When it comes to Australian food, Bill Granger is considered an icon. His restaurants are legendary with their group dining (he was one of the first to create a space that encouraged strangers to sit together at a table), and simple, honest cooking style. I’ll never forget the first time I ate at his Darlinghurst restaurant. I was probably about 10 years old or so when my uncle took me for breakfast. We ordered the soft-boiled eggs and toast “soldiers” and it was the most delicious thing I’d ever had. The restaurant has such a cool vibe, too. Over the years, Granger has been crowned the ‘egg master of Sydney’ (New York Times 2002), the ‘king of breakfast’ (The Telegraph Magazine, 2016), and the ‘creator of avocado toast.’ Now, it’s always my first stop whenever I’m back in Sydney.
So, of course, when I saw that Mr. Granger had released his latest cookbook, Australian Food I knew I had to get my hands on it. The cover alone was enough for me to purchase the tome (a sunny addition to my coffee table) but the recipes are on another level—fresh flavors with a focus on local and seasonal, and healthy but never preachy. In honor of the launch, we’ll be rolling out a few of the recipes from his latest title with the first being his delicious Baked Green Eggs With Roast Tomato & Chilli Salsa.
Granger calls these baked eggs “the organized entertainer’s dream.” He adds: “I always think I’m going to be ‘the organized entertainer’ but I can never quite be that person. If there’s ever a chance that I’m being organized, I get over-enthusiastic and add something else into the equation, causing chaos. What you need here is an oven tray with lots of little baking dishes. You can even fill the dishes and keep them in the fridge overnight, ready to bake the next day.” What more could you ask for? We guarantee this will become your new weekend go-to. Read on for the recipe and enjoy!
Bill Granger is an Australian restaurateur and food writer, loved by family cooks and sophisticated foodies alike. Bill’s sunny, relaxed approach to food is an essential element in his enduring popularity. Bill has written 11 cookbooks, selling in excess of 1 million copies, and has made 5 cookery series seen in over 30 countries. He continues to write recipe columns for magazines and newspapers worldwide.
Baked Green Eggs with Roast Tomato & Chilli Salsa
Serves 4 people
Cook
40 minutes
Categories
Ingredients
- Roast tomato & chilli salsa
- 2 large Roma tomatoes
- 1 large red chilli
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- 1 teaspoon sweet smoked paprika
- 500g Swiss chard or silverbeet
- 4 tablespoons olive oil
- 3 garlic cloves, finely chopped
- 2 teaspoons cardamom pods, seeds removed and ground, or ground cardamom
- 2 teaspoons ground coriander
- 2 teaspoons cumin seeds
- 2 teaspoons fennel seeds
- 200ml double cream
- Juice of 1/2 lemon
- 8 eggs
- 4 heaped tablespoons sour cream
- Sweet smoked paprika, to sprinkle
- Sourdough toast, to serve
Instructions
- To make the roast tomato & chilli salsa, using tongs, hold
the tomatoes and chilli directly over a gas flame, or cook
over a hot barbecue or under a hot grill, for 5–10 minutes,
turning frequently until blackened. Remove from the heat
and place in an airtight container. Leave for 5 minutes, then
peel away the charred skins and any stalks. Halve the
tomatoes, discard the seeds and chop the flesh. Finely chop
the chilli and add to the tomato with the oil and sweet
smoked paprika. Set aside until ready to serve. - Shred the chard leaves and set aside; finely slice the stalks.
Heat the oil in a large frying pan over medium heat, add the
chard stalks, garlic and spices and cook for 10 minutes,
stirring frequently, until the stalks are tender. - Add the shredded leaves to the pan with 2–3 tablespoons
water and cook for 5–8 minutes, until the leaves are wilted
and soft. Increase the heat, pour in the cream and lemon
juice and simmer for 3 minutes to reduce the cream. Season
with sea salt and freshly ground black pepper. - Preheat the oven to 200?C. Spoon the chard mixture into
four 250–300ml ovenproof dishes. Make 2 holes in the
mixture and crack an egg into each hole. Cover with foil
and bake for 12–15 minutes, or until the whites are set and
the yolks runny. - Add a spoonful of sour cream and roast tomato & chilli salsa
to each dish. Sprinkle with smoked paprika and serve with
sourdough toast.
