Potato Crust Mushroom and Swiss Quiche

Sometimes it is a Monday night and you realize you have like 12 mushrooms in your refrigerator and two random russet potatoes - both of which were purchased at some point with another recipe in mind.  But now you don't care about those recipes.

So what to do?  Potato Crust Mushroom and Swiss Quiche probably does the trick.  I am a quiche fan - it is easy, filling, and completely customizable.

Potato Crust Mushroom and Swiss Quiche Ingredients

5 eggs

2 egg whites

3/4 cup skim milk

2 large russet potatoes

1 onion

10 - 12 mushrooms

10 stalks skinny asparagus 

6 slices Swiss cheese, or shredded Swiss

1 tbsp of grated parmigiana cheese

Olive oil

Salt and Pepper to Taste

 I know there are quiche enthusiasts who will say a good quiche has to be with a proper pie crust, and usually that is true.  However, in the pursuit of healthy living and delicious eating, this is a fast and quite good alternative.

Slice the potatoes crosswise into 1/4" coins. In a colander drizzle a bit of extra virgin olive oil and season with salt and pepper -this is a tip, place the colander over the pan you'll be baking in to catch the oil. Then neatly layer the potatoes in a to cover the base of the pie pan. I sprinkle a tablespoon of grated parmigiana cheese on to the potatoes and then set in the oven for 25 minutes at 375 degrees.

While the crust is baking chop the onion, mushrooms and asparagus.  In a large nonstick pan saute the onions and when they are softened add the mushrooms and then when the mushrooms are just a moment from being down add the asparagus.

Cooled vegetables with the Swiss cheese on top

While the vegetables and crust cools - this is very important - prepare the egg mixture.  I used 2 egg whites and 5 whole eggs and I think you could adjust that to your liking. Whisk egg, milk and salt and pepper and then add the cooled vegetables and cheese.

Bake in the 375 degree oven for 30 minutes - at this time the egg should have a slight bounce but be firm and an inserted knife should come out clean.  This is beautiful served with a fresh salad or on it's own because it is filled with delicious and nutritious vegetables - and yes, in our house it is breakfast, lunch or dinner!

Enjoy! 

P.S. Mark and Carly secret: During a bridal shower game I had to guess what Mark's favorite food was that I made.  Not lasagna, or crab cakes, or cookies, quiche. 

Pizza Party

The weekend is usually a great time for a pizza party, this week in our house a Tuesday was also a great time for such an event.  Our friends were coming over and we wanted to have a dinner that was fun to put together, easy to prepare in advance and a favorite for everyone.  Pizza was the winner.

I have made pizza with my mother-in-law, but mainly the sauce and into the oven stage, never the dough stage.  She is currently in Italy, had she been in town I would have used her recipe, but I made to with what was called the "Best Pizza Dough Ever" Recipe by Peter Reinhardt.

Ingredients:

4 1/2 cups all-purpose flour, chilled
1 3/4 teaspoons salt
1 teaspoon instant yeast
1/4 cup olive oil
1 3/4 cups water, ice cold
Semolina flour OR cornmeal for dusting 

The ingredients are simple, and what is easy more simple is how to do it.

Mix all the dry ingredients (flour, salt, yeast) in one bowl and then add the olive oil and water, and get to mixing with a large chilled metal spoon.

I could have used my stand mixer for this recipe, and so can you, but I figured for the first time I wanted to know what it felt like.  After about 5-7 minutes of turning the bowl and working the dough it should be "tacky" not "sticky" and able to peeled from the sides of the bowl, but not so much the bottom.  If it's too dry, add a teaspoon of water, if it's too sticky add a little more flour - but this is something you can just judge by your eye.

Pour some flour out onto the counter top and just gently work the dough is a soft, smooth ball, and then divide into six just about even chunks.

Mist the dough balls with olive oil, or like me put oil on your hands and then drizzle onto the dough.  The original recipe calls for putting the dough on parchment paper, which I don't have, misting the parchment paper, and then wrapping it with a food safe bag. I put some semolina flour on the pan and covered it with a tea towel - I think our results were the same.

Two days later...

Time to get cooking on a Tuesday night!  The dough has grown and now the question is how to top it.

I have a pizza stone in the oven preheating to 450 degrees for 45 minutes.

Our toppings included:

Grilled peppers

Grilled chicken sausage

Sauteed mushrooms

Oven dried tomatoes

Homemade Tomato Sauce

Truffle Salt

Fresh Basil

Parmigiano Reggiano

Mozzarella

I rolled out the dough to about 1/4 of an inch in an uneven pattern - no need to strive for perfection here.

And then I kept the toppings simple, the thin dough doesn't really want to be weighted down with a lot of heavy toppings.  And then, we ate - and it was delicious!

Everything is sweeter when small

These are cutie pies. Pies are pretty much my favorite thing. Small things also rank pretty high on the list of favorites.

I'll share some Joey Tribiani logic with you,

Pie = butter + flour + sugar = delicious

Small = handheld + portable + more fun - plates = cute

Small + pies = cutie pies = good

I didn't always get in "A" in Math class, but I am pretty confident with that equation.

So the key to any good pie is good dough.  I told you I preferred to make my own dough, so I am glad I was able to share this with you on such a cute, summer, recipe.  I learned this recipe at Smitten Kitchen.

Pie Dough - makes two doughs or approximately 10 cutie pies with lattice tops.

2 1/2 cups flour
1 tablespoon sugar
1 teaspoon salt
2 sticks (8 ounces, 16 tablespoons or 1 cup) unsalted butter, very cold

*With a naturally sweet filling like peaches I might add just a touch more salt.

So, you could make this dough with a food processor, but then you can't really control the texture, or with a pastry cutter, but I can't find mine, or with two butter knives, or forks...

Then I put my hands in there and really work it through.  If I remember I take my rings off first - I rarely remember - that's a good thing.  I shaped it into a nice, big, buttery ball.

The magic with pie dough is all in keeping the butter cold so that when it's rolled and then baked the crust is rich, flaky and amazing.  Now that the dough is a pretty smooth ball I divided it and wrapped in plastic (or parchment/wax paper) and stored it in the refrigerator for at least an hour.

For the filling I followed my intuition - that often seems to work.  

Peach Filling for 6 Cutie Pies:

5 Peaches

1.5 tbsps granulated sugar

2 - 3 shakes of cinnamon

1/2 tsp of corn starch

**I probably ate a peaches worth of cut up peaches after making the pies...

To remove the fuzzy skin - I boiled a small pot of water and dunked the peaches in the boiling water on the stove for about 15 seconds.  After their spa experience they all get dunked in a bowl of ice cold water so that they don't continue cooking.  At this point the skin peels right off.

For Cutie Pies I like the fruit pieces to be a bit on the smaller side, since the container is smaller too. Once everything is chopped I sprinkled in the sugar/cinnamon/corn starch and just let it hang out for a little while.  The fruit loves the sugar - it doesn't need much but, when they're together they make some really delicious things happen. 

Time to get rolling...

So, you caught me.  I don't own a rolling pin.  I love pie and I don't own a rolling pin.  We used to live in a considerably smaller home, with a significantly smaller kitchen and therefore I have grown accustomed to using a Chopan Vodka Martini mixing bottle as a rolling pin.   It's a bit silly, but it works.

Anyway, throw down some flour on the work surface and keep some handy for the bottle/can/rolling pin/whatever.

I use a muffin tin as the pie pan and a juice glass to cut out the circles.  The pan doesn't need any additional grease as the dough is already pretty deliciously buttery. 

I put in generous servings of fruit - it makes it more fun to get a sweet bite of peach in every, single, juicy bite.

With the excess dough I cut out little strips and made a mini lattice for the tops.  With my fingers I rubbed a bit of skim milk, but you could use an egg wash or water in a pinch, and sprinkled some raw sugar on top. 

I forgot to mention... you'll want to bake these at 350 for about 20 minutes.  Due to the small size, and the sensitivity of different ovens - keep an eye on these babies.  Also, if you're not into cleaning ovens, (and really who is?) try layering the muffin tin on a cookie sheet so that any extra bubbly juices land on the sheet and not the oven or racks.

And then it's time to eat.  And eat we did! 

Life gives you Lemon Meringue Pie

Two things to know about me:

1. If I am going to someone's home I will always offer to bring something
2. I am a pie girl, I take the buttery, fruity, chocolatey, sweet, savory type over cake on nearly any day.

Okay, back to present, last Sunday an invite for Father's Day and my sister-in-law's mom's birthday linner is sent out. It turns out my sister-in-law's mom's favorite dessert is Lemon Meringue Pie. Full disclosure, I have never made a meringue, I have never made a lemon pie, and I have actually never tasted a lemon meringue pie. Sounds good, I can do this. By Thursday the above mentioned really starts to sink in. By Friday I am actively looking for recipes (thank you www.epicurious.com). By Saturday I am grocery shopping, and by Saturday evening a panic is starting to settle in.

Sunday I bake.

Ingredients: Pie crust, you'll get this recipe at another time. Because of the doubt I was feeling about the filling and the topping I went with a store bought. Homemade or store bought you'll want to use pie weights (rice, beans, pie beads) and pierce the dough with a fork - like you might have done with a frozen tv dinner's plastic wrap as a kid.

Filling
1 cup sugar

5 tbsp cornstarch
1/4 tsp salt
1 cup water
1/2 cup milk
4 large egg yolks
1 tbsp unsalted butter
1/2 cup fresh lemon juice
2 tsp fresh lemon zest

Meringue
4 large egg whites
1/4 tsp cream of tartar
1/2 cup of sugar

Recipe from Gourmet Magazine, 1995

Make filling:
In a heavy saucepan whisk together sugar, cornstarch, and salt and gradually whisk in water and milk, whisking until cornstarch is dissolved.

In a bowl whisk together egg yolks. Cook milk mixture over moderate heat, whisking, until it comes to a boil, this happens all of a sudden and the mixture is surprisingly thick.

Take the pan off the stovetop and gradually mix into the egg yolks, whisking all the while so that your eggs aren't scrambled. Return egg and cornstarch+milk mix to the stove. Simmer mixture, whisking, 3 minutes.

Remove pan from heat and whisk in butter, lemon juice, and zest until butter is melted. Cover surface of filling with plastic wrap.

Make meringue:
In a large glass or metal bowl with an electric mixer beat egg whites with cream of tartar and a pinch of salt until they hold soft peaks. Beat in sugar in a slow stream, beating until meringue just holds stiff peaks.

Pour filling into shell and spread meringue on top, covering filling completely, sealing it to pastry. I found it worked best to allow the meringue to lap up onto the baked pie crust. Draw meringue up into peaks and bake pie in middle of oven at 350 until meringue is golden, about 15 minutes.

Somewhere along these steps the first pie crust that I blind baked shrunk in the pan, do not forget to pierce the dough! So as I continued to mix, blend and whisk I snacked along the way on shrunken pie crust - it tastes just as good as you'd imagine, very.

The meringue was definitely the most intimidating, it's very humid in DC (not good for flully egg whites) and after watching many episodes of Alton Brown I imagined it would be something you would have to learn how to make only from practice. Hah! Alton is such a good teacher, it worked! I just kept looking for the peaks. That's them in picture #3.

Success! The pie was delicious, the meringue did shrink up a little bit and slide across the filling. So, while it didn't look as picture perfect upon delivery as it did on the counter, it did get good reviews for taste. Things I would do differently next time: Put the meringue directly on the warm filling, this helps to set the egg whites; not drive 2+ hours before it gets served, this allowed the meringue to ride a slip and slide all the way there.