How often do cooks/food bloggers contemplate ‘what constitutes a recipe?’? I’ve seen so many other bloggers ponder the same question, especially when they want to share a dish that they don’t feel fulfils the requirements of a ‘recipe’; likewise, I’ve discarded many photos and ideas because I don’t feel that there’s sufficient substance to share…
But then, what IS a recipe? It is one persons view of a set of ingredients that go well together that they’d like to share with other people in case they might enjoy it.
And how should those recipes then be used? Should they be followed to the letter? (I’m not talking about baking here, which tends to need to be quite precise).
For me, a recipe is a suggestion, sometimes an education, often a starting point…I read recipes out of interest to see how someone else has put flavours together and I glean inspiration from their creativity and let it roll around my brain; I read recipes to learn about other cultures and cuisines; but I rarely follow a recipe absolutely nowadays. And I know that also comes with time and confidence…years ago I would have been absolutely paranoid about following a recipe perfectly, because I wasn’t yet a comfortable, or confident, cook. Nowadays I ‘interpret’ recipes to suit my food choices and tastes, whilst embracing the overall aim of the recipe, if that makes sense?!
Anyway, all that is to say that I wasn’t going to share this dish as a post, because it’s something I threw together, but it was so tasty and satisfying that I do want to share it, and not just on Instagram, so that maybe, just maybe, it might inspire someone else…
This was so good, I made it again the next day! If its your thing, it’s also packed with protein, good fats and low in carbs, IF that’s your thing.
What’s in it?
Coconut oil
Red onion, chopped
Garlic cloves, chopped
Cherry tomatoes, halved
Rose harissa, several tablespoons
Spinach, big handful
Baby avocado, chopped into cubes
Eggs, 2
Goats cheese, crumbled
Salt to taste
In went about a tablespoon of coconut oil, followed by the red onion, which I cooked for a few minutes on its own so that it would caramelise a bit; then I added the garlic and tomatoes; then I stirred through the harissa, and added the spinach; I allowed the spinach leaves a couple of minutes to wilt, then stirred them in too; then added the avocado and made two spaces in the middle of it all to break the eggs into; as they cooked as sprinkled the goats cheese over the top to start melting slightly.
And then I ate it all straight from the pan! (And almost cried when I finished it!!! I didn’t want it to end!)
So, I give you, and everyone at this week’s Fiesta Friday, my non-recipe recipe! Enjoy for breakfast, brunch, lunch or dinner!
This was also followed up later in the week by another version using my chipotle en adobe sauce…
This one is coconut oil, red onion, garlic, red pepper, chipotle sauce, baby plum tomatoes, eggs and ricotta.
Again, eaten straight out of the pan! Yum!!!
Now head over and join the wonderful co hosts of this week’s Fiesta Friday, the lovely, lovely Linda, and Margy…now there’s two ladies whose amazing dishes will always inspire you!
Making this for breakfast this morning, a few subs, no spinach so using kale, have everything else. Yum!!!
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Nice!!!! I hope you enjoy it 🙂
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It was wonderful I added a few different ingredients but the inspiration was from you❤️❤️❤️💕💕💕
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That’s lovely 🌸🌸🌸🌸
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That really looks good!
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Thank you – I think you’d like it 🙂
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a breakfast of champions if you ask me!
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Definitely!! Thank you 🙂
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Elaine, it sounds like the perfect breakfast to me and this looks so good. I’d love to try it. Thanks for sharing it at Fiesta Friday! 🙂 Enjoy your weekend! xxx
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Thank you, my love, and thank you for co hosting, especially during Ramadan!!! Isn’t it torture to read all the wonderful food posts??? X
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A little torture 😀 xx
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Crazy lady!!! 😉
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😀
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Crazy, and lovely xxx
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xxx
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I love your discussion about what constitutes a recipe. I’d never asked myself that question! It’s breakfast time here and I wish I had some of your creation to eat out of the pan too. I’m almost weeping from not having any, ha ha! Happy Friday, mon amie, and hope you enjoy the weekend too. 🙂 xo
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Ha ha! I’m sorry!! Just imagine it instead 🙂
Have a great Friday and enjoy your weekend xx
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Ha ha, fortunately I have a very active imagination. 😉 Thank you and I hope you enjoy your weekend too!! 🙂 xo
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You do!!! 😉 x
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This is something I’d like to make. I guess the regular harissa would be good, too, yeah? Oh so easy and oh so delicious! Happy FF, Elaine! x
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Oh yes, any harissa or chilli sauce really 🙂 thank you x x x x
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I love eggs, can have them morning, lunch and dinner. Now placed on these beautiful, colorful, flavorful vegetables, I’m in heaven! Just gorgeous!
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Thank you, Fae xxx
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I love the sound of this as it’s some of my favourite things. I smiled are the “what makes a recipe” as sometimes I just throw things together to get an easy dish, and wonder to myself should I publish it. Then it would mean measuring everything out and I decide not to!
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No – share it! It’s all about sharing ideas and providing inspiration – measurements aren’t always necessary 🙂
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Elaine, you’ve echoed PERFECTLY something that has been going around my head a lot, especially recently when I’ve just been getting back in the swing of cooking and so I’m experimenting a lot and trying to figure out if I like xyz as is or if I want to change it.
Both of your recipes above sound amazing! Especially the first one. It’s right up my alley. I will definitely make this one I’m back from my wee break away this weekend.
Thanks so much for sharing this non-recipe and for your thoughts.
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Thank you so much 🙂 I was sure that other bloggers would have had similar thoughts, so thank you for confirming it x
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You’re welcome! x
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Simple and elegant, and it has those gorgeous eggs! I would eat this for any meal of the day!
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Thank you 🙂 me too!!!
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I think once you have written it down, and I’m so glad you did, it’s a recipe.
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Thank you, I think you’re absolutely right 🙂
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Great post Elaine – and one to which I am sure many food bloggers would relate – having thought about whether a given dish is inventive enough to post….
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I think so too 🙂 thank you x
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I too rarely follow a recipe to the “T”. The veggies you have put together is something my husband makes as a stuffing for the omelette. It is truly delicious. Happy FF.
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Lovely! Thank you, and you 🙂
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Your “non-recipe” has inspired me to use more coconut oil in my vegetable sautés. The vegetables alone (for vegans) look good to me for breakfast Elaine! Maybe on toast or in a corn tortilla.
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Sounds good to me!! I think coconut oil adds a lovely flavour 🙂
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Lovely. My cooking is all about non recipes. My blog has many. Not only not offering exact amounts, but substitutions that are available. Different oils, different dairy or non-dairy products. It all works. I used to do cooking demonstrations using “non traditional” products and people were also so shocked that it still worked – soups, pancakes, whatever. It’s sad to me to have to follow a recipe to the “T.”
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Excellent! We know that so many things can work, but I do think there’s a rite of passage to become comfortable in the kitchen to then know that you can make substitutes and just throw ingredients together 🙂
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Once every 2 weeks, I make a similar dish like this tasty one,…it looks fab & so,tasty,…Yum Yum Yum. The only thing, Inchznge is the goat’s cheese,…I prefer sheep’s cheese. Yum. 👍🏻👍🏻
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Lovely 😀😀
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I am on a full coconut oil swing these days, love its flavor,and don’t quite understand how some people seem so against it, claiming “off-taste.” Maybe different brands or type of processing?
your colorful concoction would be welcome at my table anytime, even dinner! All I would need is a slice of sourdough bread to mop the drool-inducing juices 😉
ALOHA!
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I love coconut oil, especially for sautéing vegetables. Red onion cooked in coconut oil is lovely 🙂
Bread would definitely be a good addition to the dish, maybe sitting the whole concoction on top of tortilla??
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Looks and sounds delicious!! My mum will often do this make recipes up as she goes, she calls them fantasy dishes lol. xxxx
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Cool, great name 😀😀😀 thank you xxx
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Makes a pretty good recipe to me. You’ve told me what’s in it and roughly how to cook it. That’s enough. 🙂 Looks sensational!
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Yay! Thank you xx
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I love the recipe and what you said about recipes! There are many times I also have thought, hmm is this worthy of sharing! But, I think these are the best shares to be honest! xxx
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I agree! Share everything xx
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yes I loved this post Elaine! xxx
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Fabulous non-recipe recipe, Elaine! It looks bursting with flavor!
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Thank you xxxx
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I love the idea of “interpreting” a recipe, it is so true! It’s a guideline and suggestion for delicious flavors, and then you get to take liberty and make it your own with some tweaks and love.
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Absolutely! That’s what I think anyway 🙂
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I do something a bit similar and consider it a recipe (Gardener’s Green Shakshuka)! I too ponder the line between shareable recipe and obvious suggestion, but mostly err on the side of posting as what seems a “non-recipe” to me might just be a completely new way of looking at not only a collection of ingredients but also technique and cuisine type (e.g spinach for breakfast). 🙂
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That was what I thought too 🙂 I shall definitely be posting more of my ‘thrown together’ concoctions!
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What a delicious-looking plateful!
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😀😀😀
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Easy peasy and most importantly, delish, Elaine! 😀
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Thank you 😀😀😀
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Looks mouth-watering
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Thank you ☺️
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I’ve got a good read. You are welcome …
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