Make this dish when you are having friends over for brunch. photo: Abigail Weber

Another solution to my great breakfast dilemma arrived this week from the CSA in the form of tomatillos. I love these little green beauties. They are tart and tangy and when you cook them down they develop a light creamy consistency. They also happen to pair really nicely with eggs. This is not the type of dish you’d whip up on a Monday morning before work but I think it’s nice to have some special brunch dishes in your back pocket. Whether you choose to break this out when guests are coming round or feel that a quiet Sunday morning with the family is reason enough, this casserole is a real crowd pleaser. Just a quick read over the ingredients will get your taste buds tingling. Eggs, chorizo, cheese, cumin, jalapeno, and of course tomatillos. Yes, please.

Serves 6

8 ounces fresh chorizo, thinly sliced into rounds
2 teaspoons vegetable oil
1 medium onion, thinly sliced
1 jalapeno, seeded and thinly sliced
3 garlic cloves, thinly sliced
1 teaspoon ground coriander
1/2 teaspoon ground cumin
1 pound tomatillos, coarsely chopped
1/4 cup queso fresco
1/3 cup fresh cilantro leaves
6 extra large eggs
More fresh cilantro and warm corn tortillas, for serving

1. Preheat the oven to 375°F.
2. Heat a wide, shallow, ovenproof pan over medium-high heat. Add the chorizo and cook 3 to 4 minutes, until browned all over. With a slotted spoon, remove from the pan and set aside. (If you are using dried chorizo, you can skip this step and simply cook the dried chorizo with the onion and jalapeno in the next step.)
3. Reduce the heat to medium-low and add the oil. Add the onion and jalapeno and cook, stirring, about 5 minutes, until the onion has softened. Add the garlic, coriander, and cumin and return the chorizo to the pan. Cook, stirring, for 1 minute.
4. Add the tomatillos along with 1/3 cup water. Increase the heat to medium and bring to a simmer. Cook about 10 minutes, stirring occasionally, until the tomatillos have just about broken down. Remove from the heat. (If you like, the recipe can be completed up to this step and refrigerated until you are ready to cook the eggs and serve. Make sure to bring the tomatillo mixture back to room temperature before adding the eggs.)
5. Stir the queso fresco and cilantro into the tomatillo mixture. You can choose to bake directly in the pan in which you cooked the tomatillo mixture or pour the mixture into a medium baking dish.
6. Carefully crack the eggs over the top of the tomatillo mixture. Bake, uncovered, for 12 to 15 minutes, until the whites are just set but the yolks are still runny. The eggs will continue to cook when they are removed from the oven. (If you are cooking the eggs on a tomatillo mixture that was made earlier and brought to room temperature, they may need to cook 2 or 3 minutes longer to fully set the whites.*) Serve sprinkled with more cilantro and with warm corn tortillas alongside.

Nutritional analysis based on 6 servings,
does not include extra cilantro and tortillas for serving:
Calories 319, Fat 24g, Sodium 604mg, Carbohydrate 8g, Fiber 2g, Sugar 5g, Protein 18g

* Because I am completely obsessive about my recipe writing, I feel I need an even more extensive note about the cooking time of the eggs. After testing this recipe twice (once with a hot tomatillo mixture and once with a room temperature tomatillo mixture), I did a little research into other baked eggs recipes. Turns out, the cooking time for the eggs is all over the place. Some recipes called for 5 to7 minutes. Some called for 8 to 10. And others called for as long as 18 to 20. The upshot is, egg cooking time can vary greatly. You’ll have to use your judgment when cooking them. Everything from the temperature of the tomatillo mixture to the vessel you cook them in will affect their cooking time. (For instance, if you crack the eggs right into the hot skillet you cooked the tomatillo mixture in rather than transferring to a baking dish, you’re going to have a quicker cooking time.) Keep an eye on the eggs and look for the whites to just turn opaque. And remember, the eggs will continue cooking after you pull them from the oven.