Kale, Mushroom, and Swiss Quiche

Are you often asking yourself 'what can I possibly make for dinner that is healthy, filling, contains whole grains and at least two servings of veggies?' Okay, so maybe that's not the exact question you ask, but you get the idea. Quiche is one of those amazing all-in-one meals that fits all of the above criteria, if done right. I made a delicious mushroom, kale, and swiss quiche for dinner a few nights back. I got a late start on making dinner and I was starving by the time it was ready, so I didn't get a chance to take a picture, but the recipe is below. If you stick with the crust and custard recipe I've provided, you can change up the filling anyway you like - just make sure you end up with at least 3-4 cups of filling (always lightly saute`ed) to put into the pie plate.

Ingredients:

Pie Crust

1/2 cup unbleached, all purpose flour

1 cup stone ground, whole wheat flour

6 tablespoons unsalted butter

4 1/2 tablespoons of milk

Filling

Enough olive oil to coat the saute' pan

2 cloves garlic, minced

4-6 ounces low fat chicken sausage (I used whole foods pesto chicken sausage from the meat counter)

2/3 bunch dinosaur kale (the kind with the bumps on it), chopped small

8 oz brown mushrooms, sliced

1/2 teaspoon dried red pepper flakes, or to taste

1 teaspoon dried basil

1/2 tsp granulated onion powder, optional

Salt and pepper, to taste

Cheese

6 slices jarlsberg lite swiss cheese

Custard

3 large/jumbo eggs

1 1/4 cups skim milk

Instructions:

1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees F.

2. Combine butter and flour in food processor and turn on machine until mixture is uniform throughout. While the machine is still running, add the milk 1 tablespoon at a time. You may need slightly more or less milk, depending on the humidity in your environment. Once mixture has come together, turn off food processor and remove. Hand form pie crust in an 8 or 9 inch pie plate.

3. Coat a large skillet with olive oil. Over medium heat, saute` garlic and chicken sausage for 5 minutes until sausage is about half way cooked. Add all other filling ingredients and saute` for 8-10 minutes until kale is wilted and veggies are tender. It is fine if the sausage is not fully cooked.

4. Layer cheese on top of crust in pie plate.

5. Pour warm filling over cheese.

6. Whisk eggs and milk together in a medium sized bowl.

7. Pour custard mixture over filling.

8. Bake in preheated oven for 37-42 minutes, until custard no longer jiggles when pie plate is bumped.

9. Remove from oven and allow to cool for 10 minutes. Cut into 6 slices and serve!

Souffle` Success!

I'm thrilled to report I tried a souffle` recipe again, and this time the results were overwhelmingly successful! What did I change you ask? First, I got an oven thermometer, and it turns out my oven was off by about 30 degrees F! Then, I decided to invest in some smaller, individual-size souffle`dishes since I realized that the life of a souffle` is really about 10 minutes after it comes out of the oven, then it begins to deflate rapidly. The recipe I tried was for roquefort souffle`s. Roquefort is a type of imported, bleu cheese that is sometimes difficult to find. Ask your local cheese monger...they will likely recommend another type of sheep's milk bleu cheese that is a good substitute.


Roquefort Souffle`
Ingredients:
2 tablespoons unsalted butter, plus softened butter for the ramekins
1/2 cup freshly grated Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese
3 tablespoons all-purpose flour
1 cup milk
Pinch of salt
Pinch of cayenne pepper
2 ounces Roquefort cheese
5 large eggs, separated (fresh eggs are the key to your souffle` success-they will puff better during beating and cooking if they are fresh)
2 tablespoons snipped chives

Instructions:
1. Preheat the oven to 375°. Butter four 1-cup ramekins and coat each one with 1 tablespoon of the grated Parmigiano.
2. In a medium saucepan, melt the 2 tablespoons of butter. Add the flour and cook over moderate heat for 1 minute, whisking constantly. Add the milk, salt and cayenne and cook, whisking, until very thick and bubbling, about 2 minutes. Scrape the mixture into a large bowl and whisk in the Roquefort and the remaining 1/4 cup of grated Parmigiano. Whisk in the egg yolks and chives.
3. In another bowl, using an electric mixer, beat the egg whites until firm peaks form. Fold the beaten whites into the cheese mixture until no streaks remain. Pour the mixture into the ramekins, filling them three-fourths of the way; set the ramekins on a baking sheet. Bake the soufflés for about 20 minutes, until puffed and golden. Place the soufflés on plates and serve immediately.

This recipe makes 4 souffle`s. You can also halve it if there are only two people, which is what I did. This recipe was reprinted from Food and Wine Online (http://www.foodandwine.com/recipes/).

Filets de Poisson Bercy aux Champignons

Julia, you are a goddess. Yes, I acknowledge that I used nearly a stick of butter to create two servings of your Filets de Poisson Bercy aux Champignons (fish fillets poached in white wine with mushrooms, for you non-French speakers), but it was incredible. I have never in my life created something so inconceivably delicious, so breathtakingly magnificent that I was nearly brought to tears. Okay, I realize this may sound ridiculous, but this really felt almost like an out of body experience.

For lack of better words, here is Julia's description of this dish taken directly from page 210 of Mastering the Art of French Cooking: "Bercy is the simplest of the white-wine fish sauces. The poaching liquid is thickened with beurre manie`-a flour butter paste-then enriched with cream."

This dish consists of the following ingredients:

Sliced fresh mushrooms
Butter
Salt
Pepper
Filets of sole or flounder
Shallots
More butter
Dry vermouth
Flour
Even more butter
Whipping cream
More salt and pepper
Lemon Juice
Swiss Cheese
And finally...even more butter!

Rather than reprint the original recipe here, which is about 4 pages in length (yes, Julia was a bit wordy - but she was a genius!), I encourage you to visit your local library or bookstore and find the Julia inside of you just waiting to break free. You won't be disappointed, I definitely wasn't!

I Love Pizza!

I make a pizza almost every week. For me, pizza is the ultimate meal. It can be both healthy and fun to create a delicious pie at home. Making pizza is simple, anyone can do it with fantastic results - no recipe required. I aim to never make the same pizza twice, with the exception of a few favorites...

The key to a fun-filled pizza making time is pre-made dough - Trader Joe's makes a few tasty ones that are around $1.50 each and contain enough dough to stretch into a 12" pie. My personal favorite is their Almost Whole Wheat Dough. Here is my personal favorite to get you started on your pizza making journey:

Tasty Pear Pizza with Bleu Cheese, Arugula, and Walnuts

1 Almost Whole Wheat Pizza Dough from Trader Joe's
2 Tbsp Olive Oil (i like to use rosemary infused, but plain ol' Extra Virgin will work just fine)
4 cups fresh Arugula
3 large garlic cloves, minced
3 medium-sized ripe Red D'Anjou Pears, sliced thinly
2-4 ounces Stilton Bleu Cheese (can be found in most grocery stores with a cheese counter), depending on your taste
1 cup chopped Walnuts
About a handful of shredded Parmesan cheese

Instructions:
Preheat the oven to 450 degrees F (if you will be using a pizza stone, now is the time to put it in the oven)

1. Take pizza dough out of the fridge and let it rest on the counter for at least 30 minutes for optimal stretch (your patience will be rewarded, I assure you)
2. Meanwhile saute the garlic, 1 tablespoon of the olive oil and the arugula over medium heat for about 5 minutes until the arugula is wilted. Set aside.
3. Roll out the pizza dough to about 1/4" thickness (don't worry if it isn't round, my pizzas often resemble Texas or Nevada)
4. Place pizza dough on parchment paper sprinkled with flour
5. Brush the dough with the remaining tablespoon of olive oil.
6. Spread the arugula mixture evenly over the dough
7. Place pears in a single layer over the arugula mixture
8. Crumble the bleu cheese and sprinkle it over the pears
9. Top the entire pizza with the walnuts and parmesan
10. Place the pizza and parchment on a pizza stone or cookie sheet and place in the center rack of oven
11. Bake at 450 for 12-16 minutes

*Our secret to a perfect crust is cooking the pizza on the stone for 8 minutes, then transferring to a cookie sheet and cooking on the middle oven rack for an additional 8 minutes. Try it out, you won't be disappointed!

Coming Next Week: Buffalo Sausage Pizza with Cilantro and Mandarin Oranges!