Vegan? Never! Give Me Eggs, Eggs, Eggs!

Vegan? Never!
Give Me Eggs, Eggs, Eggs!
I Love Eggs!

Mr.R had to go away for a few days, leaving me and Barley behind.
It was during this time that the thought of eating a vegan diet sort of appealed to me.
I'm not really sure why this thought popped in to my head. It wasn't anything to do with health, or moral reasons, I just thought I may like to eat what vegans eat, or more importantly not eat meat and fish.
It was probably more than likely due to my Instagram addiction. I seem to salivate a lot more at all of the bright colourful vegan food photos, than any other food shots.

I didn't eat much whilst Mr.R was away. Not for any particular reasons, other than I'm pretty lazy when it comes to cooking or preparing proper food for myself, and as I suffer from insomnia at the best of times, missing Mr.R meant I hardly slept at all during his absence, so I couldn't muster up enough energy to cook anything decent.
Ironic I know, because eating properly would definitely have given me more energy.

Anyway, as I sat thinking this morning, thankfully with the chef, Mr.R, busy in the kitchen preparing our lunch, I tried to remember exactly what meals I had eaten when he was away.
I remember eating some plain boiled potatoes for dinner one day, a couple of slices of bread; spread over two days, the bread was homemade by me - apparently I managed to find enough energy to get in the kitchen and bake bread, I made pancakes one day, and a broccoli, spinach, onion, and garlic concoction with dozens of spices (which I think made me ill), and some hummus, also homemade by me. Apart from that I ate a couple of eggs, on two separate days.

It was when I remembered eating the eggs that I realised I could never be a vegan.
I seriously love eggs. Eggs are the perfect food. They are quick to cook and full of goodness; protein, vitamins, and minerals. Fried. Poached. Scrambled. Boiled. Eggs in tortilla, omelette....... I love eggs.
So, my love of eating eggs means a vegan diet is not likely for me.
Also when Mr.R served our lunch today, a seriously delicious thick, comforting, and scrumptious beef, bean, and mushroom stew, I was certain a vegan diet just isn't for me.
I will continue to enjoy perusing the food photos on IG and no doubt salivate at the vegan shots - many of which are actually served in a glass because they're juices. Shots, glass, get it?

This isn't a joke, about the morning after. How do you like your eggs? ;)

Tortilla with a Difference

For lunch today I decided to make a tortilla. 

It wasn't until I'd chopped the onions and started to sauté them that I realised I didn't have any potatoes. 

What to do?

I improvised. 

I made a faux-tilla tortilla. :o

Basically I used eggs, onions, garlic, and various vegetables that were in the fridge. 

If you're interested in my faux-tilla tortilla concoction, here's how I made it. 

Ingredients ~

1. Onions.

Chop lots of onions. The amount depends on how much you like onion. 

I like a lot, so I used half a dozen, which I chopped in to half moon slices. 

2. Garlic. 

I love garlic, so once again I used a generous amount. 

I roughly chopped 5 large cloves in to small pieces. 

3. Aubergine. 

There's not much that's tastier than soft sweet aubergine. 

I cut the aubergine in to slices of about 2 centimetres. 

4. Courgette. 

Quick to cook, and good to eat. 

I cut the courgette in to slices, roughly the same thickness as the aubergine. 

5. Bell Pepper.

I had a yellow pepper, so I chopped it up in to smallish squares. 

6. Eggs! 

I may not have had any potatoes, but at least I had eggs. Free range of course. 

I whisked half a dozen eggs, added a little milk (goats milk). 

Method ~ 

As I didn't have any potatoes, and this wasn't a traditional tortilla recipe, I just started chucking my ingredients in to various pans and got on with the cooking. 

1. First I sautéed the onion. 

As I began the raw onions were almost spilling over the top of the pan, but, as always, the minutes ticked by and they began to soften and shrink. 

Then I added the chopped garlic to the onions.

After much stirring, and about 30 minutes the onions were cooked to perfection; soft, golden brown, and seriously sweet. 

I resisted the temptation to scoff the lot right there and then. ;) 

2. Whilst I sautéed the onions and garlic, I also cooked the aubergine in a frying pan with olive oil. 

3. In yet another pan, I sautéed the courgettes and the yellow bell pepper. 

I didn't think they'd mind sharing the same pan. Well, I've only got one pair of hands. ;)

4. Once the onions, garlic, aubergine, courgettes, and bell pepper were cooked, I put them in to an ovenproof dish. 

First I put the sautéed onions and garlic on the bottom of the dish.

Next I scattered the aubergine on top.

Then the courgette, followed by the bell pepper. 

5. I cracked 6 free range eggs in to a jug, added a dash of goats milk, and whisked until light and frothy. 

6. Finally after what felt like several hours of chopping, and sautéing vegetables, but in fact wasn't that long at all, I was ready for the final part. 

I poured the egg mixture in to the ovenproof dish over my faux-tilla tortilla vegetables. 

7. The dish went in the oven, on a medium heat, for about 30-40 minutes. 

As usual when I cook I pay no attention to the time at all, so I'm not exactly sure how long it took to cook. I just made sure to check the oven every now and then. All ovens are different. You'll know what's a good heat for yours. 

When my faux-tilla tortilla looked bubbly around the edges, and lovely and brown on top, I considered it to be cooked. 

While my faux-tilla tortilla was happily cooking in the oven, I had started my second round of chopping. 

This time it was salad ingredients. 

The weather was warm, so I thought the tortilla would be nice served cool with a mixed salad. 

By the time I'd chopped the salad stuff up the tortilla had cooled down a little and was ready to serve. 

So, I may not have had any potatoes for my tortilla, but my potato-less faux-tilla tortilla was seriously delicious. 

I thoroughly enjoyed it, as did Mr.R. 

In fact once he began eating it he didn't speak once, not until after his last mouthful when he declared, 'that was really good, thank you darling!' :)

If you fancy an easy and tasty meal, and you've got eggs, and potatoes, you could make a tortilla. 

Or, if like me, you haven't got any spuds, you can improvise. Haha! 

I love tortilla, or as in this case, faux-tilla. :) 

Do you like tortilla?