Spinach for Africa!

We have a tiny veggie patch that is blessed with an abundance of Swiss chard, commonly known as 'spinach' to us South Africans. From a patch of about one square meter in size we grow enough to last us all year long and eat from it at least three times a week!



Here is my very, very spinachy muffin recipe. It's a firm favourite in our house :-)

Adeline's Popeye Spinach Muffins

Makes 12 muffins

Ingredients

2 Cups Cake Flour

10 ml Baking powder

5 ml Salt

Smoked paprika,  approx 4 shakes

Leaves of a few thyme sprigs

2 Eggs

3/4 Cup milk

1/2 Cup Sunflower or Canola oil

1 Cup Feta chopped in small blocks. Use a firm feta that will not melt away, like Simonsberg.

2 Cups of Spinach. Remove stalks, chop and compress in cup

Directions

Mix dry ingredients.

Add feta, spinach and thyme and make sure you coat it with the flour mixture.

Add wet ingredients.

Mix with spoon until combined.

Spoon into muffin tins.

Bake for 25 minutes until golden brown at 175◦C in a thermo fan oven or 180◦C in a normal oven.


Savoury muffins always taste better a few hours after coming out the oven, or sometimes even the following day, so allow for the flavours to mingle and get to know each other!

I like the feta surprise with every bite, so don't make the feta pieces too small, not less than 5 mm pieces will do. On the other hand if the pieces are to big the flavours won't mingle.

Swiss chard is packed with Vitamin A,K and C and is a good source of  iron, potassium, magnesium and  fibre.

So start making your tasty healthy muffins now!

Shakshouka Twist

For years I've been making a swiss chard, fried egg dish for brunch, only to be told by my sister this week that it is a twist on a Shakshouka.  

A what? You probably ask, that was my reaction too.

A Shakshouka is a dish that originates from Tunisia  It's made with eggs, poached or fried in a sauce of tomatoes, peppers, onions, and spices, served with white bread.

After hearing that I realised with new-found respect that there is nothing new under the sun, food-wise. People have been preparing food with care and love for centuries. The only 'new' is the twist that put into it, your own signature.

Well, here is my Shakshouka-with-a-twist. It is an easy- to-make, satisfying dish that'll keep the hunger pangs away 'till dinner time. 

Try it for brunch this weekend. How can you not, with such a tongue-twister name - no pun intended!

Serves 2 people.

The twister in progress.

The result - yum!

Ingredients

A "glug" of olive oil, just enough to saute the onions

1/2 Brown onion, finely sliced

5 Swiss chard leaves

2 Ripe tomatoes, chopped

Thyme, about 10 sprigs

1 Clove of garlic, crushed

Salt

Black Pepper

2 Eggs ( depending on the number of eggs per person)

Directions

Cut the leafy bits from the swiss chard stalks, and cut the stalks in small pieces

Pour the oil into a non=stick frying pan and saute the onions and chopped swiss chard pieces 'till soft and translucent.

Add the chopped swiss chard leaves, tomatoes, garlic and thyme leaves to the sauteed onions.


Add 4 tablespoons of water.

Cover and simmer on a low heat untill the tomatoes and swiss chard are soft. This takes about 20-30 minutes.

Add salt and pepper to taste and mix everything with a spoon.

Use the spoon make spaces for each egg you have, and break an egg into each space.

Cover and simmer on a low heat, untill egg whites start setting.

Sprinkle salt and pepper on the eggs. 

Add grated parmesan over the eggs.

Cover again for a few seconds, untill the parmesan has melted.

Serve immediately on a slice of toast.


It taste best when the yolk of the eggs are still runny.