Finishing touches: Aleppo pepper, za'atar and pesto

Coarsely ground Aleppo red pepper is around $8 a pound at Fattal's Syrian Bakery, 975-77 Main St., Paterson. The mildly spicy pepper is the perfect accent for organic brown eggs from Costco Wholesale, above, fish fillets or hummus.

I ate the eggs with pasta and mashed sweet potatoes.

Za'atar is a thyme mixture from the Middle East that is also available at Fattal's. Other ingredients include sesame seeds and wild sumac. You can buy za'atar bread or use the mixture on ripe tomatoes and olives, above. Za'atar is also good with eggs and broiled chicken or fish.

 

Refrigerated Kirkland Signature Basil Pesto from Costco Wholesale is terrific spooned onto cooked fish or with an open-face, egg-white omelet, above. The omelet, with a slice of reduced-fat Swiss cheese and sun-dried tomato, is thin enough to cook through from the bottom of a non-stick pan.

Half of the omelet made a terrific breakfast with fluffy organic quinoa and a can of organic diced tomatoes prepared in an electric rice cooker the night before. Egg whites, pesto and quinoa came from Costco Wholesale in Hackensack. Quinoa has fewer carbs than brown rice or whole-wheat pasta.