Perfectly poached eggs simmered in a simple tomato sauce made from roasted tomatoes, onions, and garlic served overtop a fresh, creamy whipped herbed feta. This makes for a delicious savory breakfast, and is a great option for brunch and even as a dinner. It’s easy to prepare, takes just under 30 minutes to make and doesn’t require hard to find ingredients.

It’s no secret we love spicy foods. The fiery tomatoes and red chili flakes add a nice touch of heat to the dish and the herbed feta is the perfect touch of creamy and fresh to tame the heat. Each bite is a bit spicy balanced by creamy feta cheese and fresh dill. We really love how this turned out the herby feta, medium poached eggs, rich tomato sauce, and crusty bread in every bite is out of this world and is what our breakfast food dreams are made of.

What is the difference between eggs in purgatory and Shakshuka?
One originated in Italy- eggs in purgatory the other comes from the Middle East- Shakshuka, both are made from a tomato sauce base and both traditionally vegetarian, where they are different is in the seasoning. The Italian eggs in purgatory is prepared similarly to making a traditional Italian red pasta sauce. It uses the basic ingredients of onions, garlic and tomatoes and finished with fresh basil and parmesan. Shakshuka is made using peppers, onions and tomatoes to make the sauce and is seasoned with common Middle Eastern spices like cumin and paprika and sometimes finished with crumbled feta and fresh herbs.

Our take on eggs in purgatory
Inspired by one of our favorite breakfast dishes the Shakshuka. We wanted to go with a more simple tomato based sauce with minimal seasonings, that is where the eggs in purgatory comes in and wanted to bring focus to the whipped dill feta that is spread across the bottom of the bowl. It’s made so that each bite you get a bit of the feta and some tomato sauce with your eggs. We started with a basic tomato sauce and turned the feta cheese that is often crumbled overtop Shakshuka into a whipped herb mixture. It’s like we married eggs in purgatory and Shakshuka together and this is their baby. It only takes a few ingredients and one tool to create the whipped feta. It’s like magic. It all comes together in a food processor and your left with something that creamy and fresh. It pairs perfectly with the spiciness of the tomato sauce by adding a fresh taste to compliment the heat from the fire roasted tomatoes.

We hope you enjoy this recipe! For similar recipes check out our Shashuka!  

Print Recipe

eggs in purgatory with whipped herbed feta

Perfectly poached eggs simmered in a simple tomato sauce made from roasted tomatoes, onions, and garlic served overtop a fresh, creamy whipped herbed feta.

Prep Time5 minutes mins

Cook Time25 minutes mins

Total Time30 minutes mins

Course: Breakfast

Servings: 4 -6

Author: the communal feast

Ingredients

• tomato sauce
• 2 TBS olive oil
• 1 small yellow onion chopped
• 2 cloves garlic minced
• 1 28oz can fire roasted tomatoes
• ¼ cup sundried tomatoes chopped
• ½ tsp red pepper flakes
• Salt and pepper to taste
• 4-6 large eggs
• Whipped feta
• 1 400 g package of feta cheese divided into 4 pieces
• ¼ cup fresh dill
• 1 TBS olive oil
• 1 tsp water add more if needed
• ½ lemon juiced
• Serve with bread and extra dill roasted grape tomatoes

Instructions

• 1. Heat olive oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Add the onions and cook until translucent 3-4 minutes, add the garlic and cook an additional minute. Stir in the roasted tomatoes, sundried tomatoes and season with salt and pepper. Bring to a boil and reduce to simmer uncovered until the sauce thickens, about 10 minutes. Once the sauce has thickened, make 4-6 shallow holes in the sauce, individually crack eggs in each hole and cover until the egg whites are set. About 5 minutes for medium poached.
• 2. To make the whipped feta: While the sauce is thickening, combine all the ingredients into a food processor, blend until it becomes creamy and resembles a sauce. Add more water if the mixture needs to be more creamy.
• 3. If making the roasted tomatoes as seen in pictures: set oven to broil, on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper, place grape tomato halves, lightly drizzle with olive oil and season with red pepper flakes. Cook in the oven for 5 minutes. If toasting bread in the oven this can easily be done on the same baking sheet.
• 4. To serve spread the whipped feta across the bottom of a bowl, top with the eggs in tomato sauce, add roasted tomatoes, fresh dill, and red pepper flakes. Serve with toasted bread.
• Enjoy!