Quiche - it's what's for dinner

Let's see if I can get this done. I am sorry for being such a slacker...I've actually cooked and photographed at least 4 of the last challenges, but being pregnant, a mom of a very active 2 year-old, and writing a dissertation somehow all conspired to prevent me from getting any of them uploaded. But today was a beautiful day here in Louisiana, and I wanted to share our meal inspired by this month's theme.

EGGS

Our wonderful neighbors got chicks last summer and Segde has been able to watch them grow into surprisingly beautiful animals. He enjoys getting the eggs (but does break a few on occasion) and we thoroughly enjoy eating FRESH home-grown eggs. No more store-bought for us!

Sedge collecting eggs with Aimee

I love this time of year because the Farmer's Market also starts to carry more items and I thought it would be wonderful to make a Quiche with all locally grown/produced ingredients. Except, I am a terrible baker so I have to use store-bought pie crusts (sorry purists).




The recipe I used was given to me by some friends, but it's modified here to fit our available ingredients:






3 eggs (use 4 if eggs are small)
1 cup fresh green cauliflower florets
6 oz local goat cheese, basil infused
1 1/2 cups milk
2 green onions (these guys are honkers - probably could have used just one)
1 pie crust
1/4tsp salt
1/4tsp pepper
1/8tsp nutmeg (few dashes)
Note: original recipe calls for broccoli and chevre




Preheat oven to 425 (F) and cook pie crust for ~8 minutes
(to firm up the bottom so it doesn't get too soggy). While that's happening, steam the broccoli/cauliflower briefly.

Whisk the eggs, milk, green onions, and spices together.

When the pie crust is just starting to brown, remove it from the oven. Turn the oven temperature down to 325 (F).


Sprinkle the steamed florets and broken chunks of cheese on the bottom. Add the egg mixture over that.
















Put in the 325 (F) oven for 35-45 minutes, until a knife comes out clean.

READY TO EAT!

Kiddo thinks it's ready to eat too.
He said "mmm smells good!"
(his new favorite saying in the evenings), and proceeded to eat it all up!

I've used this recipe before with store-bought items, and it is very versatile. The only issue I have is that I can NEVER prevent the bottom part of the crust from getting a bit moist. It still tastes good, though :)

We all loved it, and I don't know if it's the fresh ingredients or the beautiful weather, but this was one of the best quiches I've ever made!


Sedge was eggstatic (sorry, had to put that in).

Quiche - it's what's for dinner

Let's see if I can get this done. I am sorry for being such a slacker...I've actually cooked and photographed at least 4 of the last challenges, but being pregnant, a mom of a very active 2 year-old, and writing a dissertation somehow all conspired to prevent me from getting any of them uploaded. But today was a beautiful day here in Louisiana, and I wanted to share our meal inspired by this month's theme.

EGGS

Our wonderful neighbors got chicks last summer and Segde has been able to watch them grow into surprisingly beautiful animals. He enjoys getting the eggs (but does break a few on occasion) and we thoroughly enjoy eating FRESH home-grown eggs. No more store-bought for us!

Sedge collecting eggs with Aimee

I love this time of year because the Farmer's Market also starts to carry more items and I thought it would be wonderful to make a Quiche with all locally grown/produced ingredients. Except, I am a terrible baker so I have to use store-bought pie crusts (sorry purists).




The recipe I used was given to me by some friends, but it's modified here to fit our available ingredients:






3 eggs (use 4 if eggs are small)
1 cup fresh green cauliflower florets
6 oz local goat cheese, basil infused
1 1/2 cups milk
2 green onions (these guys are honkers - probably could have used just one)
1 pie crust
1/4tsp salt
1/4tsp pepper
1/8tsp nutmeg (few dashes)
Note: original recipe calls for broccoli and chevre




Preheat oven to 425 (F) and cook pie crust for ~8 minutes
(to firm up the bottom so it doesn't get too soggy). While that's happening, steam the broccoli/cauliflower briefly.

Whisk the eggs, milk, green onions, and spices together.

When the pie crust is just starting to brown, remove it from the oven. Turn the oven temperature down to 325 (F).


Sprinkle the steamed florets and broken chunks of cheese on the bottom. Add the egg mixture over that.
















Put in the 325 (F) oven for 35-45 minutes, until a knife comes out clean.

READY TO EAT!

Kiddo thinks it's ready to eat too.
He said "mmm smells good!"
(his new favorite saying in the evenings), and proceeded to eat it all up!

I've used this recipe before with store-bought items, and it is very versatile. The only issue I have is that I can NEVER prevent the bottom part of the crust from getting a bit moist. It still tastes good, though :)

We all loved it, and I don't know if it's the fresh ingredients or the beautiful weather, but this was one of the best quiches I've ever made!


Sedge was eggstatic (sorry, had to put that in).

The Good Egg- April 2010

It is often stated that Auguste Escoffier said you could test a chef by how they cooked one ingredient…the egg.  That’s what we want to see from you.  Give us your best egg.  Cook it anyway you want:  drink it raw like Rocky or green like Sam.  Show us you can be a good egg.

The Good Egg- April 2010

It is often stated that Auguste Escoffier said you could test a chef by how they cooked one ingredient…the egg.  That’s what we want to see from you.  Give us your best egg.  Cook it anyway you want:  drink it raw like Rocky or green like Sam.  Show us you can be a good egg.

Molten Chocolate Cake -Warm Gooey Center- March 2010

I can’t believe how easy this was to make. The end result is a delicious treat that will make your dinner guests think you know what you’re doing.

Here are the ingredients:

I used the basic recipe from here: http://www.recipezaar.com/recipe/Molten-Chocolate-Cake-Super-Easy-92910

Pretty easy really. Melt your butter and chocolate.
Cream the sugar, eggs, and salt.
Fold the eggs into the chocolate with the flour.

Pour into greased, floured ramekins.
 And Bake.
I baked mine just a little too long. Next time I’ll check them at 8mins.

Let cool a few minutes.
 Run a knife around the edge and turn onto a plate.

I think next time I'll add some cocoa powder to the flouring of the ramekins.  That might make the final product look better. 

Enjoy.

Molten Chocolate Cake -Warm Gooey Center- March 2010

I can’t believe how easy this was to make. The end result is a delicious treat that will make your dinner guests think you know what you’re doing.

Here are the ingredients:

I used the basic recipe from here: http://www.recipezaar.com/recipe/Molten-Chocolate-Cake-Super-Easy-92910

Pretty easy really. Melt your butter and chocolate.
Cream the sugar, eggs, and salt.
Fold the eggs into the chocolate with the flour.

Pour into greased, floured ramekins.
 And Bake.
I baked mine just a little too long. Next time I’ll check them at 8mins.

Let cool a few minutes.
 Run a knife around the edge and turn onto a plate.

I think next time I'll add some cocoa powder to the flouring of the ramekins.  That might make the final product look better. 

Enjoy.

Cordial Cherries – Sara - March 2010 Gooey Center

I’m a fan of Cordial Cherries! This was the perfect time to try them out.

What you’ll need to make 10:

Powdered Sugar – 1/3 cup

Butter – 1 ½ tsp

Corn Syrup – 1 ½ tsp

Marachino Cherries - 10

Chocolate Coating

Here’s the recipe¨ http://allrecipes.com/Recipe/Chocolate-Covered-Cherries-2/Detail.aspx - you can adjust your serving size





Dry the cherries out on a paper towel.



Knead the butter, powdered sugar, and corn syrup together into a little ball.



I didn’t have the cherries with the stems on them, so I stuck toothpicks in them so it would be easier to dip them after they cooled. Then you kind of wrap about a tsp of the dough around each cherry.



Let them cool for about an hour in the fridge or freezer. Then dip them in melted chocolate coating. After the initial dip, I let them cool for a bit and then took out toothpicks and dipped the hole back into melted chocolate to camouflage the hole.



Finally, I drizzled them with white chocolate and then sat them aside for about a week. I KNOW! A whole week to wait until the get nice and gooey. But, it was worth it :)