aren't in season and the ones in the store are a little suspect. The thing I like about canned tomatoes is that they're versatile, you can buy lots of different textures, and best of all: they're CHEAP! At some point, I'll do a post on the pros and cons of different types of canned tomatoes, but for now let's focus on this chunky sauce.

I actually made this a few nights ago with some spaghetti and the end of a triangle of parmesan, but last night it was perfect for a pre-bed snack with a generous hunk of toasted semi-stale baguette...

Black Bean & Veggie Sautee for One

I've developed a recent love for black beans. I've been eating lots of them, like two cans in the past week. I put them on salads, in tortillas, with rice, with chicken, and with veggies. Here is one of my absolute favorite ways to have them - sauteed with veggies, and served with dollops of plain yogurt, hot salsa, and avocado. Mush it all together and put it on a chip! Jump through for the "recipe" (if you can call it that...)