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Family life has had a bigger impact on how I cook at home than almost anything else. There’s a lot of pasta on the menu these days, and potato wedges with different sauces. A lot of meatballs. And a great many pancakes – more than I would have ever predicted before I had kids.
My weekend pancakes – which made their way into my book Simple Too – are supposed to be a batch-cooking exercise: lots made on Sunday, then reheated through the week, in the toaster or a dry pan on the stove, so breakfast is more or less solved until Friday. That’s the theory. In practice, all 22 pancakes the recipe makes are gone by Sunday lunch – eaten by the boys, their friends, or whoever happens to be over for breakfast.
But my kitchen on a weekend morning doesn’t only answer to my kids, even though that’s their indisputable assumption. I love having friends over for brunch, and what I actually want, most weeks, is one big thing in the middle of the table – generously for everyone. So they can help themselves and I’m not the only one standing after everyone else has sat down.
Like the butter beans with Urfa chilli butter, with toast, bacon and semi-hard-boiled eggs. Or a big tray of baked za’atar tomatoes and mascarpone, with some sausages and sourdough. Or a big pan of menemen (Turkish scrambled eggs) with a leaf salad and a few slices of avocado.
I feed a lot of people – with the things I really want to eat and without too much fuss: that’s the idea. Here are some of the breakfasts and brunches in Simple Too – for you, your hungry family and all your breakfast guests.
Menemen
Menemen is a Turkish breakfast dish: scrambled eggs, spices, tomatoes. Simple! It’s the most comforting of all ways to start – or end – the day. The key is to add the eggs off the heat, so that they cook gently in the residual warmth of the pan. Serve with buttered toast or a leafy salad with slices of avocado.
Prep 5 mins
Cook 15 mins
Serves 2
4 eggs
3 tbsp olive oil
1 onion, finely chopped (160g)
3 garlic cloves, crushed
1 tsp cumin seeds
½ tsp Aleppo chilli flakes
½ tsp ground cinnamon
½ tbsp tomato paste
300g cherry tomatoes, halved
1 tbsp double cream
5g coriander leaves, roughly chopped
Fine sea salt
Put the eggs into a bowl with half a teaspoon of salt. Lightly beat, just to break up the yolks, and set aside.
Put the oil into a medium frying pan on a medium-high heat. Add the onion and garlic and cook for five minutes, stirring a few times, until softened and starting to colour. Add the spices, tomato paste and an eighth of a teaspoon of salt and cook for two minutes, until fragrant. Add the tomatoes and 60ml of water, then cook, uncovered, for 10 minutes until the tomatoes have broken down. Squish them with the back of a spoon if they need a bit of help.
Remove from the heat and swirl in the eggs, using a wooden spoon or spatula and moving the pan gently until just set. Spoon over the cream, sprinkle over the coriander and serve straight from the pan.
Coconut greens with Scotch bonnet and eggs
This recipe is inspired by the Trinidadian bhaji, which Milli Taylor, my test kitchen colleague, first discovered through her friend, the chef and food writer Shivi Ramoutar. Traditionally, these braised greens are served alongside rice and dal as a main meal, but we think they are equally delicious with the addition of eggs for breakfast. Play around with whatever greens are in season. Chard is great – just make sure you chop the stems and add them before the leaves, at the same time as the onions.
Prep 5 mins
Cook 25 mins
Serves 4
3 tbsp olive oil
1 small onion, thinly sliced (150g)
2 tsp cumin seeds, lightly crushed
1 Scotch bonnet pepper (or regular red chilli), pierced a few times with a knife
4 garlic cloves, crushed
400g baby spinach leaves
400ml tin of coconut milk
6 eggs
Fine sea salt and black pepper
Heat the oil in a large saute pan on a medium-high heat. Add the onion and three-quarters of a teaspoon of salt and cook for about eight minutes, stirring often, until softened and golden. Add the cumin, Scotch bonnet, garlic and lots of pepper and cook for another minute. Add the spinach, in two or three batches, and cook for about three minutes until wilted. Add the coconut milk, bring to a simmer and cook for 10 minutes, until the sauce has thickened and reduced slightly.
Use a spoon to make six wells in the mixture and crack one egg into each. Sprinkle the eggs with salt and pepper, cover, and cook for a further four to five minutes, until the whites are set but the yolks are still runny. Serve straight from the pan.
Getting ahead
If you want to get everything ready in advance, the dish can be prepared up to the point just before the eggs are cracked in.
Weekend pancakes with date butter syrup
This is a much-loved recipe used in our London delis. Once made, these fluffy pancakes keep well in the fridge for up to three days (or longer in the freezer), ready to be reheated in the toaster or in a dry pan on the stove. That’s why we suggest making a pretty big batch at the weekend to eat throughout the week.
Prep 10 mins
Cook 25 mins total (2–3 minutes per batch)
Makes About 22 pancakes
For the pancakes
350ml buttermilk
3 eggs, 2 whole, 1 white
70g unsalted butter, melted
1 tsp vanilla bean paste or extract
250g plain flour
40g caster sugar
2 tsp baking powder
½ tsp bicarbonate of soda
vegetable oil, for frying
Fine sea salt
For the date butter syrup
75g date molasses
75g unsalted butter, cut into small cubes
In a jug, whisk together the buttermilk, whole eggs, egg white, melted butter and vanilla. If you don’t have buttermilk, make your own by adding 25ml of lemon juice or white wine vinegar to 325ml of whole milk and setting aside for 15 minutes to curdle.
Whisk together the dry ingredients and three-quarters of a teaspoon of salt in a large bowl. Make a well in the centre and pour in the egg mixture. Whisk until just combined – do not over-mix: a few small lumps here and there are fine – then set aside for five minutes to thicken.
Meanwhile, put the date molasses, an eighth of a teaspoon of salt and 2 tablespoons of water into a small saucepan on a medium heat. Bring to a simmer and whisk in the butter, a couple of pieces at a time, until emulsified. Keep warm.
Place a large non-stick frying pan on a medium heat. Once hot, brush with oil and drop 3–4 large tablespoonfuls of batter, evenly spaced apart, into the pan. Cook for two to three minutes, until the batter has risen and you can see small bubbles on the surface. Flip the pancakes and cook for another 30–60 seconds, until springy to the touch. Transfer to a wire rack (or keep warm in a low oven) and continue with the remaining batter. Serve with the date butter syrup.
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Baked za’atar tomatoes and mascarpone
These are inspired by Simon Hopkinson’s creamed tomatoes on toast, from his classic cookbook Roast Chicken and Other Stories. Use any ripe tomatoes: this is a great opportunity to use up whatever you happen to have lying around – all shapes and sizes are welcome. They are best served hot.
Prep 5 mins
Cook 25 mins
Serves 6
300g mascarpone
50ml double cream
3 garlic cloves, 1 crushed, 2 thinly sliced
2 tsp cornflour
600g ripe tomatoes, halved, quartered or thickly sliced (depending on size)
1 tbsp za’atar
1½ tbsp olive oil
1 tsp thyme leaves
Fine sea salt and black pepper
Preheat the oven to 220C (200C fan/425F/gas 7).
Mix together the mascarpone, cream, crushed garlic, cornflour and a quarter of a teaspoon of salt in a large, round baking dish (26-28cm). Smooth the surface and arrange the tomatoes on top, cut side up. Season with a quarter of a teaspoon of salt and plenty of pepper, and scatter over the za’atar and sliced garlic. Drizzle with 1 tablespoon of oil and bake for about 25 minutes, until the tomatoes are tender and the cream is golden and bubbling round the edges. Leave to rest for five minutes.
Serve with the remaining half a tablespoon of oil and some thyme sprinkled on top.
Everyday granola
We get spoiled in the test kitchen whenever my co-author Verena Lochmuller brings in one of her weekend “projects”. In fact, we’ve come to rely on them on a Monday morning. This granola came about this way. For the sake of simplicity, Verena had to trim down the ingredient list. That was somewhat painful, but you are more than welcome to start adding your favourites back in. Just take your pick from almonds, pecans, walnuts, ground cinnamon or ginger, or any dried fruit, stirred through once cooled. This granola is good for every occasion, even spooned over ice-cream. Make a big batch. It keeps for at least six weeks in an airtight container.
Prep 5 mins
Cook 1 hr 15 mins
Makes About 800g
275g jumbo rolled oats
150g blanched hazelnuts
25g sesame seeds
50g pumpkin seeds
50g sunflower seeds
110ml olive oil
85g demerara sugar
85ml maple syrup
3 tbsp tahini
1–2 very ripe bananas, finely mashed (150g)
2 tsp vanilla bean paste or extract
Fine sea salt
Preheat the oven to 160C (140C fan)/325F/gas 3.
Combine the oats, nuts, seeds and half a teaspoon of salt in a large bowl.
Put the oil, sugar and maple syrup into a small saucepan on a medium-low heat. Cook for about five minutes, whisking occasionally, until the sugar has melted (the oil might be separated on top, but that’s OK). Whisk in the tahini, banana and vanilla until combined, then pour over the oat mixture. Stir well and spread out on a large parchment-lined baking tray. Bake for about 1 hour and 10 minutes, stirring every 15 to 20 minutes, until browned and starting to crisp up. Leave to cool completely.
Crisp up further before transferring to a jar or airtight container.
Butter beans with Urfa chilli butter
This dish is for all the butter addicts – the word even appears twice in the title. The beans become so creamy and buttery that you’ll want to spoon them straight on to toast with nothing else.
Prep 5 mins
Cook 15 mins
Serves 4
50g unsalted butter
1 tsp Urfa chilli flakes
1 preserved lemon, seeds removed, finely chopped (20g)
2 tsp lemon juice
1 onion, thinly sliced (160g)
2 garlic cloves, crushed
1 tbsp biber salçasi (Turkish red pepper paste), mild or hot (or tomato paste with a pinch each of sugar and dried chilli flakes)
1 tsp ground cumin
1 tbsp double cream
700g jar of butter beans, with the liquid, or 2 x 400g tins
Flaked sea salt
Put 30g of butter into a small saucepan and place over a high heat. Cook, swirling the pan occasionally, for two to three minutes, until nutty and deeply brown. Take off the heat, carefully add the chilli flakes, preserved lemon and lemon juice, and set aside.
For the beans, add the remaining 20g of butter to a large frying pan and place over a medium-high heat. When hot, add the onion and fry for about seven minutes, stirring occasionally, until starting to caramelise. Lower the heat to medium, add the garlic, biber salçasi and cumin, and cook for one minute. Add the cream, beans (including the liquid) and 60ml of water. Cook for about five minutes, until the liquid has thickened and lightly coats the beans.
Drizzle over the Urfa butter, add a pinch of flaked sea salt and serve straight from the pan.
Note on the ingredients
The rest of the jar of biber salçasi can be used in any recipe that calls for regular tomato paste – it adds a little more depth and flavour. Keep the jar in the fridge once opened.
Ottolenghi Simple Too by Yotam Ottolenghi and Verena Lochmuller is published by Ebury (£30). To support the Guardian, order your copy at guardianbookshop.com. Delivery charges may apply
