Eggs in Tomato Sauce Over Crusty Bread with Cheese

Today is a day that no one should be around me. You know, Greg. Not because it’s Monday but because it is snowing……… snowing on October 12th. I don’t like any amount of snow before Thanksgiving. A few days before is fine but Halloween isn’t even upon us. The leaves were just beginning to change and I hadn’t taken any pictures. Fall, where did you go? It’s sitting at 35 degrees. I could cry. This is bullshit.

Breaking news: I just got off the phone with my grandparents, which makes my day, snow be damned. I feel better.

We were over at our friend’s house this weekend to watch some football. I had a tasty, hot chili (I’m talking habaneros, cayenne, and ghost chili sauce), a pepperoni dip, yummy fondue and more. We had a nice time! Now there’s snow coming down-it won’t stick but it’s the principle of the thing. I’m going to get right down to it…here’s a recipe from happier (i.e. before October snow) times.

I came across this one from Big Girls, Small Kitchen (who found the tomato mix recipe from Gourmet), a great site to check out. The original recipe is called “Eggs in Pipérade” Pizzas with Crispy Prosciutto and makes for a nice weekend breakfast, brunch or dinner. Pipérade is a tomato and pepper dish from the Basque country (parts of Spain and France I believe). I, as usual, adapted it to fit my taste but mostly because I didn’t have prosciutto. I recommend using prosciutto and not leftover rotisserie chicken, as I did.

Eggs in Tomato Sauce Over Crusty Bread with Cheese
Makes 2 servings

Ingredients:

Pipérade (Spicy Tomato Sauce):
1/2 large onion, diced
1 red bell peppers, diced
1/2 tbsp olive oil
1 teaspoon hot paprika
1/2 tsp cayenne
1 garlic clove, minced
salt/pepper
1 14 ounce can diced tomatoes with juice

2-3 large eggs
¼ cup Parmesan shavings
1/2 loaf of your favorite crusty bread
1 small clove of garlic
2-3 ounces of mozzarella (or another cheese that melts), thinly sliced
3 slices prosciutto-optional (I used rotisserie chicken leftovers)
1 tbsp basil, julienned (optional)

Preheat the oven to 450. In a large skillet on medium heat, add olive oil and sauté the onion and red pepper. Cook about 6 minutes and add the paprika, cayenne, garlic and cook a few more minutes. Add salt/pepper and tomatoes, cook another 5 minutes. Spread the mix into a shallow baking dish and create holes for the eggs, add an egg in each hole and bake until whites have almost set (maybe 7 minutes). Cut the bread in half, brush with olive oil and toast in the oven until golden brown at the same time you are baking the eggs. Rub with garlic clove, add mozzarella and bake until cheese is melted. Remove the eggs and sprinkle parmesan shavings, return to the oven for a minute or so until cheese melts.

If using prosciutto, heat oil in pan and fry until thin and crispy. Drain on a paper towel.

Spoon the egg/tomato mix on top of the bread; add more parmesan shavings, basil and prosciutto. Serve immediately.