There haven’t been any recipes around here lately – but that doesn’t mean there’s been nothing going on in the kitchen! In fact, I have quite some recipes in store for you. I’ve been cooking mostly with simple, seasonal ingredients: spring onions, carrots, new potatoes, tomatoes, peppers and cucumbers. I’ve been picking a lot of chives, oregano and thyme from the garden in my hometown since those are the only greens ready-to-pick right now.

Today I have one Spanish recipe for you. I cooked this dish back in March already, so I think it would really be high time to post it. From our last trip to Spain a year ago (how quickly the time passes by!) I brought a little book called Nuestra cocina: Extremadura, with typical recipes of this region, presented by four renowned local chefs: Fernando Bárcena, Ramón Caso, Carlos González and Toño Pérez. Browsing through those appealing, rich plates, I decided to try the one called huevos a la extremeña, egg dish with red peppers, onion and a sort of bechamel sauce on top. I tried it with fresh as well as with roasted peppers, and the latter gave a more satisfying result. I also added a bit of chorizo and served this dish as a warm appetizer.

HUEVOS A LA EXTREMEÑA
serves 2

2 hard-boiled eggs
2-3 roasted red peppers (depending on their size)
1 small onion
1 chorizo
a little olive oil (or butter)
freshly ground black pepper
sea salt
1/2 tsp ground smoked paprika (pimentón de la Vera)
bechamel: butter, milk, flour, nutmeg and salt (optional)

1. Cut the chorizo and chop the onion – sauté them gently in a frying pan with some olive oil. Add the sliced roasted peppers and season with salt and pepper. Keep warm.
2. Prepare the sauce: dissolve a spoon of flour in a (small) glass of milk and add to the sauce pan in which you have melted a spoon of butter. Stir and season with nutmeg and salt (if using – keep in mind that the rest of ingredients will provide salt already). In case the sauce looks too thick, add some more milk.
3. Peel the boiled eggs and slice diagonally, arrange half the slices onto a big plate, cover them with half the sautéed ingredients and pour a little sauce over them. Repeat the procedure and finish off with the sauce, sprinkling it with some ground smoked paprika.
4. Serve warm with a slice of bread. Due to its rich ingredients, this dish can be served as the main plate as well, in which case I’d recommend it with a bowl of green salad. ¡Buen provecho!