A new tool, and a brunch bruschetta

Do you remember those novelty t-shirts that were common before low-cost carriers carried us all everywhere all the time? Before social media gave a platform for holiday bragging? Back in those days our method for showing off about our travels was the print "My [insert relation] went to [insert geographic location, preferably mainstream] and all I got was this lousy t-shirt". Well, how's this one for a real-life retro-but-modern feel: my boyfriend went to San Francisco and came home bearing me a brand new iPad mini. Total and utter surprise on my part, I can tell you! And this is my first attempt to blog on it.

Since my boyfriend and I only had one weekend together in March due to travels aplenty, we spent most of it together. We are both big fans of breakfast in general, and at the weekend especially a cooked one. Yesterday I came up with a new recipe for his unsuspecting taste buds to wrap themselves around. As in my habit it was constructed out of what happened to be in my fridge: mushrooms, spinach, eggs, chorizo. In some ways it is a variation on classic cooked British breakfasts, but simultaneously it has continental vibes. I think of it as a breakfast bruschetta.

Breakfast bruschetta for two hungry people

250 g chestnut mushrooms
60 g chorizo (air dried)
100 g fresh spinach
2 ripe tomatoes
4 fresh welfare eggs
4 slices of bread

Clean the mushrooms and quarter them. Cut the chorizo into little cubes. Heat a large frying pan and add the mushrooms. Keep the pan on a hot flame for a couple of minutes, then turn down the heat and add the chorizo. Cook for another couple of minutes, until the chorizo is cooked. Cut the tomatoes into quarters, and add them for a minute or two. Add the spinach leaves and cover with a lid for a couple of minutes until the spinach has wilted. Season if you think it's necessary; I find that it's not needed.

Meanwhile, poach the eggs. If you've never done this, don't be scared! Boil 4-5 cm of water in a wide saucepan, then add a teaspoon or two of white wine vinegar. Crack the eggs one by one into the water, which should be almost at boiling temperature. I find it easier to crack the eggs in advance into separate small bowls, then tip them in. Leave the eggs in the simmering water for around 3 minutes - longer if the eggs are larger or if you prefer them more cooked. Remove the eggs with a suitable tool, like a slotted spoon, onto a warm plate covered in kitchen roll to drain off water.

Toast the bread. To serve, place two slices of toasted bread per plate, ladle over the mushroom-spinach-chorizo-tomato mix and top with two poached eggs. Some cracked black pepper on top works well.