Eggs in Purgatory

The name says it all: Taste Heaven while you contemplate the waiting room to Hell! You simply must try it. I remember driving across the country and stumbling on a tiny town in New Mexico called Truth or Consequences. How prophetic! I thought. I was at a point in life that I didn’t know where I was going, geographically or otherwise. I found a teepee and lived there for a few weeks figuring out life. The town’s name was just that irresistible. Back to food. This is a classic, Italian, poor man’s supper that is so very, very yummy. If you have some marinara sauce, eggs and bread, you can serve dinner in about 10 minutes. Bonus: the name has built-in dinner conversation. Enjoy! Serves 4.

This recipe is quite easy to make. You make a simple sauce, crack some eggs and let it cook for 10 minutes. The results are magical.

Make little dents into the sauce to cradle the eggs. I always crack the eggs into a small dish, in case they break or a tiny piece of shell comes loose.

Covering the pan helps it cook, but it’s so fun to peek! These are almost done, so it’s time to tell your kids to wash their hands and come to the table.

Ok, now that the whites are fully cooked, it’s time to carefully take them out to serve. Don’t dawdle. If you wait too long, the yolks will harden and you will miss out on some of the ooey gooey goodness.

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Eggs in Purgatory

Author: Rebecca Cofiño for Mamaguru

Ingredients

½ large onion or 1 small onion, finely diced
2 large cloves of garlic, minced
½ t red pepper flakes
(Optional carrot and celery, finely diced. I do this sometimes if the kids need to eat more veggies.)
1 T tomato paste
28 oz can of crushed tomatoes
¼ red wine
2 T dried basil
1 t dried oregano
1 bay leaf
6 eggs, or however many you want
freshly chopped parsley for garnish

Instructions

In a large pan with a lid, heat a few tablespoons of olive oil over medium high heat. Add the red pepper flakes. Sometimes I add more if I want it spicy. Once hot, add the onion and a pinch of sea salt. Saute for a few minutes, until softened. Add the garlic and saute for another minute.
If you are sneaking in a few veggies, add them with a pinch of salt and cook for a few more minutes, until softened.
Add tomato paste and stir until it dissolves. Add tomatoes, wine and spices. Season generously with sea salt and black pepper. Allow it to cook for about 10 minutes so the flavors can develop. Adjust spices to your pallet. Remove the bay leaf.
At this point you can either continue with the recipe if you like a chunky sauce, or puree it and return it to the pan for a smooth sauce. Crack eggs into a individual cups for more control. Keeping the sauce cooking over a medium flame, create a small dent with the back of a spoon for each egg. Carefully pour each egg into it's home and season each with salt and pepper. It is OK if they run a bit. That happens.
Cover and cook your eggs until they set up, about 10 minutes. If your pan doesn't have a lid, that's fine, but it may take longer. As soon as the whites are cooked, they need to be served, so the yolks remain runny.
Place the eggs on top of crusty garlic bread. Sprinkle with parsley and eat immediately. Enjoy!