Tuesday, August 23, 2011

Real Men Do Eat Quiche.

I made a commitment for our family to go meatless for dinner once a week. Per EWG, going meatless just once a week saves on energy and sustainability tremendously. And, given we are trying to reign in our budget, going meatless also makes for a very inexpensive dinner option. Bless my poor husband for patiently going along with all of this. Last week, his after dinner comment was, "that was surprisingly fulfilling...".

Last night, I made a quiche. I am not a huge egg fan...the texture gets the best of me. But, this quiche was so  good I thought I'd share the recipe. I served it with a cup of roasted vegetable soup (see recipe below).

Anywho...here is the quiche recipe (the original came from The Taste of Home Cookbook, but I made changes to better suit our personal tastes):

Cheddar Broccoli Quiche
Serves 4 - 6 adults

Crust (or a store bought one will do fine too or your favorite crust recipe)

1 c. flour
1/4 tsp. salt
1/3 c. shortening (if you have cold bacon fat, use it here - it makes a great savory crust!)
3 Tbs. cold milk

Cut flour and salt with the shortening. Add cold milk until the dough forms into a ball. Wrap in plastic wrap and refrigerate for 30 minutes. Roll out to fit a 9 inch pie plate. Fit into pie plate. Do NOT prick. Line with double layer of foil. Bake for 5 minutes at 450 degrees. Uncover and let bake another 5 minutes. Let cool slightly before filling.

Reduce Oven to 350 degrees before baking full quiche.

Quiche Filling

2 c. cooked (roasted is great!) chopped broccoli (cauliflower, or other veggies would be good too)
3 eggs
1/2 c. milk
1/2 c. whole mayo (light and reduced fat will break)
1 1/2 c. grated, cheddar and mozzarella cheese, divided
1/8 tsp. nutmeg
1/8 tsp. pepper
1/2 tsp. salt

Evenly place broccoli into baked pie crust. Place eggs, milk, mayo, nutmeg, pepper, salt and 1 cup of cheese into a blender. Blend until smooth. Pour over broccoli and top with remaining cheese.

Bake, uncovered 28 -- 33 minutes, or until knife inserted in the center comes out clean. Be careful not to over or under bake as the texture will not be a as creamy. Let cool 10 minutes before slicing. Enjoy!

Roasted Vegetable Soup 
Serves 2 - 4 adults


2 c. cherry tomatos
1 large tomato, chopped
1/2 c. chopped onion
1/2 c. chopped carrot
1/4 c. chopped celery
2 garlic cloves, smashed
olive oil
salt and pepper
1/4 c. heavy cream
water as needed

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
Toss cherry tomatoes with olive oil and salt. Place on sheet pan in a single layer. Roast for 30 minutes. Set aside.

Coat the bottom of a sauce pot in olive oil. Add onions, carrots and celery. Sprinkle with salt. Let sweat for 10 - 15 minutes, until tender and onion translucent. Add garlic and chopped fresh tomato. Allow to simmer for 15 minutes. Add roasted tomatoes (including any pan juices and olive oil). Let simmer for another 10 - 15 minutes, until everything is soft and all juices rendered from the vegetables.

Place everything into a blender (or use an immersion blender). Blend until desired consistency. We prefer it very smooth. Put back into sauce pot. Stir in heavy cream, and water until the desired soup consistency you like. Add salt, pepper and olive oil as needed for taste. Top with a sprinkle of Parmesan cheese. Enjoy!


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