Shakshuka: A Hearty Holiday Breakfast

The perfect way to satisfy a house full of hungry people on a holiday morning, Shakshuka (Arabic for “a mixture”) makes both a hearty and healthy breakfast. It’s full of tomatoes, Swiss chard, green bell peppers and gets a little heat from jalapeno and Hungarian paprika.

“This is one of my favorite breakfasts,” says Einat Admony, chef/owner of Balaboosta in New York City’s Nolita neighborhood. “It’s easy to make with accessible ingredients, contains protein and vegetables and covers all your morning cravings.”

Shakshuka

Serves 4-6

• 3 tablespoons canola oil
• 2 medium yellow onions, chopped
• 1 large green bell pepper, cored, seeded and chopped
• 1 large jalapeno chile, cored, seeded and chopped
• 7 garlic cloves, finely chopped
• ¼ cup tomato paste
• 1 28-ounce can whole peeled tomatoes, crushed by hand
• 1 bay leaf
• 2 ½ tablespoons sugar
• 1 ½ tablespoons kosher salt
• 1 tablespoon sweet Hungarian paprika
• 1 tablespoon ground cumin
• 1 ½ teaspoons ground caraway
• ½ bunch Swiss chard, stemmed and chopped (or spinach)
• 8 to 12 large eggs

Heat the oil in a large skillet. Add the onions and sauté over medium heat until translucent, 5-10 minutes. Add the bell peppers and jalapeno and cook until just softened, 3-5 minutes. Stir in the garlic and tomato paste and sauté for another 2 minutes.

Slowly pour in the tomatoes. Stir in the bay leaf, sugar, salt, paprika, cumin, pepper and caraway and let mixture simmer for 20 minutes. Layer the Swiss chard leaves on top.

Crack the eggs into the tomato mixture. Cover and simmer for approximately 10 minutes, or until the whites of the eggs are no longer translucent.