Baked eggs with balsamic tomatoes

Eggs! A gift in their versatility and endless uses. I love eggs and I will readily admit that I only really learned to fry an egg after I met himself. Scrambled eggs I could manage no problem, but fried eggs were a no-go for me. Himself showed me his sure fire way, and at last I could treat myself to the sometimes necessary crispy fried egg. All you need to do is use the smallest frying pan you have, heat a tbsp of oil (I use olive oil as I like the flavour) and once the oil is shimmery add your egg and cover with a saucepan lid. Leaving the egg alone for the couple of minutes it takes, is the secret to the perfect fried egg. It should take no more than 3 or 4 mins for a soft runny yolk, for the white to be cooked with a slightly crispy base. Eat it between soft white bread, or on toast with a nice sprinkle of sea salt on top. It is time consuming, but whenever I do the full breakfast, I always do the eggs individually, they are worth waiting for!

But back to my baked eggs. On the days when I get the house to myself, I like to treat myself to a nice lunch. These baked eggs are particularly good for those days when you don’t get the chance to have a proper breakfast and end up starving. This recipe serves one.

2 eggs, at room temperature

2 slices of cooked ham, of your choice

Butter

Sea salt & Pepper

Pinch of chopped fresh chives

Preheat the oven to 180C fan/200C.  Grease two ramekins with some butter and line with the sliced ham, being careful not to poke any holes in the meat. Gently break an egg into each ramekin. Season with salt and pepper and sprinkle over some of the chives, then dot a little bit of butter on top of each yolk. Bake in the oven for 12-15mins, until the white is softly solid but there is still a wobble to it and the yolk. Serve with the tomato salad.

Balsamic Tomato Salad

10 on the vine cherry tomatoes, quartered

Some red onion, very finely chopped

1tsp extra virgin olive oil

Half tsp balsamic vinegar

Sea salt & black pepper

Pinch of sugar

While the eggs are baking, mix all the ingredients for the salad together and leave it sit for a little while.

Once the eggs are baked, carefully remove from the ramekins and serve with the tomatoes. If you want, you could serve with some thick toast or fresh crusty roll.

Stuffed Pork chop with Spanish Beans

I have mentioned my love for chorizo, haven’t I? Simply put, if there is a link of chorizo in my fridge, it doesn’t stay for long. Much to himself’s disappointment, I always end up eating as much of it as I can. I pretty much love everything to do with the pig, therefore, last night’s dinner was pigcentric and just for me, so this recipe only serves one.

1 pork chop

1 back rasher, finely chopped

One third link of chorizo sausage

1 garlic clove

Half a medium onion, finely chopped

Quarter green pepper, thinly sliced

Large pinch of chilli flakes

1tsp smoked paprika

8 cherry tomatoes, finely chopped with seeds

1tbsp tomato purée

Half tin of cannellini beans

Salt & Pepper

Firstly, I sliced half the chorizo into thin rings, the remaining half I chopped finely. I dry-fried the rings and allowed to cool slightly on a piece of kitchen paper. Strain the beans and rinse well in a colander, until the water runs clear.

In the meantime, I fried the rasher and chorizo until just browned. Add the onion, garlic and chilli flakes and sautée until the onion is soft and glistening. Do not let the onion catch in the pan, if you find it is, just had a drop of water to loosen up the mixture. This also saves on having to add a lot of oil and saves on calories, if you’re into that sort of thing!

Add the paprika, chopped tomatoes, tomato purée and half a tin of water to the pan. Stir well and bring to the boil. While the sauce is cooking, make a deep slit in the side of the chop and insert the chorizo slices and some black pepper. Season and lightly oil both sides of the chop. If you want, you could retain the oil that you fried the chorizo slices in and fry your chop in that pan. Preheat the pan, and fry the chop on both sides for 4-5mins each, or less depending on how thick the chop is. The last thing you want is dry meat, which often happens when pork is over cooked.

While the chop is frying, add the beans and green pepper to sauce and allow to warm through. Season and taste. You can ramp up the heat at this stage if you want. These beans would also be nice served on toasted crusty loaf, like a Spanish bruschetta.