Over the summer, I had cravings for poached eggs…however, I wanted eggs cooked not using the typical water bath. Instead, I was looking for a more flavourful liquid to settle the eggs in, and ultimately, I wanted a One Pot Meal that combined vegetables and protein in one dish. I first brought you Shakshuka. Originally from Tunisia, this tomato and red pepper sauce is a tangy complement to the mild tasting eggs. Following this, was Torsh-e Tareh: Persian Gilaki Herb Stew where the eggs were cooked in a delightful combination of greens: spinach and fresh herbs.
Well, I still have the craving and this weekend, inspired by fresh, organic, and wild mushrooms from one of my favourite market stalls, I have come up with a “creamy” version. (I have put “creamy” in quotation marks because the dish is dairy free. The “cream” was made from cashews!) In a way, this dish closely resembles the chilled soup, Vishyssoise. I used leek and garlic to start, and added potatoes and vegetable broth to complete the cooking process. As well, my goal was to get in the beautiful market-fresh mushrooms. This week, Natascha, who runs Portabella Paddenstoelen, recommended porcini, chanterelle, and anise mushrooms. As per usual, her suggestion was spot on and the dish sings with the flavour of this trio of flavourful fungi! When I was buying fresh herbs at the organic market, I spotted fenugreek. I hadn’t used this in its fresh state and thought I’d give it a go. It is a very mild herb with the ever-so-slightest taste of fennel.
My advice in making this dish is to have all of your veg prepped and ready to go before you start cooking. Everything cooks up fairly quickly so it’s best to have the cleaning and chopping done and dusted before you turn on the heat.
Now, on to the recipe!
For the poaching liquid and base, you will need:
- 2 Tbsp ghee, or coconut oil
- 2 leeks, white parts only, chopped into .5cm rounds,
- 2 large cloves of garlic, crushed
- 400 grams baby potatoes, scrubbed and cut into quarters (approx 2.5cm chunks)
- 100 grams each of porcini, and anise mushrooms, chopped
- 50 grams yellow chanterelles, chopped
- 750ml vegetable stock
- 250ml cashew cream (recipe to follow)
- 4 Tbsp chopped fresh fenugreek
- S&P to taste
- eggs… 1 to 2, per person
For the cashew cream, you will need:
- 1/2 cup raw cashews, soaked for 3-4 hours, in 2 cups of filtered water
- 3Tbsp nutritional yeast
Directions for the Cashew Cream
- When the cashews have soaked for 3-4 hours, rinse them, and place them in a high speed blender. Add one cup of filtered water, and 3 Tbsp of nutritional yeast, and blend on high for a minute or so, until the mixture is silky smooth!
Directions for the Leek and Potato base
1. In a large frying pan, melt 2 tablespoons of ghee or coconut oil and add the chopped leeks. Sautée for 3-4 minutes on medium-low, until they are softened. Add the crushed garlic, and stir for another minute. To this, add in the three types of chopped mushrooms, a sprinkle of salt, and stir until the mushrooms are softened, which will take about 5 minutes. Caution: do not raise the heat to cook the mushrooms or you may risk burning the leeks and garlic.
2. When the mushrooms have softened, add in the chunks of potato and 500ml of vegetable stock. Put a lid on your pan and allow it to bubble away on the lowest heat for 15-20 minutes, until the potatoes are just soft and tender. Remove from the heat and gently stir in the cashew cream and fresh fenugreek.
3. Bring this to a soft rumble and should you find the mixture too thick, add in up to an additional 250ml of the vegetable stock. Now it’s time to add the eggs to poach. You can do one of two things here. If you have enough people to serve and finish this dish in one meal, go ahead and crack all of the eggs into the pan, put a lid on it, and allow the poaching to take place. If, however, you’d like to use this in smaller batches, remove the amount you’d like (a portion for 1-2 people can be put into a smaller pan) and poach the eggs for individual servings.
4. Once the eggs are poached, spoon into bowls and garnish with more fenugreek, and a good crack of fresh black pepper.
Breakfast, brunch, lunch, or dinner, this makes for a hearty, vegetable, mineral, and protein packed, One Pot Meal!
Eat good food xxx
