September Recipes: Egg Piperade on Toast

An easy brunch recipe inspired by the french classic.

Piperade is originally from the French Basque country, an easy way to make the best of late summer produce. It's delicious with eggs and although it doesn't look like much, it's definitely greater than the sum of its parts.

Give this egg piperade or 'piperade aux oeufs' recipe a go as an easy brunch or lunch recipe. You can also serve the piperade without the eggs as a deliciously saucy side dish. Think of it as ratatouille's lesser known but equally delicious cousin.

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Ingredients (serves 2):

Egg piperade recipe:

• 1 green chili pepper

• 1 green bell pepper

• 2 red bell peppers

• 1 white onion

• 4 tomatoes

• 15g parsley

• 3 eggs

• 1 tsp piment d'espelette (or smoked paprika)

• 1 Tbs EVOO

• Sea salt

• Black pepper

  
  

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Method:

How to make my easy piperade and egg on toast recipe:

1. Remove the stem and seeds of all the peppers. Thinly slice them in julienne.

2. Peel and thinly slice the onion.

3. Roughly dice the tomatoes.

4. Chop the parsley as finely as possible using a back and forth motion of the knife.

5. Pour 1 Tbs EVOO into a sauce pan on medium-low heat, add the onions with a sprinkle of salt and leave to sweat for 5 minutes stirring occasionally.

6. Add the peppers, a sprinkle of salt and cook them off for 6 minutes. They should soften but not take on much colour.

7. Sprinkle in the tsp of piment d'Espelette and cook it off for 1 minute.

8. Add the tomatoes, turn the heat up slightly and cook these off for 6 minutes or until their water has evaporated and the tomatoes are saucy.

9. Break the eggs into a bowl, whisk until homogeneous then season with salt, pepper and a sprinkle of piment d'Espelette.

10. Add the chopped parsley to the piperade and stir it in until evenly distributed.

11. Pour the egg mix into the pan and scramble them into the piperade until cooked through. Stir continuously to break up the egg and incorporate it into the sauce, this should take about 2 minutes.

12. Rub a garlic clove on slices of toast, drizzle a bit of EVOO on top then spoon the piperade over them.

13. Enjoy while it's hot, bon appétit!

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More about this piperade recipe:

Shortcuts:

• Piment d'Espelette is a special variety of pepper grown in the Basque country of France which is dried and ground into a spice. It has quite a unique flavour and not a lot of heat. It's sold in most supermarkets in France but I've struggled to find it in the UK so I recommend swapping it out for smoked paprika.

• If you're short on time, or they're out of season, you can use frozen sliced mixed peppers to replace the bell peppers.

• Likewise, you can use a tin of plum tomatoes rather than using fresh.

  
  

Keys to success:

• This is a very easy recipe. Just take your time chopping the vegetables and leave a comment if you have any questions.

Health benefits of peppers:

They're a good source of:

• vitamin B7 (biotin) which supports cell health and is needed to transform food into energy;

• folate which supports the formation of red blood cells;

• vitamin A which supports the immune system, and helps to maintain healthy vision and skin;

• vitamin C which acts as a water-soluble antioxidants, protects cells, enables wound healing and helps maintain healthy skin, bones, cartilage and blood vessels;

The predominant pigments in peppers are carotenoids, although they are highest in red peppers. Their unique red colour comes from a blend of cryptoxanthin, capsanthin and capsorubin.

Carotenoids all have antioxidant properties, they are excellent free radical scavengers playing a part if protecting body and cells from age-related diseases.

In particular, cryptoxanthin and beta-carotene present in peppers is converted to vitamin A to support eye health, skin health, and the immune system. Early studies on cryptoxanthin also show a positive role in lung cancer prevention;

Peppers also contain the carotenoid lutein, which has been proven to support eye health. It may slow down the affects of age-related vision loss and cataracts. Its anti-inflammatory properties may also support cognitive function and a decreased risk of cancers and cardiovascular diseases.

Peppers also contain phenolic compounds and flavonoids. Polyphenol content is highest in green peppers.These have anti-tumor and anti-inflammatory properties, reduce the risk of diabetes and cardiovascular diseases.

The flavonoid quercetin in particular is noted to support the immune system in combatting viral infections and reducing allergy symptoms, as well as protecting against degenerative brain disorders.

Luteolin helps protect skin from UV damage. Animal studies also suggest it may play a role in reducing body fat and treating lung hypertension.

Some animal studies found that consumption of bell peppers reduces the accumulation of amyloids around nerve fibres in the brain, which contribute to memory loss and the risk of developing Alzheimer’s disease. This is most likely due to the antioxidant properties of their active compounds.

Mood Food - Happy/Serene:

Folate - being low in folate increases your chance of feeling depressed and is linked to low levels of serotonin (one of the good mood hormones required in part to regulate mood);

Vitamin C - is required to convert dopamine to noradrenaline, another mood hormone linked to the feeling of reward or pleasure, which can lead to low mood and depression if low;

Tryptophan (Eggs) - this essential amino acid is a precursor to serotonin.

Hopefully this makes you excited to try this and many other pepper recipes during its season!

You can find lots of ideas on how to cook with peppers in my newsletter: https://felicityvincent.substack.com/

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Full Video:

Cook along with this step-by-step video and learn how to make my easy piperade brunch recipe.

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Photos: