Food goodness

This is from Jessica what’s her name, the wash your fing hands woman, whose videos I really like. But I always forget what she calls it (it’s “breakfast braid”) and I have trouble following recipes that are only videos, so here is my loose transcription with my own modifications: Preheat the oven to 350. Sauté and scramble up some combination of veggies, meat, eggs, etc. I like diced onions, peppers, spinach, leftover chicken sausage, and 8 eggs. (Do not use tomatoes or zucchini unless you’re really careful about cooking off all the water forest; you don’t want it to be wet.) You can cook/scramble it all in the same skillet. Take premade pizza dough or two tubes of premade croissant dough and stretch them out into a large rectangle on an oiled cookie sheet. Put the egg mixture in the middle. Lay 4-5 slices of cheese or a handful of shredded cheese on top. Cut the dough into strips about 1.5-inches wide and alternate folding them on top. Melt a few t butter and mix with a squirt of whol...

Based on this recipe . 2 heads or 1 package (10 oz.) frozen broccoli florets several scallions, white and green parts chopped  6 large eggs 1/2 cup half-and-half (can use fat-free) salt & pepper dash of red pepper & nutmeg  3/4 c (3 oz.) shredded cheese (I used a mixture of cheddar & gruyere)  Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Spray the pie dish. Bring a pot of salted water to a boil. Add broccoli; cook 1 minute. Drain well; transfer to a cutting board, and blot dry with paper towels. Chop coarsely. In a large bowl, whisk together eggs, half-and-half, and spices. Stir in broccoli, scallions and cheese. Bake until golden brown, 35 to 40 minutes.

Based on this recipe , with some fairly substantial modifications. I've made it once with the blueberry sauce and once without, and I think it's actually better with just plain maple syrup on top. You could make this right before eating it, of course, but letting it sit overnight helps everything meld together. Ingredients: A loaf and a half of challah (the best way) or a substantial amount of any kind of bread One package cream cheese (you can use reduced fat, but the regular kind melts better) A pint of fresh blueberries or a few handfuls of frozen 8 eggs 1/2 to 1 c milk 1/2 c maple syrup dash of vanilla dash of cinnamon Grease a 9x13 glass baking dish. Cut the cream cheese into little squares. Tear the bread into bite-sized pieces and layer them in the dish with the cream cheese and blueberries, distributing things somewhat evenly. Whisk together the eggs, milk, syrup, vanilla and cinnamon. Pour it over the casserole a little at a time, making sure it...

I love everything about this recipe. I love it at breakfast, I love it at lunch, I love it at dinner. Mostly I've eaten it for the first two meals of the day, but it'd make a great Meatless Monday dinner, too. Adapted very little from Skinny Taste 2 tsp olive oil 1/4 cup diced shallots 1 1/2 lb baby spinach 4 large eggs salt and freshly ground pepper, to taste 4 tbsp shredded Asagio or Parm cheese Preheat an oven to 400°F. Lightly spray four oven-safe dishes or ramekins with cooking spray. Heat a large skillet over medium-low heat, add oil, shallots and cook 2-3 minutes. Add spinach, salt and pepper and cook until the spinach wilts, about 2-3 minutes. Divide the wilted spinach among the oven-safe dishes, making a well in the center of each. Sprinkle the cheese on top. Break an egg into each dish and season with salt and pepper. Place the ramekins on one or two rimmed baking sheets and bake until the whites are set and the yolks are firm around the edges but still so...

We eat meatless on Monday, which is a great source of grumbling in my house from the carnivore older child who just likes to complain. (they do that when they're 9) This was last week's Meatless Monday recipe, along with a tossed salad. Gaby ate hers with ketchup. Katie picked all the broccoli out and just ate that and the cheesy top. Baby steps. Adapted from Epicurious 10 ounces (1-inch-wide) broccoli florets (with 1 to 2 inches of stem attached) 2 large garlic cloves 6 large eggs 1 1/2 cups half-and-half 2 cups Gruyere and Swiss cheese, coarsely grated 1/4 cup grated Parmigiano-Reggiano  pie crust of your choosing (I had a pre-made one, so that's what I used) Preheat oven to 375°F with rack in middle. Bake pie crust until it's lightly golden. While shell bakes, cook broccoli in a 3-quart pot of boiling salted water 4 minutes. Drain broccoli and rinse under cold water to stop cooking, then pat dry. Mince and mash garlic to a paste with a generous pinch o...

from AllRecipes , 4.5 stars. 2 tablespoons butter (less) 1 onion, minced 1 teaspoon minced garlic 2 cups chopped fresh broccoli 1 (9 inch) unbaked pie crust 1 1/2 cups shredded mozzarella cheese (I just sprinkled a handful, maybe 3/4 cup) 4 eggs, well beaten 1 1/2 cups milk 1 teaspoon salt 1/2 teaspoon black pepper 1 tablespoon butter, melted Directions 1.Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). 2.Over medium-low heat melt butter in a large saucepan. Add onions, garlic and broccoli. Cook slowly, stirring occasionally until the vegetables are soft. Spoon vegetables into crust and sprinkle with cheese. 3.Combine eggs and milk. Season with salt and pepper. Stir in melted butter. Pour egg mixture over vegetables and cheese. 4.Bake in preheated oven for 30 minutes, or until center has set. (I don't know what's with my oven, but this took 60 minutes to bake two quiches. Somewhere between 30 and 60 minutes, you will have quiche.)

I have a ridiculous swiss chard surplus from the garden. This year is the first time I've grown chard, and I didn't realize that after you cut it, it grows back, like spinach! Ah, the magic of leafy greens. So I've been trying to think of creative ways to use it, and one of the best I've found, inspired by this blog post , is to make a sort of hash. Chop tons of chard -- like, seriously, way more than you think is reasonable -- and dice the stems pretty finely, separating them out from the leaves. Heat some olive oil on low in a skillet and throw the stems in first, with chopped garlic and onion. (I like red onions the best for this because they make it sweet.) After a minute or two, throw in the leaves. When everything is soft, make little holes/nests in the chard mixture, so the bottom of the skillet shows through. Turn the heat up to medium. Spray a little more oil into each nest, so nothing sticks. Crack one egg into each nest and sprinkle with salt and pe...

Elise has outdone herself with this one. The sauce prominently features this Korean red sauce I am obsessed with -- called gochu jang; I loved it on my bibim bop so much that I asked a waiter to write it down for me and then plunked the card down in front of some poor guy at the Asian grocery so I could buy it -- and then makes it even better, thinner and slightly diluted so it doesn't hit you in the face quite so hard. Perfect summer meal (although parents and delicate palates, be warned -- this is really very spicy and you can't control the spice level, because the gochu jang is what it is). Ingredients 1 lb soba (buckwheat) noodles (can sub practically any favorite noodle) Choose from assorted toppings: [I used lettuce, cilantro, cabbage/carrot slaw from the bag, cucumber, and scallions] Lettuce, thinly sliced Green and/or red cabbage, thinly sliced Cucumber, julienned Carrot, julienned Asian pear, julienned Green onions, thinly sliced Sesame (perilla) leaves, thinly sl...

Heidi makes this street food recipe. I ate it as-is, no toppings, but that sounds good too. I bet this only cost a couple dollars. I had TJ's bag of sliced leeks in the freezer and I bought a teeny cabbage at the farmer's market on Saturday and only used half of that. I did add a third egg and I'm glad I did. It held together well. File this in the Tortilla Espanola-craving crevice of my brain. I found this recipe much easier and faster than the T.E. I can't seem to get right but once every two years or so. >> Leeks are notoriously gritty. To clean them well I typically slice them lengthwise and then submerge them in a big bowl of water - where I rinse and swish them to loosen up any dirt. Drain and repeat if needed. Then chop/slice. 2 cups cabbage, finely shredded 1 cup leeks, well washed and chopped (see head notes) 2/3 cup whole wheat pastry flour (or apf flour) a couple pinches of fine grain sea salt 2 eggs, beaten 1+ tablespoon olive ...

I made this with asparagus, caramelized onions and chicken-apple sausage, but you could really use any combination of stuff that sounds good -- I think you just need enough veg and sausage to fill the skillet about halfway. It's tempting to fill it even more, but don't go so high that it will hit the top of your broiler, or else your frittata will be burned and sad. 4 chicken-apple sausages, chopped into small pieces one huge bunch of asparagus, sliced diagonally into small pieces 4 onions, caramelized using Alissa's quiche technique 6 eggs splash of skim milk 2 T olive oil salt and pepper parsley for sprinkling (optional) green onions, diced for the top (optional) hot sauce of some type (optional) (this one's not really that optional) Heat the olive oil in a cast-iron skillet or other oven-safe pan, which is about to get a workout. Caramelize the onions and remove them all from the pan, but leave the nice brown stuff sticking to the bottom. Cook the asparagus in that, ...

From my favorite domestic goddess, Nigella Lawson. If you are a fan of Nigella then you know that she includes at least one recipe for a pavlova in pretty much every cookbook. This one is from Feast and I adapted it a smidge and added chocolate sauce on top. Note, this is NOT a dessert that you make at the last minute. The pav needs to bake for 1.5 hrs and then be allowed to cool completely in the oven. The rest comes together in a snap, tho. Also, it looks magnificent and the guests at the dinner party where I served this dessert were thrilled. Also? Gluten-free. Really important note: DO NOT USE egg whites from a carton. It will result in a fail. Use whites from eggs you cracked yourself being very careful not to get a single speck of yolk in them. Save the yolks for use in making ice cream or custard. Makes 10-12 servings. For the pav: 8 egg whites pinch salt 2.5 C sugar (super-fine if you have it) 4 tsp cornstarch 2 tsp champagne or white wine vinegar 1 tsp vanilla ext...

One more recipe and I'm done for today. I'm awful about breakfast. I forget to pack it, I have no time to make it in the morning, I end up grabbing something from Starb*cks or I go without and then am starving by 10 a.m. My all-encompassing goal for 2011 is "less." Less eating out, less money leaving my wallet, less weight on my hips. Having breakfast ready to grab in the morning will help with that. This is adapted from The Kitchn -- I didn't use their zucchini filling because I didn't have any zucchini in the house. Instead I had some leftover bacon from yesterday's breakfast and I crumbled some in each mini muffin cup. Next time, definitely using the zucchini. Or maybe some sauteed spinach. 1/4 c. cornstarch 1 1/4 c. whole milk 2 large eggs 2 large egg yolks 1 c. heavy cream 3/4 t. kosher salt 1/8 tsp nutmeg oil for the pan 1/4 cup gruyere or parmesan, grated filling of choice (sausage, veg, bacon, herbs) Heat oven to 450 degrees. Prepare Batter: Put t...

From: Simply Recipes Ingredients 1 pie crust (homemade or store-bought) 2 tablespoons olive oil 2-3 large red onions (about one pound total), thinly sliced Salt and freshly ground pepper 1 teaspoon balsamic vinegar 1/2 cup milk 1/2 cup heavy cream 3 large eggs Pinch nutmeg 6 ounces Gruyère cheese, grated (1 1/2 cups) Pre-Baking the Crust 1 On a lightly floured surface, roll dough into a 12-inch circle. Fit into a 9-by-1 1/2-inch round tart pan, pressing dough into corners. Transfer to freezer to chill for 30 minutes. 2 Preheat oven to 350°. Line pastry with parchment paper, wax paper, or aluminum foil, pressing into the corners and edges. Fill at least two-thirds with baking weights - dried beans, rice, or aluminum pie weights. Bake first for 15 minutes, remove from oven and let cool a few minutes. Carefully remove parchment paper and weights. Poke the bottom of the pie pan with the tines of a fork and return to oven and bake an additional 10 minutes or until lightly golden. (Fork hole...

Adapted from: Fine Cooking , by way of Lancaster Farm Fresh CSA blog This was kind of like a souffle, I guess. I've never made a souffle. :) But I do know it was DE-licious. We both had seconds. I actually made this in 4 smaller ramekins and reduced the time a bit - just keep an eye on it and remove from oven when it is browned around the edges. Serves 6-8 1 small cauliflower (about 2 pounds) 2 tablespoons olive oil; more for the gratin dish Kosher salt 1¾ ounces freshly grated Parmigiano-Reggiano 3¾ cups milk 4 Tbsp unsalted butter ½ cup all-purpose flour 3 large eggs 2 large egg yolks 1 Tbsp extra-virgin olive oil freshly ground black pepper Directions 1. Position a rack in the center of the oven and heat the oven to 375 degrees. 2. Core the cauliflower and separate it into florets. Cut the florets into ¼-inch-thick slices. Put the cauliflower on a rimmed baking sheet and toss with wo Tbsp olive oil. Spread in an even layer, season with ½ teaspoon salt, and roast until tender,...

I think I've mentioned before that Ernie loves capers. I think he'd eat them right out of the jar if he thought about it -- and now that I've written this, he probably will. I ran across a recipe the other day for egg salad with capers, and knew he'd love it for lunch. He did. Again, this is my adaptation. And I didn't really measure anything, because that would involve getting measuring spoons out and sometimes I'm very, very lazy. You can find the original recipe here . 6 or 8 hardboiled eggs (we used 8, because that's what I had) lemon juice mayo (plain yogurt would work here, too) salt pepper capers Dice the hardboiled eggs, however you like them for egg salad. I like to smash the yolks a little bit. Put in a large mixing bowl. In a separate bowl, mix lemon juice and mayo. I used about 1 Tbsp. lemon juice and 3 Tbsp. mayo. Add mayo mixture to the eggs. Add about 2-3 Tbsp. capers (depending on how much you like them) and mix all together. Season with salt...

What do you do when you have 73 million tons of leftover roasted vegetables? Make three quiches, freeze them, and hope they turn out OK when they defrost. I have some weird bias against frozen leftovers (exacerbated by years of barely working or overcrowded freezers), but I'm really hoping the convenience of just being able to grab a pre-wrapped slice of this to take for lunch outweighs it. Adapted from Gluten Free Goddess, who used cheddar instead of feta and had fresh tomatoes and herbs on hand. 2 cups roasted vegetables (mine were wedding leftovers, mostly consisting of zucchini, asparagus, onions, peppers, tomatoes, mushrooms, and eggplant) A handful of feta Sprinkling of romano or Parmesan 4 organic free-range eggs, beaten 1/2 cup light cream (yup, I really used cream. it had better be good.) A pinch of nutmeg A pinch of Old Bay Seasoning A pinch of dried basil and parsley (fresh probably would have been better but I was trying to be mindful of freezing) Notes from here on ar...

Adapted From: The Kitchn (originally from Serving Up the Harvest ) 1 medium zucchini or yellow summer squash, thinly sliced 1 tsp Salt 4-5 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil, or more as needed 1 1/2 pounds waxy potatoes, thinly sliced 1 large onion, halved and thinly sliced 1/4 pound smoked Canadian bacon or ham, diced (I used 2 roasted garlic chicken sausages) 6 eggs (I used a combination of whole eggs and bottled egg whites) Freshly ground black pepper (other seasoning to taste - I used a few dashes of Penzey's shallot-pepper mix) 1 cup grated Cheddar (I used fontina) 1. Combine the zucchini and 1 teaspoon salt in a colander and toss well. Set aside to drain for 30 minutes. 2. Heat 3 tablespoons of the oil over medium-high heat in a large, well-seasoned cast-iron skillet or ovenproof nonstick skillet. Add the potatoes and onion, reduce the heat to medium-low, and cook, flipping and stirring occasionally, until the potatoes are soft, about 20-30 minutes. Increase the heat to medi...

Adapted from: Smitten Kitchen , who adapted from Bon Appetit I had intended to make a spinach/feta/pine nut tart on phyllo for our house guests last night. But then I forgot to take the phyllo out of the freezer in time, and needed to find an alternative. I made this recipe, and everyone loved it. You can use a 9-inch round pie dish or removable-bottom 9-inch round tart pan as the base. You can par bake this if you wish, though Smitten generally does not. The original recipe calls for a sheet of puff pastry as the shell but Smitten uses pie dough. I used a premade crust from TJ's. 1 3-ounce package cream cheese, room temperature (I used 4 wedges of original Laughing Cow Swiss cheese because I didn't have any cream cheese) 1/3 cup half and half (or milk) 3 eggs 1 10-ounce package frozen chopped spinach, thawed and drained 1/2 cup grated gruyere (or cheddar) 1/4 cup grated Parmesan 4 to 6 green onions, thinly sliced (1/2 cup finely diced red or white onion or shallots work as...

Adapted from Weight Watchers and Closet Cooking . Here we are, about to leave for Hawaii and the last thing I want to do is bring home fresh produce with the possibility of not being able to eat it all before we leave. Also, I've been on a mission to eat up the goodies in my freezer and this is a good way to it. For the crust: 2 cups cooked brown rice (I cook a whole bunch at a time and then freeze left overs) 1 egg 1/4 C finely grated cheese For the quiche-y goodness: 4 whole eggs 12 oz fat free evaporated milk 1/2 C fat free cottage cheese 1/2 C (or so) finely grated gruyere cheese 10 oz chopped frozen spinach, defrosted and squeezed dry (or 8 C fresh spinach, cooked, squeezed dry and chopped) 1/2 tsp salt 1/4 tsp pepper Preheat oven to 425. Combine ingredients for crust and press into a pie pan. Place in oven and bake for 5 minutes. Whisk together remaining ingredients except spinach. Scatter spinach in bottom of crust and pour over egg mixture. Bake in the oven for 20 m...

More cookies! These are so incredibly easy and take so little time that I don't know why I haven't made them before. I am not atwitter with all the possibilities, because really, the base is the same and it's just the extract/add-ins that would change. And look -- no fat! It's positively a cookie that's healthy for you. Sort of. from Serious Eats Meringue Cookies 2 egg whites 1/8 teaspoon salt 1/8 teaspoon cream of tartar 1/2 cup white sugar 1/4 to 1/2 teaspoon peppermint extract (optional) I used 1/4 and they were perfect, I thought. 4 drops green food coloring (optional) Heat oven to 225°F and line two cookie sheets with aluminum foil. Using a StandMixer or good hand mixer, beat egg whites, salt, and cream of tartar on medium-high speed until soft peaks form. Slowly add sugar and keep beating until stiff peaks form. (DO NOT underbeat.) If using extract and food coloring, add at the end and beat for another 2 or 3 minutes. Spoon mixture into a plastic bag (or pipin...