Shak(shuka) it to Me

My friend Yoga Jen and I have gone for post-yoga brunches many a time, but one of my favorite locales was the Israeli restaurant Miriam on Court Street (which has since closed--sigh--and the other location on 5th Ave just isn't as good, IMHO). Every time we went, I got the same thing: Eggs Shakshuka. They're a traditional Middle Eastern dish: basically eggs poached over a tomato/onion/red pepper sauce, and they are beyond delicious. I always figured they had to be easy to make, but never got around to it until now. I guess after learning that my favorite location closed, I have enough motivation to recreate the dish on my own. Plus, as you may have noticed, there is a recession going on, and it's kicking my bank account's ass right now, so I'm not eating out anywhere near as much as I used to.

There are a million different recipes out there, so I decided to wing my own variation. I got a 15 oz. can of diced tomatoes, one clove of garlic, half a yellow onion, and some eggs. That's it! I didn't have any red peppers on hand today (I'm overdue for a Fresh Direct delivery) so I had to go without those.

I sautéed the onions & garlic in some olive oil (many recipes I found called for vegetable oil??) until they were clear, then I poured the can of tomatoes (juice and all) over them and let it simmer for about 3 minutes, because that's all I could stand to wait. Sometimes cooking while you're starving is not the best idea. : )

Once the mixture had simmered for a bit (stirring it around to blend the different items), I plopped two eggs over the top and put on the cover. I let it sit for a few minutes--I honestly don't know how long. I was hovering too close to bother to look at a clock. But once the egg whites had mostly firmed up, I removed them, plated them, and promptly devoured them. I cooked the yolks just a smidge more than I'd normally prefer, but still, DEEEELICIOUS (and yes, that is steam fogging up the shot below).