Summer - sunny days in the garden, the smell of charcoal barbecues and freshly cut hay, walks on the beach and a paddle in the sea. But for us, nothing quite says summer like walking into our polytunnel full of delicious ripening tomatoes. We rarely resist picking a few from the vine as we go about our daily duties on the farm and let me tell you, there is nothing quite as tasty and refreshing on those hot summer days as a tomato fresh from the vine, almost bursting with ripeness.
This recipe is literally our favourite ever. A perfect brunch for a summer weekend. The creamy greek yoghurt alongside the sweetly spiced tomatoes and some oozing poached eggs, all tied together with a good serving of rainbow chard makes for the perfect mouthful.
Although not actually Turkish, we love to use Ras El Hanout to flavour the tomatoes. This is a spice mix (usually containing at least 12 different ground spices) found throughout Morroco, Tunisia and Algeria. In fact when we were travelling through Morroco a few years ago we stumbled upon a tiny roadside spice shack in the Atlas Mountains that had a Ras El Hanout mix with a blend of 70 (yes 70!) different herbs and spices. Our favourite blend available in the UK is made by Forage Fine Foods (see link below to buy). The spices go really well with the sweet cherry tomatoes, adding a deep rich flavour to the dish.
This is great served with toasted sourdough bread or even a freshly griddled flatbread but its also delicious just as it is. If you don’t eat dairy, try using a dairy free yoghurt instead and if you’re vegan, replacing the eggs with avocado is another great option.
Give it a try and let us know what you think!
Ingredients
250g punnet of mixed cherry tomatoes
250g greek yoghurt
1 clove garlic (crushed)
1 tbsp olive oil
150g rainbow chard (roughly chopped)
Organic eggs
1 tbsp white wine vinegar
2 tsp ras el hanout (you can usually buy this spice mix in the supermarket but you can also make your own using this recipe. Our favourite mix to buy is the ‘Rose El Hanout’ made by Forage Fine Foods - you can buy some online here. )
1 tsp aleppo chilli flakes
25g butter
1 tbsp olive oil
Salt
Freshly ground black pepper
Method
Preheat oven to 180C
Place a saucepan of water on the hob and bring to a very gentle simmer
Into a cold saute pan add butter and heat gently until it starts to turn a nice golden brown and has a sweet, nutty aroma. This is called ‘beurre noisette’ in classic French cookery. Remove the pan from the heat and add 1 tbsp olive oil, the alleppo chilli flakes and the ras el hanout. Stir together to create a nice vibrant oil.
Toss the cherry tomatoes in the spiced butter mix and place contents in an ovenproof dish (keep the saute pan handy along with a small amount of the oil for cooking the chard). Roast the tomatoes for 10-15 minutes until just starting to burst open.
Into a metal bowl that will fit over your saucepan, add the greek yoghurt, 1 tbsp olive oil along with the crushed garlic clove and salt and black pepper to taste. Whisk together and place the bowl over the simmering water, stirring occasionally as it warms through.
Meanwhile, heat your saute pan over medium heat and add your chopped rainbow chard. Cook for 3 minutes then remove from the heat and cover to allow it to continue steaming.
Finally, set aside the greek yoghurt mix and use the saucepan of simmering water to poach your eggs. Start by adding white wine vinegar to the water. Crack eggs into individual ramekins and drop them into the water very gently. Make sure the water is barely simmering - you want the water to be as still as possible. Poach for 3-4 minutes and remove with a slotted spoon. Drain on some paper towel before serving.
To plate, add a base of the garlicky greek yoghurt, then a generous serving of the rainbow chard, some of the roasted cherry tomatoes and topped with your poached eggs. Drizzle some of the spiced butter/oil mix from the tomato pan over the yoghurt and finish with some flaky salt and cracked black pepper.