Potato Pancake with Eggs and Tomatoes

Weekend mornings are perfect to experiment with new breakfast ideas. With the numerous snowed in days we've had I was bored of cereal or plain ol eggs. Using left over cooked potatoes I conjured up a potato pancake. Somehow it didn't seem enough so I dropped on a couple of fried eggs on top. That also didn't seem enough so I topped it all with some sauted tomatoes and onions. Mmmmmm it was sooooo good. Eaten with toast and a nice big glass of OJ...perfect.

Ingredients

2-3 potatoes cooked and mashed
2 large eggs
one small onion, chopped
One tomato, chopped
1 tblsp ketchup
a dash of salt, pepper and paprika
1 tblsp chopped parsley

Method
Season the mashed potatoes with salt and pepper. Form a large patty and pan fry to brown both sides. Place on a serving plate. Add oil to a pan and saute chopped onions till transparent. Add chopped tomatoes and ketchup. Season with salt and paprika. Add chopped parsley and turn off heat. Fry two eggs sunny side up till nice and well cooked with crispy edges. Place eggs on the potato pancake. Heap on spoon fulls of the tomato onion mixture on top. Serve right away. Optional: sprinkle on some grated parmesan cheese on top.

Nargisi Kofta (Scotch Eggs in Gravy)

This recipe is an adaptation of a recipe from my Just Chicken cookbook by Sharda Pargal. Essentially nargisi koftas are scotch eggs served in a gravy. The gravy is mild and not too spicy. There are some tricks to making the scotch eggs so follow those steps carefully. The recipe is long and complicated so its not something you might make after a long day but when you have the time do try it.

Ingredients (Serves 4)

For the scotch eggs

1 pound minced chicken
2 tbslp chana dal/bengal gram (soaked in water for 30 min)
1 medium onion very finely chopped
1 large garlic minced
1 inch piece ginger minced
Green chillies 2
cilantro leaves 1/2 cup
1 tsp salt
1 tsp red chilly powder
1 tsp garam masala
1 egg, beaten lightly
8 eggs, hard boiled,peeled
Oil to fry

For the gravy

1 tsp ginger minced
1 tsp garlic minced
1 onion chopped finely
1 tblsp powdered cashew nuts
1 tbslp khus khus/poppy seeds
1 tsp red chilly powder
1 tsp garam masala
1 tblsp ground dry coconut
1 cup tomato puree
2 cups chicken stock
2 strand saffron
1/4 cup heavy cream

Method

Wash the meat. Add meat, dal, onion,ginger, garlic,salt,chilly powderand garam masala to a pressure cooker. Cook under pressure till dal cooks (about 8-10 minutes under pressure/2-3 whistles). Let the cooker cook before opening. Once opended dry out all liquid in the meat by heating till all the water evaporates. To a food processor add the meat mix. add green chillies and cilantro. Grind to a fine paste. Add the beaten egg and mix well. The egg will act as a binder.

Take some meat mixture in your hand. Flatten it. Add a boiled egg to the center and start rolling the egg with the meat coating. Coat with the meat mixture working evenly to form a nice shell around the egg. Don't add too little or too much covering of meat. Let it sit uncovered for any moisture to evaporate.


Heat oil in a pot. It is critical that the oil be very hot.. This is important because the eggs are fragile so the meat has to instantly brown up when added to oil to prevent breaking. Add each egg to hot oil. Roll gently to get all the meat browned all over. This should take no more than 30 seconds. Remove and drain all excess oil on a paper towel. Repeat for all remaining eggs. Let eggs cool. Then cut horizontally in the center into two halves.


For the gravy, heat oil in a deep pan/pot. Add onions, ginger and garlic. Fry till onions turn golden brown. Add all spices, salt, cashew nuts, poppy seeds and coconut. Fry for a minute. Add tomato puree and fry till the mixture releases oil. Add chicken stock and cook covered for 15 minutes on medium low heat. The gravy should be thick. Add cream and saffron. let it heat through. Transfer the hot gravy to the serving dish. Place eggs very gently into the hot gravy with the yolk side up. Garnish with chopped cilantro and swirls of heavy cream. Serve with rice or naans.

Potato Nest

Here's my entry for Sia's ode to Potato.Check it out at
http://www.monsoonspice.com/2008/01/announcing-ode-to-potato.html
I wanted to make a dish with the four ingredients I always have at home : onions, potatoes, tomatoes and eggs. I wanted the recipe to make something anyone can prepare, is fun to make and will be loved by kids. The idea for this recipe came from "The complete Vegetarian cookbook" by Chris Hardistry. I have changed the filling to suit my taste. This recipe makes essentially a bird's nest made with potatoes and the egg is cooked in the nest with a tomato sauce under it. This dish is perfect for the day after Thanksgiving as you can use the left over mashed potatoes. Hope you like it as much as I do.


Ingredients (Serves two)

3 large potatoes, cooked
2 tblsp butter
salt to taste
pepper to taste
2 onions chopped, divide into two portions
One large tomato
a bunch of parsley
1/4 tsp red chilly powder
1 tsp garam masala/all spice
2 tblsp olive oil
1 tsp garlic chopped
Two eggs
grated cheddar cheese 2 tblsp


Method

Mash the boiled potatoes with butter, salt and pepper (or use old left over mashed potatoes). In a pan heat oil with garlic in it. Add one chopped onion and saute till transparent. Add to potato mixture and mash well. Check taste of potato mixture to suit your taste (add more butter or condiments as needed).



Take a baking sheet and line it with foil. Grease the foil with oil. Place a large ball of the potato mixture on the baking sheet. Scoop out the center with a spoon and then shape the ball into a nest widening the opening in the center while keeping the outer ring intact. Make sure the center is wide enough to hold an egg and the bottom still has enough potato to hold a filling. Cover with saran.



Meanwhile in the same sauce pan heat oil and saute the other chopped onion till transparent. Add chopped tomato, spices, salt, pepper and parsley. Cook well till most of the water from the tomato is dried up to make a thick sauce. Add about 2-3 tblsp of the tomato mixture to the center of the nest. Break an egg op top of the sauce in the the nest. Sprinkle salt and pepper on the egg and add a tablespoon of grated cheese on top. Bake at 425 degrees for 20 minutes. Slowly lift off the nest onto a plate using a wide flat spoon. Garnish the egg top with chopped parsley and a pinch of cayenne pepper. Serve with a salad.

Eggs on Tomatoes

This recipe is my grandmother's (Amami as we used to call her). She would make this for my sister and me. We loved the name (it sounded exotically fun to us kids for some unknown reason) and it looked really good. This recipe makes what I call an "egg tomato pan pie". It is super easy to make and is a welcome change from "anda bhurjee" on those week nights when you don't want to make something exhausting.

Ingredients
Eggs-6
Onion 2 large
Tomato 1 large
Tomato paste 2tblsp
Dhania jeera powder 2 heaped tsp
Red chilly powder 1 tsp
½ cup chicken stock (or add water)
Salt to taste

Saute sliced onions in oil till golden.



Add diced tomatoes, tomato paste, salt and spices. Cook for about 10 minutes on medium heat. Add stock/water and simmer for a bit till sauce is a thick gravy. Make small depressions in the sauce and break an egg into each depression. I like to make a flower pattern with 5 eggs on the side and one in the center.



Cover and cook till eggs are done and the sauce has thickened such that you can cut each egg out with the sauce around it. Serve hot with paranthas or bread. If desired garnish the top of each egg with a small pinch of paprika.