Quiche Lorraine

  

Ingredients

6 thick slices of bacon

12 thin slices Swiss cheese

4 eggs, lightly beaten

2 cups light cream

1 Tablespoon flour

ground nutmeg

freshly ground black pepper

1 unbaked 9 inch pie shell

Process

"Cut bacon slices in half, cut cheese in pieces the same size. Fry bacon until crisp, drain. Line pie plate with unbaked pie shell. Over lap bacon and cheese slices to cover the bottom of crust. Combine eggs, cream, flour, nutmeg, a few grains cayenne and pour over the bacon and cheese. Bake in a 400 degree oven until set. "

Chicken Francese

This recipe by Julia Moskin of New York Times Cooking is a family favorite. Left overs are great on sandwiches or by them selves the next day - cold or hot! This is truly a favorite of ours. Please try it! It even comes with THIS handy video!

Ingredients

• 2 eggs
• 2 tablespoons whole milk
• 1 teaspoon salt, plus more for seasoning
• ½ teaspoon ground black pepper, plus more for seasoning
• 1 cup all-purpose flour
• ⅓ cup olive oil
• ⅓ cup vegetable oil
• 4 to 6 large boneless, skinless chicken cutlets (buy the cutlets thinly sliced, or buy regular boneless breasts and slice them in half horizontally to make thin pieces)
• 3 to 6 tablespoons unsalted butter
• 1 lemon, thinly sliced, seeds removed (optional)
• ½ cup dry white wine
• Freshly squeezed juice of 1 lemon, more to taste
• 2 cups chicken stock
• 3 to 4 tablespoons freshly minced parsley 
•  

• Preparation

• In a wide, shallow bowl, whisk eggs, milk, salt and pepper until blended. Place the flour in a separate bowl. Line a baking sheet with paper towels.
• In a wide skillet, heat olive and vegetable oils over medium heat until shimmering.
• Working in batches to avoid crowding the pan, lightly dredge the chicken in flour and shake off any excess. Dip into egg batter, let excess batter drip back into the bowl and place in the skillet. Fry, turning once, until golden brown on both sides, about 4 minutes per side. Adjust the heat as the cutlets cook so they brown slowly and evenly, with a steady bubbling. Transfer to the paper-towel-lined pan and repeat with remaining cutlets.
• When all cutlets are browned, remove the pan from the heat and pour off the oil. Wipe out the pan with paper towels. Return the pan to low heat. 
• If making the lemon slices (if not, skip to Step 6 below): Melt 3 tablespoons of the butter and then scatter the lemon slices over the bottom of the pan. Cook, stirring gently occasionally, until the lemon slices are golden and browning around the edges, about 3 minutes. Scoop out the lemon slices and set them aside. 
• Add 3 tablespoons of butter, the wine and lemon juice and bring to a boil. Boil until the liquid is syrupy, 3 to 4 minutes. Pour in the stock, bring to a boil and cook until thickened into a sauce, about 5 minutes. (It will thicken more when you add the cutlets.) Taste and adjust the seasonings with lemon, salt and pepper; it should be quite lemony and not too salty.
• Reduce the heat, tuck the cutlets into the pan and simmer very gently until the sauce is velvety and the chicken pieces are heated through, about 4 minutes. Turn the cutlets over occasionally in the sauce. Place the browned lemon slices on top. Sprinkle with chopped parsley and serve, spooning some of the sauce over each serving.
•  

German Pancakes

NYT's Creamy Gazpacho Soup

My Dad's lady friend made this soup. It looked fantastic so I took a picture of the recipe that was sitting on the counter. I am now home from vacation and able to find the recipe online. Here is the New York Times link to what should be a fantastic summer meal: Smoothie + Gazpacho = Lunch.

But strangely, the recipe is not at that link - but go to the link though to gaze closely at the picture. You too want this Gazpacho. Then I looked closely - the recipe is at another site. Here is the link to Creamy, Garlicky Tomato Gazpacho

And a copy and paste from the New York Times is below. Enjoy!

Creamy, Garlicky Tomato Gazpacho With Crunchy Pecorino

Published: July 9, 2010

Andrew Scrivani for The New York Times

• A Good Appetite: Smoothie + Gazpacho = Lunch (July 14, 2010)

Ingredients
6 tablespoons grated pecorino Romano
2 large tomatoes (about 1 pound), cored and roughly chopped
1 1/2 cups (12 ounces) plain sheep’s-milk or regular yogurt
1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil, more for serving
12 basil leaves, roughly chopped, more for serving
2 large garlic cloves, peeled and roughly chopped
2 scallions (white and light green parts), roughly chopped
2 ice cubes
1 3/4 teaspoons kosher salt, more to taste
1 1/2 teaspoons red wine vinegar, more to taste
Pinch cayenne pepper
Ground black pepper to taste.

Directions

1. Heat a large nonstick skillet over medium heat. Spread 2 tablespoons cheese into a thin layer in skillet; let melt and brown on bottom, about 30 seconds to one minute. Use a spatula to flip cheese; let cook until evenly browned on both sides, about a minute more. Transfer fried cheese to a paper-towel-lined plate. Repeat with remaining cheese, working 2 tablespoons at a time. Break fried cheese into large pieces.
2. To make soup, place tomatoes, yogurt, olive oil, basil, garlic, scallions, ice cubes, salt, vinegar, cayenne and black pepper in a blender. Purée until smooth. Taste and add more salt and vinegar, if necessary. Pour into small bowls and garnish with pieces of fried cheese and chopped basil. Drizzle soup liberally with olive oil.
Yield: 4 servings.

Breakfast Smoothies a la Egg Basket

Egg Basket posted another link on Facebook yesterday that I deem worthy of sharing. Serendipitously, while dropping Puckstopper off at Logan yesterday, I had a smoothie at a burrito place. It was AWESOME. It even eclipsed my burrito which I ate later in the car ride home. I might be the latest convert into the smoothie craze!

here's the link

Top Five Filling Raw Smoothies for Breakfast

Cilantro Corn Pancakes

Bumping this post because it's that day of the year again! Thanks Mom!

I first ate a version of this recipe at Diner, in Williamsburg Brooklyn, on the Sunday morning before 9/11. The meal, and the wonderful morning spent with friends, will be forever etched in my mind. With my birth day only a few days away, this recipe is timely since it is one of the meals we eat most often on or around my birthday. Fresh corn is coming into season, the tomatoes are ripening on the vine, and this light and refreshing meal is perfect on a hot summer evening. These pancakes are served with a heap of Avocado Tomato Salsa and are best with a freshly muddled Mojito!

Ingredients
1/2 cup flour
1 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp baking soda
1 tsp sugar
1/4 tsp salt
1/2 cup corn meal
1 egg (or 2 egg whites)
1 cup buttermilk (or yogurt)
2 Tbs oil
1.5 cups fresh corn, cooked
1/4 cup fresh cilantro
1/4 cup chopped scallions

Process

1. In large bowl, sift together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, sugar and salt.
2. Stir in the corn meal.
3. In another bowl, lightly beat eggs. Add buttermilk, oil, corn, cilantro and scallions. Add these ingredients to the dry ingredients and stir until combined.
4. Heat a large griddle over medium high heat. We have even put the griddle on the grill outside to stay cooler on a hot summer day.
5. When hot, brush with oil.
6. Drop batter by large spoonfuls onto griddle.
7. Cook until holes form on pancakes and then flip.
8. When browned on both sides, remove from grill.
9. Serve on plates, topping each pancake with Avocado Tomato Salsa, with a dollop of sour cream on the side.
10. Enjoy with a cold, freshly muddled Mojito! (and wish me a Happy Birthday! :D)

Chef Jef's Veggie Burgers

These are my favorite veggie burgers in the whole wide world!

I have been in possession of this top secret recipe for about six years. It was given to me by Chef Jef (chef, drummer, friend, now father - yea - all around awesome guy) whom I had the pleasure of working with at Freedom Cafe. Having been a vegetarian, I have an interest and appreciation for veggie burgers and these babies were the first thing I ordered off the menu for my staff meal. The moment I had one of these for a staff dinner I fell in love. Jef finally divulged the recipe to me months later. SP distinctly recalls us "putting our heads together" to turn the restaurant kitchen recipe into a more family sized recipe.

This recipe yields about 6 patties and feeds our family for dinner - one burger each with the 6th split between SP and Puckstopper. You can happily double it, prep-cook and freeze, and save for later use. This recipe is perfect for the summer as it makes use of the garden vegetables and squash overload :D Thank you Jef, congrats on your son, and we love and miss you!

Ingredients
1 small zucchini, grated
1 small summer squash, grated
1/2 yellow onion, minced
1/2 red bell pepper, minced
2 Tablespoons chopped garlic
1 teaspoon basil
1 teaspoon oregano
1/2 teaspoon granulated garlic
1/2 teaspoon granulated onion
1 jar wheat germ
4 eggs
1 and 1/4 cup shredded Monterrey Jack cheese


Directions
1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees.
2. Combine all ingredients, but don't over mix.
3. Portion out into 6 parts, and shape into patties.
4. Lightly grease a baking dish .
5. Bake patties in oven for 10 minutes. Flip and then bake for 10 minutes more.
6. Cool and freeze.
7. Remove from freezer and throw them on the grill! :D

I took a total of three pictures before I froze them. Only the top photo came out ok, but here are the rest of the blurry iPhone photos I took before they went into our bellies. And the freezer.

Deviled Eggs on Butter Lettuce with Honey Mustard Dressing

Before I lose this recipe for the third time, I am blogging it! This is another wonderful looking recipe from Tasty Kitchen.
I am making a version of this for dinner tonight, except I will be adding some shaved steak that is left over from yesterdays lunch. I will take pictures and add later.




Deviled Eggs on a Nest of Butter Lettuce with Honey Mustard Dressing

La's Green Salad with Strawberries & Goat Cheese

This picture totally doesn't do it justice!
Green Salad with Strawberries & Goat Cheese

Ingredients
1 Tablespoon pure maple syrup or brown sugar
2 Tablespoons red wine vinegar
1 Tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
1/4 teaspoon salt
Freshly ground pepper, to taste
3 cups baby spinach
3 cups watercress, tough stems removed
2.5 cups sliced fresh strawberries
1/3 cup fresh chives, cut into 2-inch pieces
1/2 cup toasted chopped pecans
1/4 cup crumbled goat cheese (or more, if you're anything like us!)

Directions
1. Whisk maple syrup (or brown sugar), vinegar, oil, salt and pepper in a large bowl.
2. Add spinach, watercress, strawberries & chives; toss to coat.
3. Divide the salad among plates and top with pecans and goat cheese.

Tip: To toast chopped or sliced nuts, stir constantly in a small, dry skillet over medium-low heat until fragrant and lightly browned, 2 to 4 minutes.

Spiced Chicken Burgers with Peanut Sauce

I found this recipe in a Parenting magazine at the Pediatrician's office today. I was there because the kids are sick and this meal looks quick easy and yummy. Hopefully H2 will like it as she's the most delicate palate in the house - but she special requests peanut butter and peanut butter sandwiches everyday, so hopefully the sauce wins her over!

Ingredients

• 1 lb. ground chicken
• 2 tsp. red curry powder
• 1 tbsp. fresh ginger, peeled and grated
• 1 tsp. salt
• 1/3 cup natural peanut butter
• 1 tbsp. honey
• 1 tsp. lime juice
• 1 tbsp. soy sauce
• 1 dozen mini-pita rounds
• 1 cucumber

Directions

1. Preheat broiler. Combine ground chicken, red curry powder, fresh ginger, and salt, mixing well. Form into 12 balls and flatten to 1/3-inch-thick patties. Broil 3 to 4 minutes per side, or until cooked through and lightly browned.
2. Combine peanut butter, honey, lime juice, soy sauce, and 2 tablespoons water in a glass bowl; microwave on high for 30 seconds, then whisk until smooth. Split a dozen mini-pita rounds. Place chicken patties inside pita rounds, and top with a dollop of peanut sauce and 2 cucumber slices.

Cucumber Sandwiches

Meet my favorite summer sandwich. HiHo loved making cucumber sandwiches. My kids ask for them by name. Friends want me to fax them and there is none other can compare. My making of these sandwiches has been compared to OCD and has rendered other people incapable of making sandwiches. They are so good, SP at them while mowing the lawn.

Meet the cast of characters - a simple line up.

Ingredients











1/4 to 1/2 a red onion, minced
White Bread, preferably Pepperidge Farm
Hellmann's Mayo
one cucumber (yea there's 4 in the picture but you only need one)
lemon pepper
salt and pepper to taste

Process
1. Mince your onion

















2. Fork your cucumber - yes you take a fork and drag it down the skin, cutting slits into the skin and therefore softening it and beautifying it for your future slicing.
Yes and because HiHo taught me how.

























3. Slice your cucumber thinly.
















4. Lay out your bread into an assembly line.

















5. Spread mayonnaise, salt, pepper and lemon pepper on slices of bread.


















6. Sprinkle a layer of red onion down, and then cover it with a layer of cucumbers.















7. Close your sandwich and press.















8. Cut into different shapes, and arrange on a plate.

Pulled Pork with Rootbeer Sauce Sandwiches - a la Crockpot!

Puckstopper requested this recipe for his birthday tonight - a picnic at the drive-in!
This recipe originated with Better Homes and Gardens. Click here for the original recipe.

Prep: 15 minutes
Cook: 8 to 10 hours (low) or 4 to 5 hours (high)
Ingredients
for the crockpot:

• 1 3-4 pound loin cut pork roast
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 teaspoon pepper
• 1 tablespoon cooking oil
• 3 medium onions, cut into thin wedges
• 1 can root beer*
• 8 cloves garlic, minced

For the sauce

• 3 cans root beer *
• 1 bottle chili sauce
• a dozen or more hamburger buns, split
  
• Lettuce leaves (optional)
• Tomato slices (optional)

Directions

1. Trim fat from meat. If necessary, cut roast to fit into a 3-1/2- to 5-quart crockery cooker. Sprinkle meat with the salt and pepper.
   
2. In a large skillet brown meat on all sides in hot oil. Drain off fat.
3. Transfer meat to cooker. Add onions, the 1 cup root beer, and garlic.
4. Cover and cook on low-heat setting for 8 to 10 hours or on high-heat setting for 4 to 5 hours.
5. When it nears the last hour of the cooking cycle MAKE THE SAUCE (and consider doubling it). In a medium saucepan combine the 3 cups of root beer and the chili sauce. Bring to boiling; reduce heat. Boil gently, uncovered, stirring occasionally, about 30 minutes or until mixture is reduced to 2 cups. Add hot pepper sauce, if desired.
6. Transfer roast to a cutting board or serving platter. Using a slotted spoon, remove onions from cooking juices and place on serving platter. Discard juices. Using 2 forks, pull meat apart into shreds. To serve, line buns with lettuce leaves and tomato slices, if desired. Add meat and onions; spoon on sauce. Makes 8 to 10 servings.

*Note: Do not substitute with diet root beer.The sauce is so good you might want to double it.

Halloumi at Home!

We tried our hand at a Halloumi Lunch last weekend. SP wanted to grill it per usual. I wanted to fry it. I won. It was fabulous! Yummy! Here's some pictures - no ingredients or process necessary as it speaks for itself!

Baked Tofu with Lemon Rosemary marinade

This is another one of my Angelica Kitchen favorites. This recipe will turn any "tofu hater" into a tofu lover - just ask my brother-in-law Deke! My kids love this and will ask for seconds!

Ingredients
1 pound firm tofu
3 Tablespoons lemon juice
1 Tablespoon Balsamic vinegar
2 Tablespoons Tamari
1 teaspoon fresh minced rosemary
1 pinch white pepper
1.5 Tablespoons olive oil

Process

1. Preheat oven 350 degrees.
2. Drain tofu. Place on cutting board, surround with kitchen towels, put another cutting board on top, with a loaded kettle on it, and let sit for 20 minutes to drain out excess water. This is crucial in my opinion to getting the tofu totally drained and ready to be made yummy!
3. Once drained, cut tofu into 1/4 inch to 1/2 inch slices and lay in single layer on the bottom of a large baking dish. IF GRILLING!!! - slice a bit thinner and marinate for longer.
   
4. In a large measuring cup, whisk together remaining ingredients for the marinade.
   
5. Pour marinade over tofu. Let soak for as long as you want - or not at all.
6. 

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2. 
   
3. 
   
4. 
   
5. 
   
6. 
   
7. 
   
8. Gently turn tofu once.
   
9. Bake , turning gently once, for 30 to 40 minutes until tofu is nicely browned and marinade is absorbed. You may also grill them.
   

Serve as a main dish with a side salad or make into sandwiches.

Chopped Salad

This is my favorite dish to order at the Sundown Saloon.

 

 

 

 

 

Ingredients

Chicken breasts grilled (if preferred marinate them in lemon juice and cilantro first) and chopped

1 avocado chopped

2 heads romaine chopped

3 tomatoes chopped

I can plain corn, pan seared with a little lemon pepper

I cup shredded mozzarella or Monterey jack cheese

tortilla wraps

Process

Combine all ingredients in a bowl and toss. Chicken and corn may be hot when put in salad. Toss with Cilantro Lime Vinaigrette. Serve with tortillas. 

 

 

Slow Cooker Sandwiches

It's time to bump this post for all the busy baseball and lacrosse parents. This link is from another blog I follow, I JUST got off the phone with SP asking what we should do for dinner. I just returned from vacation, am busy unpacking the car and getting laundry done, have appointments this afternoon, followed by the first baseball game of the season for Puckstopper. There is no time to get much done, since my afternoon project, if time allows, is to plant some seeds with Daughter. Anyway, this lovely link below will bring you to 14 different recipes for slow cooker sandwiches!
Click this link below to get the the Better Homes and Gardens website about the sandwiches.
Simple Slow Cooker Sandwiches

But here you will find the 12 different sandwiches and links to their recipes:
Sloppy Chicken Joes
Apricot Pulled Pork Hoagies
Caramelized Onion, Walnut and Cilantro Chicken Salad (can you say YUM!?)
Southwestern Shredded Beef Sandwiches
Pulled Pork with Root beer Sauce (Puckstopper will love this)
Tangy Barbecue Beef
Pork and Slaw Barbecue Rolls
Easy Chicken Rarebit (oh my I am craving cheese again)
Cuban Pork
Slow Simmering Barbecue Sandwiches
Five Spice Pork Au Jus
German Style Pork Sandwiches

German Pancake

SP is descended from the Pandl's that own a family restaurant in Whitefish Bay Wisconsin. My mother in law shares many stories about helping out in the kitchen with her mother, Grandma Helen. Among the things they are famous for is the German Pancake that I was fortunate enough to eat when Grandma Helen made them for me back in the 1990's. Now I can not claim that this is the same recipe from the restaurant, but it is the recipe that Grandma Helen made for me and then wrote out for my safe keeping. Depending on what you serve the German pancake with, it can be served for breakfast, lunch or dinner.

Ingredients (to make one pancake)
1/2 cup all purpose flour
1/2 cup milk
4 eggs
pinch of salt
1 Tablespoon butter
1 Tablespoon oil

Process

1. Preheat oven to 425 degrees
2. Mix the first four ingredients into a smooth batter
3. Melt butter in pan. Now there are specific German pancake pans. You can use small omelet pans or small cast iron pans.
   
4. Pour batter into pan and fry until golden brown, checking with spatula to be sure it doesn't stick.
   
5. Turn with spatula, completely over.
   
6. Make about 4 criss-cross cuts on surface with spatula.
   
7. Put in over and back for about 12 minutes. Pancake begins to rise after about 7 to 8 minutes.
   
8. When done, remove from pan immediately. Choose what you want to serve it with: butter, maple syrup, powdered sugar, jelly, sweetened cottage cheese, bacon - anything YOU want that suits the meal!
   

Tomato and Clam Puree

This recipe is simple and sure to please anyone who loves soup or Clamato juice. This is actually to original Clamato because this recipe far precedes it's creation! Clamato was not created until 1969 when the Californian company Duffy Mott created juices called Seafood Blends and added clam juice with tomato juice.

Ingredients
1 small tin clam broth
1 tin tomato soup, diluted with broth and hot water.

Process

1. Mix prepared soup with clam broth and mix well.
2. Season with S and P and heat.
   
3. Serve with salted whipped cream.
   

Queen's Toast

While this recipe is not about the Queen toasting diplomats I could not resist the opportunity to use that as the picture for this recipe. This recipe is a lunch or breakfast version of my favorite Welsh Rarebit. Yum! Enjoy with your most local honey please! Proportions are dependent on numbers of people. Serve one slice of bread per person. This recipe calls for you to remove the crusts from the bread. I would like to suggest that you take those crusts and put them outside for the birds to eat. I do that all the time with my bread heels that the kids don't like. In summer months, the squirrels will eat them too.

Ingredients
slices of bread
butter
Almonds, chopped
honey


Process

1. Remove the crusts from the bread.
2. Melt butter in large saucepan.
3. Saute bread in butter until toasted and remove from pan.
   
4. In double boiler, melt butter.
   
5. Add almonds and honey to heat.
   
6. Pour over toast slices and serve.
   
   

Baba's Pop Overs

I knew that SP was the man for me when he told me how much he likes making pop overs. We actually registered for two pop over racks when we were married! This recipe is clearly written before such a thing was invented, so if you don't have pop over trays, clearly you can improvise! Pop overs are quite fun and a nice switch from their close cousin Yorkshire Pudding, and they work well with any meal!

Ingredients
1 cup milk
1 cup flour
2 eggs
salt

Process

1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees (the recipe calls for a quick oven but I have not figured out a translation to that yet).
2. Combine ingredients and beat with egg beater until foaming.
3. Heat muffin pan with butter in cups until sizzling.
   
4. Fill cups half full.
5. Bake for 1/2 hour ("in quick oven").
   

Half the recipe will make 6 pop overs. If you divide the recipe still use 2 eggs. You can also use this recipe for Yorkshire Pudding, though Yorkshire does have some variations.