“I love cooking in cast-iron skillets—some dishes just call for a heavy, heat-retaining tool. If you add cast-iron cookware to your collection, take the time to season it well and use it often to give it that beautiful sheen. These skillets will literally last you a lifetime—my grandmother’s pans must be close to eighty years old and still work perfectly. They’re just right for this baked egg dish, which you can make for breakfast, brunch, or even lunch. I use ham here—be sure to use a ham steak, not deli ham—but you can also substitute bacon or breakfast sausage. Look for golf ball-sized red potatoes and leave the skins on. If you don’t have a cast-iron skillet, just sauté everything together and transfer to a baking dish, then add the eggs right before it goes into the oven.”
recipe 
yields
serves 8
5 red potatoes, washed and cut into wedges
2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
½ teaspoon smoked paprika
¼ teaspoon turmeric
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
1 bunch broccoli rabe
3 tablespoons canola oil
1 small Spanish onion, peeled and thinly sliced
1 pound ham steak, skin trimmed off and diced
2 garlic cloves, peeled and chopped
1 beefsteak tomato, cored and diced, juices reserved
¼ cup chicken or vegetable stock
4 large eggs
4 slices crusty bread, toasted (optional)
ingredients
steps
- Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. On a baking sheet, toss potato wedges with olive oil, smoked paprika, and turmeric and season with salt and pepper. Bake for 15 minutes, then remove and allow to cool. (The potatoes will be just barely cooked.) Leave oven on.
- Cut off ends of broccoli rabe, remove large leaves, and slice stalks and tops into ½-inch pieces.
- In a 10-inch cast-iron skillet, heat the canola oil over medium heat. Add onion and sauté until it begins to color, 3 to 4 minutes. Add ham and cook until it starts to brown a little, about 2 minutes. Add broccoli rabe and garlic and sauté, stirring frequently, until everything begins to soften, 3 to 4 minutes.
- Remove pan from heat and stir in potatoes, chopped tomato and reserved juices, and stock; season with salt and pepper. Place skillet over medium heat and bring to a gentle simmer. Remove from heat and with the back of a measuring scoop, make 4 small wells for eggs to sit in. Crack 1 egg over each well. Carefully transfer pan to oven and bake for 12 minutes. Serve with toast, if using.
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Reprinted and excerpted with permission from:
Everyday Chef by Jeremy Sewall, Image courtesy of Michael Harlan Turkell
