Spinach or Broccoli Quiche

9" pie shell, uncooked

1 cup shredded cheddar cheese

3 eggs, slightly beaten

2/3 cup milk

10 oz frozen broccoli or spinach

1/2 tsp onion powder

salt & pepper, to taste

Combine all but the pie shell and mix well. Pour into pie shell. Bake at 350 for 45-60 minutes, or until center is firm (no jiggle). Let sit 10 minutes before cutting. Optionally, cool completely and freeze. To reheat, bake in oven at 350 for 20-30 minutes, or until heated through.

*Alteration: Substitute mozzarella and/or parmesan for cheddar cheese. Omit onion powder. Add 1/2 tsp each of garlic powder and Italian seasoning. Bake as directed.

**Made three last night so I could freeze two. My pie plates are relatively deep. I quadrupled the filling and it worked out just right for three.

Roasted Eggplant Spread... I mean Sauce!!!

So, I have been waiting, for quite sometime now, for that perfect dish to post here.  One that I don't have to go and buy a bunch of ingredients for (but if you do it is totally worth it!) and one that is super yummy.  I found it last night.  While trying to figure out what to have for dinner I came across this yummy recipe on Our Best Bites.  I feel like I can post it here because I made a number of changes to it.  Sorry there is no picture.

This is the original recipe with my notes added in green.

1 medium eggplant
2 red bell peppers
1 medium red onion (I used a larger one and loved the extra flavor it added)3-4 cloves garlic (I ended up using about 8 large cloves... maybe my garlic wasn't as flavorful as it could have been or something, but I would roast a few extra just in case and then add them a couple at a time til it is as garlicky as you want it... I LOVE garlic :)3 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil (you could use a little less if you are making this as a sauce and not a spread)
1 1/2 tsp. kosher salt (or more)
1/2 tsp. freshly ground black pepper
1 tablespoon tomato paste or pureed
1/4 to 1/2 c cream depending on the consistency you want
1/4 to 1/2 c Parmesan cheese

Preheat oven to 400 and line a rimmed baking sheet with aluminum foil. Set aside.

Chop eggplant, peppers, and onion into 1″ cubes. Smash the garlic (don't forget the extra garlic!). Toss together the vegetables and then drizzle them in olive oil and sprinkle with salt and pepper.

Toss to evenly coat the vegetables and then spread them over the prepared baking sheet.

Place the pan in the oven and roast the vegetables for 20 minutes. Flip/stir the vegetables with a spatula and then roast for another 20 minutes or until the vegetables are tender and browning.

Remove from the oven and allow to cool slightly. Place the roasted vegetables along with the tomato paste  into a blender or food processor and pulse until the desired consistency is reached.

Add more salt to taste (i added quite a bit more).

Add cream and Parmesan Cheese and blend for 10-15 more seconds, or until combined.

Combine with Pasta... or...

Serve warm with slices of sourdough bread, pita chips, flat bread, or Rosemary Focaccia.

Note:  If you are using this as the spread I would suggest not using the cream because it might be too thin.  I also added baked and seasoned chicken to the mixture and sprinkled Parmesan cheese on top.

Salmon Cakes and Broccoli Salad

Salmon Cakes

10 oz. canned boneless skinless salmon, drained

1/4 cup bread crumbs

2 eggs

2 T lemon juice

1/2 tsp basil

pinch red pepper flakes

1 T olive oil

Dressing:

1 T plain yogurt

1 T mayo

1 T lemon juice

pinch basil

Combine all but dressing ingredients in small mixing bowl. Divide into six balls (about 1/4 cup each) and press flat. Fry on hot pan in small amount of olive oil. Turn once to cook through. For dressing, combine all ingredients and serve over cakes.

Broccoli Salad

4 cups broccoli florets

3 strips cooked bacon, chopped

1/4 cup craisins

2 T chopped red onion

Dressing:

1/4 cup plain yogurt

2 T mayo

1/4 cup sugar

2 T vinegar

Combine dressing ingredients in bottom of medium mixing bowl. Pour in remaining ingredients and mix well. Chill before serving.

Creme Brulee

*modified from recipe found on allrecipes.com

• 6 egg yolks
• 6 tablespoons white sugar, divided
• 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 2 1/2 cups heavy cream

1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees.
2. Beat egg yolks, 4 tablespoons sugar and vanilla in a mixing bowl until thick and creamy.
3. Pour cream into a saucepan and stir over low heat until it almost comes to boil. Remove the cream from heat immediately. Stir cream into the egg yolk mixture, a little at a time, stirring constantly.
4. Pour the hot mixture into individual serving dishes or ramekins and place in a baking dish. Set the dish with the ramekins in it on your oven shelf, then pour hot water in the dish so the water comes halfway up the sides of the ramekins. Bake 15 to 30 minutes. They are done when you shake the dish gently and the brulees jiggle just slightly in the middle. The jiggle shouldn't be a liquid jiggle, but more of a gelatin-like jiggle.
5. Remove from oven and let the brulees cool in the water bath for about 15 minutes, then remove and put the brulees in the refrigerator to chill. Just before serving, sprinkle the tops with white granulated sugar and shake off the excess. Place under broiler til caramelized or use a propane torch to crisp sugar (will be browned and harden as it cools).

Grilled Ribeye, Mashed Potatoes and Gravy

Grilled Ribeye

ribeye steaks, as many as desired

olive oil

favorite steak seasoning (ours is a homemade blend made by my husband--recipe next time he makes it!)

Rub thawed steaks with olive oil and steak seasoning. For steaks less than 1/2" thick, cook on medium-high heat to desired doneness, turning once. (Cook on low heat for thicker steak.) Use meat thermometer to test temperature for thorough cooking, or make single incision with knife. Approximately 5-10 minutes on each side. Can be done on stove top in buttered frying pan.

Perfect Mashed Potatoes

6 medium potatoes

1/2 cup milk

4 oz cream cheese

1/2 tsp salt

1/4 tsp pepper

2 T butter

Peel, cube and boil potatoes. Potatoes should fall apart when stabbed with fork, but should not be mushy. Drain water. Add remaining ingredients and mash with potato masher (lumpy) or whip with electric hand mixer. For larger quantities, can mix in stand mixer. My mother always saved the butter for last and placed it in the center of the whipped potatoes, making a pool of melted butter for serving.

Gravy

1 cup beef broth

1/4 cup flour

salt & pepper, to taste

Bring ingredients to a boil and simmer to desired thickness, stirring constantly (whisk recommended) to prevent lumping.

Chocolate Caramel Brownies

• Recipe adapted from allrecipes.com
• 
  
• 14 ounces caramels
• 1/2 cup evaporated milk
• 1 (18.25 ounce) package chocolate cake mix
• 1/3 cup evaporated milk
• 3/4 cup butter, melted
• 2 cups chocolate chips

1. Peel caramels and place in a microwave-safe bowl. Stir in 1/2 cup evaporated milk. Heat and stir until all caramels are melted.
2. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C) Grease a 9x13 inch pan.
3. In a large mixing bowl, mix together cake mix, 1/3 cup evaporated milk and melted butter. Place 1/2 of the batter in prepared baking pan.
4. Bake for 8 minutes.
5. Place the remaining batter into the fridge. Remove brownies from oven and sprinkle chocolate chips on top. Drizzle caramel sauce over chocolate chips. Remove brownie mix from refrigerator. Using a teaspoon, make small balls with the batter and smash flat. Very carefully, place on top of the caramel sauce until the top is completely covered.
6. Bake for an additional 20 minutes. Remove and let cool.

*Notes: My best alterations of this recipe use bittersweet chocolate chips and homemade caramel sauce instead of the above.

Chicken and Dumplings, Chicken Noodle Soup or Chicken Pot Pie

Base Recipe

2 chicken breasts, diced

1 small onion, chopped

2 carrots, chopped

2 ribs celery, chopped

parsley

salt

pepper

Sautee onion, carrots and celery together. Add chicken pieces and cook through. Season to taste with salt and pepper.

For chicken pot pie, sprinkle 1/4 cup flour in pot with base recipe. Pour in milk, just covering filling, approximately 1-2 cups. Simmer until slightly thickened. Pour into unbaked 9" pie shell. Top with unbaked pie shell and seal. Bake 400 for 20-30 minutes, or until crust is golden brown. If edges start to brown early, cover edges with foil.

For chicken noodle soup or chicken and dumplings, add 1-2 cups water or chicken broth and allow to simmer for flavors to blend. If doing chicken noodle soup, add noodles 10 minutes before serving. For chicken and dumplings follow biscuit recipe below, then drop by tablespoonfuls on top of soup. Turn heat to low and cover pot with lid. Simmer 15-20 minutes, or until dumplings are cooked through (will be moist on outside, but fluffy inside).

Drop Biscuits

2 cups flour

1 T baking powder

2 tsp sugar

1/2 tsp cream of tartar

1/4 tsp salt

1/2 cup shortening, butter or margarine

1 cup milk

Combine dry ingredients. Cut in shortening until mixture is crumbly. Gently stir in milk. For biscuits, drop 2 inch balls on greased baking sheet. Bake 450 for 10-12 minutes, or until golden.