Whether eaten standing in the kitchen at 6am before a busy day or taken leisurely around the table with friends as morning slips into early afternoon, the first meal of the day is every bit as important as the last
Agrodolce peppers with capers & sourdough
Roast peppers with capers, basil and garlicky croutons, crisp-edged and soaking up the sweet-sour – agrodolce in Italian – dressing. A fried egg makes this breakfast, brunch or lunch, but you could just as well add rocket leaves instead to make a warm salad. I’ve suggested you use the dairy-free Basil & Lemon Pistou to accompany the plates, but any fresh herb pesto, homemade or not, will do.
SERVES 4
PREPARATION TIME 20 minutes COOKING TIME 15 minutes
• 2 massive or 4 normal red peppers, left whole
• 5tbsp extra virgin olive oil, plus extra to serve
• 120g stale sourdough bread, torn into bite-sized pieces
• 3 garlic cloves, 1 crushed, 2 sliced
• 1tbsp capers, drained and rinsed
• Large handful basil leaves (or flat-leaf parsley)
• 2-3tbsp sherry or red wine vinegar
• 4 very fresh eggs
• 1tbsp mild olive oil
• 4tbsp Basil & Lemon Pistou (see opposite) or ready-made fresh pesto
1 Preheat oven to 220°C (200°C fan) mark 7.
2 Coat the peppers with ½ tbsp olive oil and roast on a baking sheet for 25min or so, flipping half way through, until the skins are charred and the flesh is just beginning to collapse. You don’t want them overly soft, as they’ll get another stint in a frying pan. Tip into a bowl, cover with a plate and set aside to steam for 15min. Remove the cores and seeds, and peel away the skins. Cut the flesh into thick pieces.
3 Turn oven down to 190°C (170°C fan) mark 5. Toss the torn bread with 2tbsp olive oil, season with salt and freshly ground black pepper and roast for 6-8min on a baking sheet, stirring halfway through so everything browns evenly. Mix the crushed garlic with an extra ½ tbsp oil, then stir it through the mixture and roast for 4-5min more. The bread should be golden and crisp.
4 Put the sliced garlic, capers and 2tbsp oil in a large, cold frying pan and set over low heat. Once the garlic begins to fizz, keep an eye on it. Cook, stirring often, until just beginning to colour and crisp, then turn up heat and add the roast peppers, most of the basil (or parsley) and 2tbsp sherry vinegar. Cook down for 1-2min until syrupy, then turn off heat.
5 In a second frying pan set over medium heat, fry the eggs in the mild olive oil for about 4min until crisp-edged with set whites. Drain on paper towels. Stir the bread into the peppers to coat in the juices, then divide among warmed plates, tasting and adding a dash more vinegar, if liked. Add a fried egg to each plate, nestle spoonfuls of pistou or pesto alongside
