Diary and Notes
The doors of the canteena slowly settled back in place and all the eyes in the room stared straight at the white suited cowbow, standing silhouetted against the setting sun. A dry hush too hold of the air.
"Ees the Encheellada keed." A small child whispered to another from underneath a table. No one else dared move.
The Kid moseyed up to the bar and laid his hat down, kinda real gentle like, "Steak and tequilla." There was an intake of breath all around.
"But senor, we aint got no steaks, only eggs." The barman looked over to his wife for support, only to find her gone. "My wife, she makes the best eggs in the whole of Santa Rosalina."
The Kid stroked his moustache and felt the handle of his Remington and then nodded, "You got it Chico, but if it aint the best, you'll be heading out to Bone Hill on a one way train."
The barkeep scurried away and returned moments later with a plate brimming with eggs, tortillas and beans. The smell of habaneros and cumin filled the sweat soaked air. The Kid took his spoon, spun it like a .45 and moved in for the kill.
But this time, the Kid had met his match!
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So after yesterday's complaing about my constant hunger, I found the solution. Today, I was not only satisfied, I was ready to burst. No problems with needing a little something to tide me over late at night either. My salvation came not in the way of going more exotic and fancy, but in getting down to basics; traditional food, where the only truly good vegetarian food lies. Today; beans, eggs, bread and cheese. This was a stonkingly good dinner and if I were a vegetarian, this is how I would eat.
Today's dish is in many ways a classic, but I've had a go at adapting it a little. Huevos rancheros (ranch eggs) are normally served for breakfast and often have some bacon as well. I had it once years ago at a diner, have cooked it a few times when I was a veggy and Carrie made me some for breakfast about two weeks ago. But I aint been cookin' it myself for a long time now. So I thought I'd have a go.
A final note: Normally, huevos rancheros are made by just piling the eggs, beans etc... on top of a warm tortilla. I like my cheese toasted however and my eggs still runny, so by folding half the of tortilla over and making a shield, you can melt the cheese and still protect the eggs from over cooking. It's an ingenious little trick and well worth the trifling extra effort. Serve extra beans on the side. Have some viciously hot chilli sauce ready and a glass of cold beer, just in case. "Pow!"
Cake Blog
Weinachts Echt: I think it means real Christmas. It was very similar to a large triangle of slightly stale McVities ginger cake, covered in chocolate. I bought it from Rewe, Göttingen's equivalent to Asda. Sometimes you gets what you pays for.
Menu
Huevos Rancheros,
Rice,
Red Pepper, Olive and Cucumber Salad.
Brewmeister Pils.
Ingredients
Spicy Tomato Sauce, Canned (or pre cooked) Beans, Hoi Sin or Barbecue Sauce, Cumin, Oregano, Eggs, Vegetable Oil, Flour Tortillas, Chillis, Grated Cheese, Sour Cream, Black Pepper, Fresh Coriander.
Preparation
I had some spicy tomato sauce from Monday with which to make the beans (link above). Heat the beans with the sauce, a dollop of hoi sin (to give them a smokey barbecue flavour), a little cumin and oregano. Any beans will do, I had barlotti, so I used them. Pinto are probably the most authentic, but it doesn't really matter. When the beans have been stewing gently in the sauce for a while, put on your rice and turn on the grill. When the rice is nearly cooked and the beans are good and toasty, place some tortillas under the grill to warm. Fry some eggs, one per tortilla, but under no circumstances over cook them or turn them in any way, don't splash fat on them or attempt to get the top cooked. You only want them gently cooked and the yolk not even starting to cook. When the tortillas are warm, place one egg on one half of each tortilla and a dollop of beans. Fold the other half of the tortilla on top of the beans/eggs and cover with grated cheeseand some finely diced chilli. Melt the cheese under the grill. When melted, serve with a spoon of sour cream and some chopped, fresh coriander on each tortilla. When you eat them, the yolk should still be runny and burst with yellow Mexican sun when you first get your fork into them.
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