Cooking eggs in thick tomato-based sauces is a canvas to a creative mind’s imagination of flavors. Add diced vegetables, such as mushrooms and blanched potatoes, with the onions. Wilt baby greens over the saucy eggs. For a Spanish-inspired version, use enchilada sauce and garnish it with sliced scallions, chopped pimento-stuffed green olives, fresh cilantro, and queso blanco—or manchego–cheese. Garnish a basic Italian-inspired sauce with black kalamata olives, Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese and basil leaves. If you’re not a vegetarian, finish this dish with chopped pork, duck, or turkey bacon for a salty and crispy flavor.

Homemade sauces are always better, but a good-quality sauce sold in glass jars is a timesaving choice. Unless lined with a bisphenol-A (BPA) plastic coating, metal canned sauces have a slight metallic taste from the acid in tomatoes. Read the label to avoid purchasing sauces with High-Fructose Corn Syrup (HFCS), artificial sweeteners, and synthetic colors.

For this version, leftover homemade enchilada sauce from a previous recipe melts sharp cheddar cheese and slightly wilts fresh spinach. As the eggs are baking in the sauce, GMO-free corn tortilla shells are cut into strips and fried to a crisp in less than two minutes.

For busy weekday schedules, this is a healthy breakfast or dinner. It takes less than 15 minutes to prep and serve. Use the time to break from a heavy workload to creatively develop your own Baked Eggs in Tomato Sauce recipe with your choice of garnishes and vegetables.

It’s a simple recipe for creative minds. What type of tomato-based sauce and garnish would you use for your version?

Baked Eggs in Enchilada Sauce

Prepping: 5 to 10 minutes
Cooking: More or less 5 minutes

Ingredients

• 1/2 a small red onion; diced
• 1/2 green bell pepper; diced
• 1 small garlic clove; minced
• 1/4-cup fresh oregano
• (Optional) A dash of cinnamon
• Sea salt and fresh black pepper; to taste
• (Optional) A pinch of crushed red pepper
• 1/8 tsp. smoke paprika
• 1/2-cup enchilada sauce
• 1 to 2 organic large eggs
• A small handful of chopped fresh spinach; roughly chopped
• Garnish: Aged Manchego or sharp cheddar cheese and tortilla chips

Equipment

• 6 inch black skillet serves one or increase ingredients for a 10 to 12 inch skillet to serve more people.

Directions

1. Over medium heat, warm olive oil until hot in a skillet. Add onions and green bell pepper. Cook until onion is translucent. Stir in garlic and cook for 30 seconds. Don’t burn the garlic.
2. Add mushrooms, oregano and spices. Cook until the mushrooms begin to soften. Add enchilada sauce and bring to a simmer.
3. Crack one egg over the enchilada sauce. Do not stir (if a solid yolk is preferred, break it with a knife or fork). Repeat with the other egg. Season eggs with fresh black pepper and a little salt. Cover skillet and let eggs cook to desired consistency, from running to solid egg yolk.
4. Turn off the heat. Sprinkle cheese and spinach on top.
5. Garnish with tortilla chips.

Enjoy!