The Masterchef invention test… a pilot run

I had asked the other half to leave pork chops out of the freezer before going to work.

It was breadline Thursday and the cupboards were bare. Defrosting the pork chops was a significantly important task, and the significance was clearly emphasised.

Later that morning I received a message, “I forgot to leave the pork chops out, sorry love”, it said.

I started to panic and my stomach rumbled thinking about the starvation that awaited me.

For the last few-weeks I have been carefully monitoring our food intake in preparation for my sister’s wedding (I know it is not my wedding but those photos will be around forever), in the hope I will look svelte and gain a little manoeuvring space in what is currently a very tight dress.

So you see, hunger pains are part of my daily existence and it is imperative that I know where my next meal is coming from.

The latest fad diet is one I invented, the flabbergast diet. The basic premise is to create meals from the food stuffs in my freezer and vary the proportions and contents of each meal; I believe the inconsistency will confuse my fat cells and eventually they will melt away.

Most meals consist of a meat and two veg combination to minimise the carb intake. So with no pork chops or money there was only one option – a Masterchef style invention test with the sparse contents of the kitchen cupboards.

Invention test ingredients

Invention test ingredients

 

• Eggs
• Mixed peppers
• Onion
• Part baked baguette
• Cheddar cheese
• Milk
• A cupboard full of herbs and spices

The ingredients list was not exactly awe inspiring and I imagine Greg and John would have provided a piece of fish (or pork chop) in a real life invention test, but self-pity does not solve problems and therefore it was time to become creative…

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I stared hopelessly at the ingredients, mulling over ideas in my head, baked eggs with peppers, roasted peppers with cheese on bread, cheesy leeks.

It was difficult to come up with a completely innovative dish with such few ingredients and I was short on basic commodities (sob) I was even lacking store cupboard basics such as flour.

I decided on spicy scrambled eggs with toasted baguette. I am aware this is contradictory given the baguette broke the ‘no carbs’ rule, but come on scrambled eggs on its lonesome does not make a hearty meal and besides I had lost at least 200 calories with the sheer stress of inventing something; mentally I had downgraded episode one of this invention test to a pilot run.

I will try it again sometime with a more challenging set of ingredients.

 Spicy Scrambled eggs

Spicy Scrambled eggs

 

Ingredients

• 4 eggs
• 1 red pepper
• ½ onion
• 1 part baked baguette
• ¼ cup of milk
• 1 teaspoon of cayenne pepper
• 1 teaspoon chilli flakes
• 1 teaspoon tomato puree

 

Method

1. Melt a knob of butter in a pan. Finely chop the onion and red pepper and sauté in the pan on a medium heat for 3-5 minutes.
2. Turn on the oven and cook the baguette.
3. Add the tomato puree and coat the vegetables.
4. In a bowl beat four eggs, add the milk and season with salt and pepper
5. Add the eggs to the pan and mix through with the onion and red pepper.
6. Add the cayenne pepper and chilli flakes.
7. Cook the eggs gently and adjust seasoning to suit individual tastes.
8. Once the eggs have nearly cooked, add another knob of butter, mix through the eggs and serve.
9. Do not overcook the eggs.

While this meal might not look like much, it actually tasted great… so spice up your eggs, spice up your life!