I grew up in the theater. As a result I grew up around and loving Shakespeare. I was lucky to find a partner who was just as passionate about live theater, and crazy enough to let me drag him to Shakespeare plays with zero description. 

You see, every year we go to Stratford, Ontario to see a few shows. We stay at a bed and breakfast, chat with the locals, contemplate retiring in rural Canada. You know, totally normal and hip things for a young couple to do. 

Last year we saw the Tempest. It was wonderful. It was our first trip and we ventured out at the end of July to celebrate my birthday. It wasn’t until we were through the first act that my boyfriend turned to me in a panic to tell me he had no idea what was happening. We were seated by a loud school group so I didn’t mind whispering major plot points to him over the next couple hours.

Looking back it was hilarious that he was too nervous to tell me he had never seen a Shakespeare show before, and that I hadn’t thought to ask if he actually knew what we were seeing. It was still a great experience. The Tempest remains one of my favorite plays and now holds a special place in my heart. We saw Othello earlier this year and he got a full high school English lesson on the plot. It was a much more enjoyable experience for both of us. 

If you’ve read any of my previous post this next bit will come as no suprise. I love a good retelling. Give me Fool. Give me every weird, strange, bad adaptation of Hamlet, Macbeth, Romeo and Juliet. I’ll read them. I’ll make comments but oh will I read them. 

Cue Miranda in Milan. Cue an excited librarian.

I wanted Miranda in Milan to be more. At its heart the Duckett has a great premise. What happens to everyone from The Tempest after they leave the island? What about the people they left at home? There’s some LGBT content. A little magic. What could go wrong? 

It turns out, a lot. Somehow for such a short book Miranda managed to be deeply unengaging and then exceptionally weird. Necromancy? Sure. Okay. Palace intrigue? Overdone, but alright.

I still finished this adaptation, and in the end have some minor love for its weirdness, but could never recommend it to anyone else. You need to be a Tempest lover to understand anything that is happening. You can’t just know the major plot points. This calls for scholar level understanding to feel like a full story. Real character development is seriously lacking. Also Ariel never shows up and that is a true shame. So unless all of these things sound incredibly intriguing I’d like to point you in the direction of some other amazing adaptations – Hagseed maybe? New Boy? 

Or you take a look at this tomato and pancetta breakfast tart. 

Remember when I said my boyfriend and I spend our vacations in B&Bs? We also tend to fall in love with the breakfast part of our stay. Everything about this book reminded me of our last visit. The room dedicated to William Shakespeare, the cute little streets, and the killer breakfast tart our host made.

I went home and tried to recreate the dish. I failed. I tried again. Repeat. 

Eventually I came up with this – a crowd pleasing recipe. It is perfect for breakfast if you serve it with a runny egg. It’s also great as a side at a dinner party. Also feel free to omit the pancetta or onion at your leisure. You could also throw in some extra veggies if you’re feeling exceptionally creative. I bet some asparagus would add some color and crunch. 

Eventually I came up with this – a crowd pleasing recipe. It is perfect for breakfast if you serve it with a runny egg. It’s also great as a side at a dinner party. Also feel free to omit the pancetta or onion at your leisure. You could also throw in some extra veggies if you’re feeling exceptionally creative. I bet some asparagus would add some color and crunch. 

Ingredients:
2 pints cherry tomatoes
1 package pancetta, cubed
½ cup sweet onion
1 cup shredded mozzarella
1 sheet frozen puff pastry
Handful of basil

For the Sunny Side Up Eggs
4 eggs
Olive oil
Salt and pepper to taste

Steps:
An hour before making take puff pastry out of freezer to thaw.

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Grease a 9×13 baking sheet and set aside.

In a medium pan place pancetta and onion. Cook until pancetta is fully done and onion is translucent. While onions and pancetta are cooking, chop the cherry tomatoes in half. Set both aside. 

Roll out puff pastry to fit your baking sheet. Scour a line 1 inch from the edge along all sides of the puff pastry, being careful not to cut all the way through. With a fork poke around the inner square of pastry to ensure no air bubbles.

Top with mozzarella, pancetta and onion mixture, a little oregano, and as many tomatoes as will fit on tart. Bake for 15 minutes. Tart is done when crust is a golden brown and center is dry. 

Cut the tart into 4 to 8 services, depending on your mood. Feel free to top with basil, balsamic glaze, and  sunny side up eggs. Really, the egg is the game changer here. Give it a try.