Quiches (I promise not to make any jokes about "real men" and quiche)

I have a new favorite dish to make:  quiche.  Let me extol the virtues of the sublime quiche.  They're easy to make, they're versatile, they make great dishes for entertaining or for just the family, you can add all kinds of good-for-you veggies, they're a great pot-luck meal, they can be used for breakfast, lunch or dinner, and best of all, they're really tasty! 

In the past couple of weeks, I've made two recipes that I've found particularly easy.  Both are variations on recipes found originally on Allrecipes.com, but the two quiche recipes below reflect my own changes.  In addition, I use a ridiculously easy pie crust recipe that works perfectly with both sweet and savory dishes alike; it too comes from allrecipes.com.   

No-Roll Pie Crust II
Courtesy of allrecipes.com, submitted by Laura_1221
(makes one 9-inch pie crust)

1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon white sugar
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup canola oil
2 tablespoons of milk

-- In a 9-inch pie plate sift flour, sugar and salt.  Make a well in the center and pour in oil and milk.
-- Mix with a fork and then press into the bottom and sides of a pie plate.  
-- Can be used as is for recipes that call for an unbaked crust.  
-- For recipes that call for a baked crust, preheat oven to 450F, bake for 8-10 minutes or until golden brown.  

Potato, Ham, and Onion Quiche
(serves 8)

1 unbaked 9-inch pie crust
2 cups of shredded hash browned potatoes (thaw if using frozen)
1/3 cup butter, melted
salt to taste
1 cup diced cooked ham
1/4 cup chopped onion
1 cup shredded cheddar cheese
2 eggs
1/2 cup milk
salt and pepper to taste
 
-- Preheat oven to 425F
-- Press hash browns into the bottom and sides of the pie crust. 
-- Drizzle with butter and sprinkle with salt
-- Place in oven and bake for 20 minutes or until potatoes begin to brown
-- In a small bowl, combine ham, onion, and shredded cheese.   In a separate bowl, whisk togethereggs, milk, salt, and pepper.  
-- When crust is ready, spread ham mixture evenly on the bottom, then cover with the egg mixture.
-- Reduce oven temperature to 350F, and bake for 20-25 minutes, or until filling is puffed and golden brown.  

Spinach Quiche
(serves 8)

1 unbaked 9-inch pie crust
1 (10-ounce) package of frozen chopped spinach, thawed
1 bunch of green onions, finely chopped (white parts only)
4 eggs, beaten
1 (16 ounce) package of cottage cheese
2 cups shredded cheddar cheese

 
-- Preheat oven to 325F
-- Place spinach in a small saucepan.  Cook over medium heat, stirring occasionally until soft.  Drain off any remaining liquid.
-- Stir in green onions, eggs, cottage cheese, and cheddar cheese. 
-- Pour mixture into crust.  
-- Bake in oven for 45-50 minutes, or until eggs are set

 

Soup Surprise

As a mom to a three year old who won't touch a green vegetable without some elaborate bribery involved, I am always looking for ways to sneak additional nutrients into the dishes I know she'll eat. Given that today was an unseasonably cool and overcast day in the Bay Area, I decided to make soup. I let my daughter choose from a couple of recipes, and she chose the Southern Ham and Bean soup. Great choice, as she loves both beans and "hammie". It also posed the perfect opportunity for me to covertly add some pureed kale to the recipe. Oh what a tangled web we weave...

Anyway, I used the recipe from America's Test Kitchen Fast & Fresh Recipe Card Collection. The recipe calls for 2 cups of green beans to be added to the soup at the end, but I just substituted about 1/4 cup of kale juice instead. Kale juice? Yes. Okay, the full story is that I make my own baby food by steaming veggies, pureeing them, putting the puree in ice cube trays, and then defrosting a couple of cubes at a time as needed. Well, when you puree kale, you end up with a lot of little green specks in green kale juice. I strained out the kale bits and was left with the liquid -- the bits were used for baby food, and the juice went into the soup. Kale can have a tendency to smell a little like freshly mown grass, and I was a little afraid that this would have a undesirable effect on the flavor of the soup. But fortunately, the other flavors from the ham, the beans, and the brown sugar were so rich, that you couldn't even taste the kale. I think you could probably use other greens too, if you wanted. I might try Swiss chard next time.

Here is the recipe as published in America's Test Kitchen
Southern Ham and Bean Soup
3 tablespoons unsalted butter
1 onion, chopped fine
2 celery ribs, chopped fine
3 garlic cloves, minced
1 pound ham steak, chopped fine
2 tablespoons dark brown sugar
3/4 teaspoon dried thyme
2 (16-ounce) cans white beans, drained and rinsed
4 cups low-sodium chicken broth
2 cups frozen chopped green beans
Makes 4-6 servings

-- Melt butter in Dutch oven over medium-high heat
-- Cook onion, celery, garlic, ham, sugar, thyme, and half of white beans, covered until vegetables are soft, about 8 minutes
-- Using potato masher, mash beans and vegetables to rough paste
-- Stir in remaining white beans and broth
-- Simmer, covered, until slightly thickened, about 10 minutes
-- Add green beans and cook until heated through, about 2 minutes

I also got a nice sourdough baguette and threw a couple of chunks into my bowl to make it just a little bit heartier. Yum! It was a great soup and even my daughter loved it, kale and all. Score one for Mommy!