plenty by yotam ottolenghi

Plenty has probably been the most talked-about vegetarian cookbook in years. For those of you who haven't heard of it, Yotam Ottolenghi owns a collection of prepared-food shops in London where he sells a selection of highly-regarded vegetable dishes (but also meats). The Guardian asked him to write a series of recipes in a column called "The New Vegetarian," which he was reluctant to do, as he is not, in fact, a vegetarian. But he did it anyway. A few people complained that meat-eating barbarians were invading the sacred turf of vegetarian culture, but mostly people were impressed by the recipes, which were collected in Plenty.

The general theme of the book seems to be herbs and spices and lots of them. They're everywhere! It's not atypical for a recipe to call for more than three different fresh herbs and a few spices as well. Obviously, this can make meals costly if you don't have an herb garden. (A lack of soil has prevented us from planting one, but if we had a yard, I assure you it would be overflowing with basil, parsley, thyme, and the like). I've managed to reduce the financial impact by making a whole slew of recipes that involve the same herbs, or by substituting them like crazy. Often, I can't even find the right herbs at Whole Foods, anyway. (Chervil? I know I've seen it somewhere before, but when?).


Nonetheless, I've been immensely happy with several of the dishes, particularly his shakshuka and green bean salad, which I happened to serve at the same dinner party. Generally, shakshuka, or "eggs in purgatory," is an Israeli dish of eggs poached in spicy tomato sauce. But Plenty instructs you to add fresh parsley, thyme, cilantro, bay leaves, and saffron. Instead of hot peppers, you use red and yellow bell peppers with a bit of sugar, making the whole thing a bit more sweet than spicy. Regardless, the final product is delicious, though I've made a few tweaks.

Shakshuka
3/4 tsp whole cumin seeds
1/2 cup light olive oil
2 large onions, sliced
2 red bell peppers, cut into 3/4 inch strips
2 yellow bell peppers, cut the same
4 tsp sugar (the book asks for muscovado, but white sugar will do)
2 bay leaves
8 thyme springs, leaves picked and chopped
2 tbsp chopped parsley
2 tbsp chopped cilantro, plus extra to garnish
1 28-oz can san marzano tomatoes, drained and chopped
1/2 tsp saffron threads (optional)
1/4 tsp cayenne
salt, pepper
up to 1 1/8 cup water
8 eggs

1. In a very large saute pan, roast the cumin seeds in a dry pan over medium-high heat until they begin to become fragrant, about 2 minutes.

2. Add the oil. When shimmering, add the onions and saute for 5 minutes, or until softened but not yet browned. (From what I can tell, traditional shakshuka would have you add garlic at this point, and I was tempted to do so, but the flavor is actually more delicate and nuanced without it).

3. Add the peppers, sugar, thyme, parsley, bay leaves, and cilantro, and continue to cook on high heat for 5 to 10 minutes until you get a bit of browning.

4. Add the tomatoes, saffron, cayenne, salt and pepper. Reduce heat to low and cook for 15 minutes. Watch closely, adding water as necessary to keep a pasta-sauce consistency. Taste to adjust seasoning. The sauce can be set aside at this point. Since the recipe makes a large batch, you could freeze half of it and save the rest for later. I found that the flavors improved greatly overnight.

5. Remove bay leaves and reduce heat to medium. Make wells in the sauce, making room for the eggs, which should be dropped directly into the pan with care, so as not to break the yolk. Sprinkle each egg with salt, cover, and cook on very gentle heat for 8-10 minutes, or until the eggs are just set. I prefer it with the yolks on the runny side. Sprinkle with cilantro and serve with crusty bread.

This is great at dinner or brunch. In fact, it kind of blew me away. I promise to follow up with the green bean salad recipe soon!