Hi, this recipe is from the Guardian's 'Feast' issue 197, Sunday 23rd October 2021, page 9 by Nik Sharma, find online here.
I chose to cook this dish as I haven't ever really baked eggs in the oven like this and wanted to see if it was any good. The end result was more like spinach and bean scrambled eggs than the omelette-style dish I was expecting, but it did still work. However, if you are looking for less washing up and something quick, you could just scramble some eggs, spinach, beans and seasoning in a wok and pile onto sourdough toast for the same effect. But, don't leave out the tomato sauce as that was really flavoursome and tasty.
Another idea, is to a: serve on toast like above, instead of with added bread chunks, or b: make the tomato sauce in advance and stir through the whisked eggs before adding. The bake will likely be red now, but I think if the sauce came in the eggs rather than on the side, it wouldn't be a problem. But, be aware that the sauce does have a little spice to it, so don't stir it through if some of the people you are cooking for (or yourself) aren't very keen on spice!
I didn't serve this dish with anything (the sweetcorn was mainly for my younger sister who didn't like the tomato sauce). But, if you wish too, I think any leftover sourdough toasted with butter would be nice or some broccoli.
Enjoy!
Hazel :)
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Dietary Info:
-Vegetarian
-Contains Dairy
{Use an unsweetened plant based milk such as oat or soya in place of the whole milk, it won't give as creamy a flavour. But, it won't be far off. If you can find any, use a dairy-free mozzarella, or forgo it entirely like us. Instead, you could stir through 1tbsp marmite for added saltiness.}
-Contains Gluten
{Use a gluten-free loaf in place of the sourdough, they are now quite widely available. Or, mix in some cooked rice before baking to make something similar to egg-fried rice.}
-Unsuitable for Vegans
{See 'Contains Dairy'. For the eggs, the best substitute that I've seen is JUST egg, I haven't actually tasted this, but I have watched videos of people cooking with it and it seems like the best for a bake.}
-No Nuts
-Main Meal
Prep: 15 min
Chill: 1 hr
Cook: 1 hr 25 min {If you cook the tomatoes while the eggs are in the fridge, this can shorten.}
Serves: 4
Ingredients:
-500g cherry tomatoes
-3tbsp (45ml) extra-virgin olive oil
-1tsp cumin
-2tbsp (30ml) apple cider vinegar
-1+1/2tsp red pepper flakes (such as aleppo or urfa) {I just used hot chilli powder in place.}
-1/2tsp sugar
-Fine sea salt
-60g stale crusty sourdough, cut into 12mm cubes
-280g fresh baby spinach {I used 250g as that was the size of one packet and so was easier to buy one of these than 2 and have tons leftover.}
-1 x 400g can white beans (such as cannellini), drained
-1 shallot, peeled and minced (about 55g) {I used 1 whole white onion, diced.}
-2 garlic cloves, peeled and minced
-2tbsp chopped flat-leaf parsley {I used 1tbsp of dried mixed herbs (basil and thyme).}
-1tbsp (15ml) fresh lemon juice {I used lemon juice from a bottle, so not fresh.}
-4 large eggs
-120ml whole milk
-40g shredded mozzarella, or fontina {I left out the cheese as I am not a fan. However, I do think it would've made the dish more salty, which is something I felt it could've improved on.}
Method:
1: Heat the oven to 200°C / 180°C fan / 390°F / gas 6. Toss the tomatoes in two tablespoons of olive oil and the cumin on a baking sheet, then roast for about 45 minutes, until the tomatoes start to burst and turn golden brown. {Mine became slightly burnt / charred. But, it wasn't a problem because it made a deliciously deep and flavoursome sauce.} Transfer the tomatoes and any pan drippings to a blender, add the vinegar, half a teaspoon of red pepper flakes and the sugar, and puree smooth. Taste and season with salt and sugar as needed, then transfer to a bowl. The sauce can be made ahead of time and refrigerated for up to four days in an airtight container; it’s best eaten warm or at room temperature. {I actually started at step 2 and once the dish was in the fridge, begun step 1. This meant while it was chilling, the tomatoes were cooking and so the sauce would be at room temperature for when I wanted to serve.}
2: Lightly grease a 23cm x 30.5cm baking dish {I used a lasagne pan.} with the remaining tablespoon of olive oil. Toss the bread with the spinach, beans, shallot, garlic, parsley and lemon juice, {I would suggest doing this in a bowl, to ensure everything is coated. Also, it will look like a lot of spinach (mine barely all fit!). So, doing it in a large bowl ensures none gets lost along the way.} then spread out in a flat layer on an oven tray. {This 'oven tray' confused me. What it means is, spread out in the greased dish.}
3: In a small bowl, {Or, if you used a bowl in step 2, re-use that one as it will have some herbs/lemon juice kicking around at the bottom, which can then add extra flavour to the eggs too.} whisk together the eggs, milk, and half a teaspoon of salt. Pour the egg mixture over the bread and press gently to let it soak in the liquid. Wrap with clingfilm and leave in the refrigerator for one hour. {For me, it looked quite dry and very spinach-heavy so I was a bit concerned. Fortunately, there's nothing to worry about as after cooking it was all fine.}
4: Heat the oven to 190°C / 170°C fan / 375°F / gas 5. Unwrap the dish, then top with the shredded cheese. Cover with foil and bake for 15 minutes, then remove the foil and bake for another 15 minutes, {I added a drop of water to it as it was looking a bit dry, but I don't think it was necessary.} until the top is golden brown and the cheese is melted. Remove from the oven and serve warm with the tomato sauce.
While you're here...
I have a Pinterest for all my recipes, where you can save them to boards for the future and categorise them into different types of recipe e.g Sunday Dinners, picnic ideas etc. My account is @hazellikestocook, or find the link below. Also, I have a whole blog post explaining this in more detail here and https://hazelscookingandbakingblog.blogspot.com/2021/02/pinterest.html.
https://pin.it/5xDvARk - my profile
This recipe:
https://pin.it/7JZBGpA
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