Monday, May 21, 2012

Sunday morning


Yesterday was Sunday and as soon as we were out of bed, wifey told me that she was going to make Shakshouka
“What is Shakshouka?”
“You can have a look when I make it”
“I mean is it something edible?”
“Don’t  be so naïve, I am  making it for breakfast so obviously it is edible”
Well that narrows it down a little bit, but I was still curious about this Shakshouka.
On Saturday night I saw her browsing through her baking book. Was she going to bake something?  
“So tell me, is this Shakshouka something you put in the oven and take out after half an hour?”
“Keep guessing . . . . . .”  and she sauntered into the kitchen garden, while I went about my usual task of making the morning chai. (yes I like to call it chai instead of tea) The word chai itself gives it a special taste.
Wifey called out from the garden “honey can you pass me that scissors? I want to cut one of the capsicums”
“What? you are going to cut my babies today?”
 “Yes I want only one”
“Wait a minute, I did not click it today. Hold on, let me get my camera. . . .  .”  and  I dashed off to the bed room to get my camera.
While I was fiddling with my camera I realised that my chai was undergoing that extra boiling effect. Now it was not my cup of tea.
So I took the pan off the fire and went to the garden with the camera and the scissors.   

In case you are wondering about those green leaves in the chai, those are Tulsi (Basil) leaves. I always put in one or two Tulsi leaves .. . . .  . . good for health they say.

Coming back to the Capsicum, from the time we planted them I have been recording the weekly progress of its growth and yesterday was the third Sunday.
This was how it looked on the first Sunday

It may be surprising for many to note that the capsicum grows upright and does not droop down like most of the vegetables.
This was how it looked on the second Sunday.

In case you are wondering why I click only on Sundays, it has got nothing to do with the Sabbath day. It’s just that my weekly off falls on a Sunday and on the other days I am not around when there is enough light to click.
And this is how it looked on the third week before the axe. . , I mean the scissors snipped off one of them.

I realised that wifey needed only half of the capsicum.  So why not photograph the other half to know the inside story.

And the first half went in here. . . .  . . .  in the Shakshouka    


Wifey kept the Shakshouka in front of me and said “do you like what you see? ”

77 comments:

Connie said...

Those eggs look like a tasty dish, Joe. You are lucky to be able to grow some of your own fresh produce to cook with. What you call a capsicum, we call it a green pepper here.

Amrit said...

Look so delicious. Great pictures

Smita said...

That looks soooo yummiliciuos!!!

Bikram said...

oooh i like that color of those egss yummmy .. and the green peppers are looking good too..
thankfull yesterday and today have been nice and sunny hope it reamins like this for the plants to start to grow here toooo ..

Bikram's

Anuradha Shankar said...

that dish sure looks yummy!! I do like poached eggs (i do eat eggs tho i am veg).. and you know what, your pic looks much much better than the one in the wikipedia entry of the dish.. the one u linked to! maybe u shd suggest your pic for the entry.. is that possible?

Creations By Cindy said...

Looks great! Wish I had a bite!!!! Hugs and prayers, Cindy

Haddock said...

Thanks Anuradha. Yes I too noticed that. But I have no idea how to make them do it.
As a matter of fact I have been slowly discovering that many of my pics are already in Wikipedia (through Creative Commons of Flickr)
So maybe one day they may discover this too :-)

Haddock said...

You are most welcome Cindy :-)

Haddock said...

Lets keep our fingers crossed Bikramjit for those sunny days to continue.

Haddock said...

Thanks Amrit :-)

Haddock said...

Thanks Smita :-)

Haddock said...

Thanks Daisy :-)
Heard of Bell pepper, but its more popular here as Capsicum.
Yes its a thrill to pluck things from the kitchen garden and cook.

Nisha said...

The dish looks so very tempting. Where is the recipe? I also want to try my hands on it.

And great to record the growth of plants in your garden. Even I do that. Once I made a slow motion video too. :)

Haddock said...

Thanks Nisha. I think I did see the recipe in the Wiki link that I have given in the second last line.
That slow motion video reminds me of the marathi movie Harishchandra Factory in which he does the same thing with a growing plant.

Neha said...

This sure looks good. Can you ask your wifey to share the recipe? Can try for my husband too :)

Haddock said...

Will try that Neha. She is a bit tight fisted when it comes to recipes (won't even show me the secret ingredients that she throws in while cooking)

Marie said...

That egg dish looks delish! Someone has a green thumb. :) Great photos! Have a great week!

Joseph Pulikotil said...

Wow, fabulous breakfast.Wonderful to enjoy on a Sunday. You are a great gardener. I have planted some ladies fingers in pots and let me see how they grow.

Best wishes to you and your family,
Joseph

Arooj said...

so i will have to steal your post with amazing idea for the coming sunday.

RGB said...

Shakshouka sure looks appetizing, though the name sounds way too complicated to me! And the luxury of having your own veg garden...WOW!

Liz That Skinny Chick Can Bake said...

I bet you liked what you saw! Yum.

Haddock said...

Don't worry Joseph, Ladies finger grows much faster without any problem.

Haddock said...

You are most welcome to 'steal" them Arooj

Haddock said...

If I am not mistaken Shakshouka is made in Israel and it is one of their favorite dishes.

Haddock said...

Oh yes Lizzy I did and it all vanished within no time.

Joanne said...

I love shakshouka but it does have kind of a funny name.

Felicity Grace Terry said...

Interesting post, that Shakshouka looks yummy. I have to say I have never heard of anyone adding basil to tea before though.

North County Film Club said...

You're lucky to have your own vegetable garden and your own wifey to cook the vegetables. That shakshouka looks delicious. It looks a lot like my favorite breakfast meal- poached eggs and corned beef hash.
Thanks for coming to my blog. It's so nice to meet you. My father was a Design Engineer and I never knew what that meant or what he did. He worked for a big aircraft company. He didn't talk about his work- partly because (I think) it was top secret.
Barbara

Reeni said...

That looks amazing! I need shakshouka in my life ASAP!

nutschell said...

never heard of it but it looks amazing!
Nutschell
www.thewritingnut.com

Haddock said...

Yes Joanne, first I too thought that it is funny, but now I like it (after tasting it)

Haddock said...

I think "Tulsi Tea" is now available in packets too (like the Herbal Tea)

Haddock said...

Thanks Barbara. Yes it is a thrill to cook from your own garden.
I am sure your dad enjoyed his work.

Haddock said...

If you can just hop over Reeni, we can make it in a jiffy. (no jokes) :-)

Haddock said...

Like I said earlier, a week ago I too had never heard of this but now I am telling everyone to make it :-)

Draffin Bears said...

Great to discover your blog and many thanks for visiting me.
The shakshouka looks delicious and your produce from the garden looks great.

Happy weekend
Carolyn

Barb said...

That breakfast looks absolutely delicious. Your peppers grew really fast.

Nancy said...

Looks delicious!

Shionge said...

Heyyyy....thank you so much for visting my blog and what a great surprise to see the capsicum plant. I eat it almost everyday for lunch and just this morning, I went to pick up 2 green and 1 red capsicum and was thinking just how the plant looks like and now I know :")

Thank you :D

Dina said...

So did you like it? I haven't had shakshouka for some time, but you inspire me to make it again. It is a common meal here.
Yes, I am surprised to learn that green peppers grow upside down.

A said...

You're making me hungry :-)

Maureen @ Orgasmic Chef said...

Katherine Martinelli posted this on her blog not too long ago and that was the first I'd thought about it in a long time. I hadn't eaten it since I was a kid.

Love the capsicum photos :)

Haddock said...

Thanks Carolyn. You are most welcome here :-)

Haddock said...

Something I also noticed, they grow fast.

Haddock said...

Welcome Shionge.
Its small things like these that we never notice (the growing of pepper)

Haddock said...

Oh yes Dina, I loved it.
Do let me know when you try again.

Haddock said...

Most welcome to have some :-)

Haddock said...

Welcome Maureen.
Do let me know when you have it next.

momto8 said...

lucky you..you have a green thumb! and it goes well with all that yummy food!

Haddock said...

Thanks Annmarie. The kitchen garden is a collective effort by all at home.

motherrimmy said...

I had no idea green peppers grow upside down - how lucky are you to have such a nice garden. My husband would love this dish!

Jenny @ Ichigo Shortcake said...

I don't really like capsicums, but seeing that they are so COOL to grow upright, I feel like I need to like them a bit more. :P Love your recipe! I absolutely LOVE shakshoukas!

Laura @ Sprint 2 the Table said...

Your Shakshouka looks and sounds incredible. I've had something similar with more Mexican spices before. Any excuse to eat runny eggs!

Haddock said...

Do let us know when your husband licks the fingers.... I mean licks the spoon.

Haddock said...

Yes Jenny I am looking forward to more of those Shaksoukas here too :-)

Haddock said...

Yes Laura, anything to have runny eggs (no wonder I have lots of bulls eye)

Anonymous said...

that's a beautiful (and tasty looking) breakfast! runny eggs are the best!

Haddock said...

Tasty looking ? It IS tasty :-)

Ola said...

I would like to try it:)


Blog about life and travelling
Blog about cooking

Haddock said...

Do let us know when you have tried it Ola :-)

P.N. Subramanian said...

That progression has been beautifully and thoughtfully captured. Enjoyed the post as well.

Haddock said...

Thanks Subramanian

MyFudo™ said...

Sundays are made for family...and fun and food! Looks like a really amazing breakfast awaits my family this Sunday. Thanks for sharing.

Haddock said...

Most welcome Fudo.....

Katerina said...

Your peppers look fantastic! I am growing them too. I hope they will become like yours!

CAntony said...

A couple thoughts as I read...
-Basil in chai?! How novel! I'm going to try that soon. Is that in addition to cardammom, etc?
-I love the priority of camera over chai over-cooking. I'm sure wifey finds it amusing. ;o)
-I'll be showing my dearest Mother the capsicum pics (for which the chai was sacrificed), in the hopes that it inspires her own garden.

Yet another enjoyable post!

Haddock said...

Thanks Katerina. I am sure it will turn out well.

Haddock said...

Oh yes Christine, Basil is supposed to be medicinal, and I remember my mom used to use it when the oil was warmed up to apply on the head before bath.
You have guessed the priority chain correctly.
Those who have the time and the space should do a little bit of gardening. They say it is therapeutic.

the wicked noodle said...

LOVE your storytelling! And I want that breakfast right now. I love eggs cooked that way!

J.L. Campbell said...

Interesting, these look like what we call sweet peppers in Jamaica. Not sure it's the same thing, but sweet peppers have a nice flavour.

Haddock said...

Thanks for that.

Haddock said...

Jamaica is a wonderful place (and I love Jamaican music) What you said is true, it is sweet pepper. Maybe it is called sweet pepper because it is not at all pungent.

grace said...

your peppers are gorgeous and i DEFINITELY like what i see! :)

Haddock said...

Thanks Grace :-)

Anonymous said...

The Shakshouka looks so delicious!!

Danielle L Zecher said...

That looks delicious! What a fabulous looking breakfast. I didn't know that peppers grew upright like that, that's pretty neat.

Harisankar said...

Joe..Nice Blog and Whadda Dish..I am overflowing in my mouth...THose eggs on the sauce.. Y U M M Y!!..