Comfort Food: Eggs in Purgatory

First, I must confess that I have definitely slacked off on writing in this blog.  I've actually been really lax on writing in my online journal, too.  Work has blocked all blog and personal sites, which totally sucks.  Although, I find it super funny that Facebook still works.  Anyway, I haven't slacked off on ideas or cooking or taking pictures of what I have been cooking.  So, I am behind, but I promise I'll catch up.  Eventually...

My godmother gave me a waffle iron, coffee mugs, and a brunch cookbook (aptly named Brunch!) for my bridal shower gift.  First, I've always wanted a waffle iron.  I love waffles.  The cookbook was really cool, especially since Marshall and I meet with a particular group of friends each Saturday for breakfast and then once a month one of us hosts a homemade brunch/breakfast.  This time, however, I looked to it for something quick, easy and light to make for dinner one night.  I came across this dish called "Cucurumao" (pronounced "goo-ga-de-mow").  I looked at the corresponding photo and it was intriguing.  The dish is similar to one called "Eggs in Purgatory".  I was so intrigued, I picked it for dinner.  I figured it would be great with a salad and some lovely toasted Italian bread.

Essentially this dish boils down to is poached eggs in tomato sauce.  The tomato sauce for this recipe is a very simple marinara.  The "purgatory" part in the name comes from the fact that the sauce is spicy.  You put the two together and I honestly did not think it would end up being as good as it was.  It was delicious and so incredibly warming.  It was total comfort food.  My comfort food is soft, or mushy, polenta with tomato sauce and Italian sausage.  It's what I get every year at the local Italian festival.  This dish, though, is a definite close second.  It's a perfect dinner dish, too, because it is much heavier than what I would normally want for brunch or breakfast.



Cucurumao
Serves 3-4

2 Tbs. Olive Oil
1 medium-sized Onion, chopped
2 Garlic Cloves, minced
Red Pepper Flakes, to taste
1 28-ounce can Whole Tomatoes with Juice
Kosher Salt and Freshly Ground Black Pepper, to taste
4 Fresh Basil Leaves, torn
6 Large Eggs

1.  Heat the olive oil in a large sauté pan over medium heat.  Add the onions and garlic and sauté until soft and slightly golden, about 4 minutes.  Add garlic and sauté for an additional minute, until fragrant.  Finally, add the red pepper flakes and sauté for 1 minute.
2.  Add the tomatoes.  Crush them before adding them whole to the pan OR you can break them up with a spoon directly in the pan.  Chef's Note:  I place a colander over the pan and empty the contents of the can into the colander.  With my hands, I break up the whole tomatoes, removing any tough bits.  This allows the juice to drain directly into the pan.  Once the tomatoes are crushed, I simply empty the contents of the colander into the pan.  I learned this technique from my Mom.
3.  Cook until fairly thick, about 20 minutes.  Season with salt and pepper.  If you find that the sauce is too acidic, you can add a pinch of sugar at this point, as well.  I rarely find that I need the sugar.  If you don't want to use plain granulated sugar, you can simply add some shredded carrot, which will add enough balance of sweet against the tomatoes.
4.  Stir in the basil leaves.
5.  Make 6 impressions into the sauce with the back of a spoon, and break 1 egg into each depression.  Cover each egg with a little tomato sauce.  Cover the pan and cook over medium heat, until eggs are the desired doneness.  If you cook for 4 minutes, you'll get somewhere between over-medium and over-hard eggs.  If you want your eggs more runny, cook for only 3 minutes.

I served my eggs over thick pieces of toasted Italian bread.  I drizzled each side of the bread with olive oil and placed under the broiler.  You can add a little more garlic to the dish, by taking a raw garlic clove and rubbing it on the freshly toasted bread!  Of course, you can always sprinkle with cheese, but by this point I was so ready to dig in, I went without.


bon appetit!

Recipe credit:  Gand, Gayle and Christie Matheson, Gale Gand's BRUNCH! 100 Fantastic Recipes for the Weekend's Best Meal, 2009, Clarkson Potter/Publishers, New York.