Comfort Food: Poached Eggs in Tomato Sauce

This dish is pretty new in my comfort food rotation.   Others, like my perfect grilled cheese sandwich or a simple breakfast for dinner have been making last minute appearances at my dinner table for years.  I’ll admit that I was skeptical about poaching eggs in tomato sauce, but several months ago I was on a poached egg kick.  Poached eggs on sandwiches, on salads, on grain bowls, you name it, I’d topped it with a poached egg.  So while I was skeptical, I simply had to try it.

The preparation is so simple.  Just heat up tomato sauce (I doctor up jarred sauce with some onion, garlic and red pepper flakes), and crack in two eggs.  Cover the pan, and when the white has firmed up enough that you can’t see the yolks anymore, it’s done!  Pour into a bowl and serve with bread for wiping up the last of the tomato sauce.

It’s truly not photogenic at all, but it’s delicious and hearty and satisfying, and so quick.  I usually make this just for me, as J has a total aversion to the idea of poached eggs in tomato sauce.  Sometimes I’ll make him pasta and sauce, and pull some of the sauce aside and have this for my dinner instead.  When I’m making this dish just for myself, I sauté half an onion, diced, two cloves of garlic, chopped, and a pinch of red pepper flakes all together before adding 1.5 cups of tomato sauce.  Crack in the eggs, cook another 4 minutes or so, and you’re done!  You’ve only dirtied one pan; what’s not to love?

 

I paired this meal with two slices of rosemary bread that I picked up on my latest farmer’s market trip.  When I was in Boston I used to always get a rosemary olive oil bagel from Brueggers.  I love the smell of rosemary in bread; I even mix it into my pizza dough.  On a brief tangent, I wanted to share something new I’ve learned in just the last few months that’s been pretty revolutionary in our kitchen.

Store fresh bread cut side down on your cutting board.  Don’t try to wrap it up in it’s packaging or put it in a bag.  Just flip it upside down, and it will stay good for days.  I’d always repackage my bread in the bag it came in, and end up having to cut off the stale end to get at the rest of the bread.  When you store it like this, the end doesn’t seem to get stale.  Seriously, revolutionary!