For many, spinach is the stuff of childhood nightmares. Neither pleas nor threats helped persuade us to eat a spoonful of spinach. But spinach deserves a second chance. Green shakshuka will win over even spinach’s most determined enemies.
Prepared properly, spinach makes a delicious breakfast and a vitamin-packed dish that keeps you warm for a long time on cold days. It is one of my favorite breakfasts. As long as I can remember, spinach on our table was a true… delicacy and in no way resembled the green mush I knew from kindergarten.
The spinach prepared by my grandmother and mother consisted of delicate leaves whose flavor was enhanced by garlic, sometimes turmeric, good farm eggs bought from trusted market vendors and, obligatorily, crispy bacon. I still make a similar breakfast today. It is green shakshuka.
Green shakshuka – spinach in a luxurious version
For the spinach to taste really good, you must prepare the shakshuka with fresh leaves. After cutting off the stems and roots, rinse it thoroughly and blanch it. To preserve spinach’s vivid color, simply rinse the leaves thoroughly with ice-cold water immediately after scalding them with boiling water.
Spinach tastes best with mild onion, garlic and a pinch of nutmeg. But that is my list of favorite spices. If yours is different, feel free to experiment. Spinach is very forgiving.
Fresh leaves, straight from the field, are available at markets seasonally. Under natural conditions, field crops are harvested in spring and autumn because the plant does not like high temperatures. This is the spinach I like best, and it is the most nutritious. But if you crave green shakshuka in the middle of winter, look for frozen spinach leaves on store shelves. Steer well clear of chopped spinach.
Supermarkets also carry baby spinach leaves all year round. They have one advantage: they do not need to be blanched; simply toss them into the pan and voilà!
Green shakshuka also tastes great in a vegan version. Simply omit the bacon included in the recipe. You can also bake the spinach with cashew cheese or tofu. For vegan friends, I also add a tablespoon of nutritional yeast to the spinach.
P.S. If you like warm breakfasts, try breakfast tarts with peppers and egg. It is simply a champions’ breakfast.
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Enjoy your meal!
GREEN SHAKSHUKA
Serves 2
Ingredients
- 300 g fresh spinach
- 1 small onion
- 2 garlic cloves
- 4 eggs
- 5 slices smoked bacon
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- nutmeg
- salt, pepper
Method
- Preheat the oven to 200 degrees. Finely chop the onion and press the garlic through a garlic press. Heat the olive oil in a pan, add the onion and sauté briefly. Add the garlic and fry briefly.
- Add the spinach to the pan and salt it quickly. The salt will keep the spinach from losing its color. Fry until the spinach wilts. Season with salt, pepper and nutmeg.
- Remove the pan from the heat. Use a spoon to make 4 wells in the spinach and crack an egg into each. Place in the oven and bake until the eggs are set.
- Arrange the bacon slices in a dry pan. Fry until brown and crispy. Drain on a paper towel. Then crumble into smaller pieces.
- Remove the shakshuka from the oven and sprinkle with the crumbled bacon.
