I know, I know. Not another Rösti recipe! We've already had two (the Non-Traditional 6 Veg Rösti from way back, and the Courgette and Apple Rösti from the autumn, made with Chanterelles from a friend's mushrooming excursion), but the combination of the red cabbage and the sweet potato in this one was too good not to share. I wasn't initially sure about the cabbage (Cabbage? In rösti?!). but it worked, and in fact, it was the tastiest part (along with the bacon and the cheese and the peppers and the sweet potato...)
I initially had other plans for last night's dinner, but it was snowing harder and harder, and my original plans meant a trip down the mountain to the store. In view of the weather conditions, I decided against that. The veg we had then led me to the idea of a stir-fry. And then the image of the big cast-iron skillet came to mind, which naturally transitioned the dish's conception from stir-fry to rösti. I rooted around in the pantry and grabbed a number of bits and pieces, and that was the basis of the dish. And when is a rösti better suited for than when there is a howling snowstorm outside and a toasty fire in the fireplace? It was perfect, for the mood, the weather and to keep us all warm.
Ingredients:
4 tbsp butter
2 tbsp olive oil
1 red cabbage, sliced
4 onions, sliced
1 head garlic, sliced
1 red pepper, sliced
2 sweet potatoes, grated
A handful of carrots, grated
A handful of small potatoes, grated
1 tsp thyme
1 tsp sage
1 tsp sumac
1 tsp Urfa Biber
1 ball mozzarella, sliced
1/4 c bacon, diced (or more, if you want. Or none at all, although I really do hold with bacon in general)
1 tomme of fresh cheese (I used a tomme vaudoise that we had on hand), cubed
6 quail's eggs
1 spring onion, chopped
Salt and Pepper to taste
1) Heat about 2 tbsp butter in a large cast-iron skillet. Fry the onions and garlic on medium heat until beginning to soften. Add the red pepper and bacon and cook for a few more minutes until the bacon bits are cooked on the outside (this is going in the oven after, so don't worry if it isn't completely cooked through yet).
2) Add the remaining vegetables and mix well. Season, add the herbs and spice and fry for about 5 more minutes. Finally, add in the cubes of cheese, and dot with the remaining butter. Crack the quail's eggs on top and arrange them neatly, and place the mozzarella round on top of the rösti.
3) Place in the oven at 180°C for about 10 minutes. Pull it out and sprinkle the spring onion over the top. Add a drizzle of olive oil if the top is looking too dry. Place back in the oven for a few more minutes, until the mozzarella is melted, the eggs are cooked, and the top of the rösti is beginning to brown but the spring onion is still crisp.
I am very pleased with how this one came out. Hubby thinks it is my best rösti yet, but then I think his favourite version of many things I cook is the one on his plate at the time... The flavour combos and the deep flavour of the cabbage especially were rewarding. The only oddity really is that the cabbage turned some of the other bits, like the cheese and potato, blue. I can live with that though, especially in such a colourful dish! And I must say that quail's eggs make almost anything look fancy and dainty. It also worked re-heated for lunch today!
The bacon could be skipped for a vegetarian version of this. I wouldn't suggest skipping the cheese, but you could turn it vegan if you really wanted to. Switch things up according to your tastes!