Double Mushroom Quiche with Oatmeal Crust

Hello dear readers, 

In full disclosure, I want to mention that I am re-posting this recipe (Yes, I know that is blogging rule #1....NEVER re-post anything). But there is a good reason.... at the time of my original plans for this post, I was itching to change up the look of my blog, you know, experiment with all the cool stuff hidden in the 'layout' buttons on the margin of blogger.....well, I really went crazy with my updates, changing my blog so much that I actually got emails (more than a few) asking what was going on!  In the process, this lovely recipe was lost....so, if it seems like you may have read this before, you're not crazy! You have!  Since then, I have decided that the regular old layout is just fine for me. Please enjoy this one. 

As I’ve written here before, I am not a vegetarian, but I could easily be one because I am crazy for vegetarian meals. I have also confessed my obsession with mushrooms (click here for a shocking MUSHROOM  pizza.) So when a recipe calls for 8 ounces of mushrooms, I confidently round that up to 16 ounces.

You might find this crust to be a bit tricky, but it’s worth it. Use a Cuisinart and scrape all the moisture from the butter and the buttermilk from the corners of the bowl. Don’t over-process and roll it out only to 10 inches (use a measuring tape.) Another trick, be certain to use a 9 inch pan… not 9.5 and certainly not 10!

Enjoy this beautiful quiche and let me know if you can handle all those glorious mushrooms!

Here’s what you need for the crust:

¾ C rolled oats

½ C all-purpose flour

¼ t salt

3 T cold butter, cut in small squares

3 T cold low-fat buttermilk

Here’s what you need for the fililng:

3 t olive oil

1 large onion, sliced into thin rounds

16 ounces mushrooms – I used baby portabellas from the grocery store and regular button mushrooms from the back of my fridge.

½ t salt

Ground black pepper to taste

¼ t dry mustard

½ t dried thyme (or less if you’re not a thyme lover)

3 large eggs

3 egg whites

1 C fat-free evaporated milk (evaporated, not condensed)

2/3 C Gruyere cheese (or Swiss or Jarlsberg or Cheddar or Monterrey Jack or Pepper Jack or Mozzeralla or even smoked Gouda)

 Here’s what you do: There are a lot of steps…..

Process the oats and flour for a few seconds, add the cubed butter and pulse until it looks like wet sand. Add the buttermilk and pulse for about a dozen times, until it looks like dough. Using a knife, scrape any moisture stuck in the corners of the bowl and re-pulse.

Remove dough to wax paper and form it into a ball. Place more wax paper over it and roll to 10 inch circle. 

Remove the top sheet of wax paper, and using the bottom sheet of wax paper, carefully, carefully place the dough into a prepared pie plate. (prepared means sprayed…. ) Bake at 400 degrees for about 9 minutes.

Meanwhile 

1. Sauté the onions slowly until nice and brown. 

2. Remove them and sauté the mushrooms. 

3. Mix together all the onions, mushrooms, spices.

4. Whip the eggs, egg whites and milk together 

5. Grate the cheese.

To assemble: Cheese first, then veggies, then slowly pour the egg mixture over – it’s OK if it escapes the confines of the crust.

Bake for about 35 minutes or until the middle is set and almost firm. Serve with something green. Potatoes would have been a nice go-with also. 

(printable recipe)

One Year Ago: Baked Chicken with Wild Rice and Tarragon
(from the Mayo Clinic)

OneYear Ago: Lemon Fettuccini 

spinach quiche with gruyere cheese

You know what makes me weak in the knees? Cheese. Yes, cheese.  I have cut way, way back on my cheese consumption lately (I’ve told you, trying to keep it healthy around here), but that doesn’t mean I don’t crave it daily! Especially gruyere.  Ah, gruyere!

I posted my standard Spinach Quiche here on the blog a while ago (click here) – I make it all the time because it’s easy, cheap, makes a great simple dinner and is the best for leftover breakfast or lunch. But today I share the granddaddy of all Spinach Quiches. Good enough for company and perfect for every occasion. Indulge and Enjoy!

Here’s what you need:

1 pie crust (I highly recommend Pillsbury Brand)

½ T butter

½ C finely minced shallots

4 large eggs

1 ¼ C half and half

1/8 t nutmeg

½ t salt

1/8 t cayenne pepper

1 C grated Gruyere cheese

1 10 ounce package frozen spinach – thawed and wrung totally free of water.

Here’s what you do:

Pre bake the crust in a 400 degree oven for about 10-12 minutes (prick the bottom with a fork and check on it periodically so the edges don’t fall over on themselves). Lower oven to 325 degrees.

Sautee the shallots in the melted butter until soft. Whisk the eggs and half and half together.  

Stir the quiche ingredients together until all the spinach has become unclumped. Use two forks if you need to.

Pour spinach mixture over crust and bake in a 325 degree oven for about 45 minutes. Watch carefully toward the end of the baking time. 

(printable recipe)

Salad Nicoise: minus the tuna

Can you imagine a prettier salad? 

Believe me, it tasted as great as it looks!

 Perfect for a light summer dinner.

This one is definitely in the rotation!
I could eat this every day. No kidding! 

(See Taste of Home, April/May 2012 for original recipe)

Here’s what you need:

1/3 C olive oil

¼ C lemon juice

1 t dried oregano

1 t dried thyme

1 t Dijon mustard

1 clove garlic

Salt, pepper to taste

2 T water

Small red potatoes

Fresh asparagus

Fresh green beans

Dark red kidney beans

Bib lettuce or other soft leaf lettuce

Hard boiled eggs, quartered

Marinated artichoke hearts - drained

Best quality Kalamata or Nicoise olives

Here’s what you do:

Prepare the lovely dressing by whisking the lemon juice, Dijon, garlic, herbs, and olive oil. The best way to deal with the raw garlic is to peel the clove and grate it on a fine rasp. Just make sure it is minced or grated as finely as possible. Add water to taste, making sure the dressing is not too heavy or oily. I like mine a bit thinner and I find that by loosening the dressing just a bit with some water, I get the perfect consistency.

Boil the eggs. Cool completely and cut in pretty quarters.

Quarter and boil the potatoes until fork tender. While still warm, pour some dressing over them. The warm potatoes will absorb all the tangy goodness and increase in taste.  The potatoes taste much better if they are never refrigerated – keep them at room temperature.

Steam the beans and asparagus. I do mine in the same steamer, being careful not to overcook the asparagus. Cool under cold running water. Drizzle some dressing over the steamed beans and asparagus.

Drain and rinse the kidney beans. Drizzle some dressing over the beans.

Arrange the lettuce on a large serving platter. Drizzle some dressing over the lettuce. Arrange the remaining salad components around the platter – drizzling dressing over all.

(printable recipe)

One Year Ago: A Trio of Tasty Tidbits (my 100th post!)

Basic Onion Pie

On my other blog (did you know I write another blog called Food Talk? There’s a link to it on the right side bar here.) I have been writing about how much I love asparagus, which is true. I made a very pretty asparagus soufflé, an asparagus tart (a la Martha Stewart). I have roasted and steamed asparagus. I have served it cold, warm, hot and everything in between. I eat it with or without Parmesan cheese or vinaigrette. We are turning green around here…… is there such a thing as too much asparagus?

Anyway, my other very favorite vegetable is the humble onion. I will eat sautéed onions with anything. Anything at all. Omelets, burgers, pizza, salad, chicken……. Anything at all.

I suppose if you’ve been cooking for any amount of time at all you already have this recipe. I make it a lot because it’s easy, cheap, delicious, and a great way to eat one of my favorite vegetables – onions.

Today I used both Vidalia onions and a few shallots. I did not have Saltine crackers, so I substituted Club crackers . I think Saltines are better.

Add ins include: a can of green chilies, roasted red peppers, dried tomatoes (the ones that come in a jar with oil), other veggies sautéed along with the onions. Today, I kept it completely simple – onions, cracker crust, eggs, milk and cheese.

Here’s what you need:

4 C Vidalia onions – chopped or sliced

¼ C butter – divided

1 C crushed Saltine crackers

4 eggs, well beaten

1 C milk (today I used skim and it was fine)

6 ounces cheddar cheese (you really don’t need more than that)

Salt, pepper, other seasonings to taste

Chop onions and sautee in 2 T butter until desired tenderness is achieved. Melt remaining 2 T butter in regular size pie plate. Sprinkle cracker crumbs over melted butter.

Scatter onions over cracker ‘crust.’ Whisk eggs and milk together and pour over onions. Sprinkle cheese over egg mixture.

Bake uncovered for about 30 minutes at 350 degrees.  A standard at my house.

Cinco de Mayo - Chocolate Flan

Ok, it’s not Cinco de Mayo! But I did actually make and serve this on May 5 – just getting around to writing about it now. Besides, who needs a Mexican holiday to eat really great, authentic Mexican food? Not me. I’m not even sure Cinco de Mayo is such a big deal in Mexico. We Americans are just looking for another way to celebrate our neighbors to the south. If you want to see how much we love all things Mexican at our house, start clicking:

                Pork Enchiladas in Green Salsa 

(caution: controversial raw meat photos!)

                Mrs. K’s Famous Mexican Casserole

(ridiculously easy)

                Creamy Southwest Chicken Soup

(my daughter in college has made this a few times- I love that she is becoming such a great cook! She texted me today to tell me that she made a penne pasta with apple chicken sausage, broccoli, Granny Smith apples and a Gouda Cheese sauce. I mean, come on!)

                Cheesy Green Enchiladas

(a recipe from Vegetarian Times Magazine. I really must explore that publication more.)

                Chicken Queso Burger 

(one of my first blog posts)

                Yucatan Meals 

(photos from our recent trip to the Yucatan Peninsula)

Picture this:

I am peacefully going through my twitter one afternoon, catching up on tweets and randomly looking around. (I am @LivingCB in case you're interested.....)

I come across a tweet from @finecooking which says “Impossible Chocolate Flan – the BEST dessert for Cinco de Mayo (and fun to make too).”

I read the recipe and decide I must make it right then. RIGHT then.

I send my son to the store with a short grocery list.

I dig in and within the hour I have created this beautiful, beautiful thing!

Unfortunately, I had to wait until the next day to taste it…… and I ate ½ of the entire flan. Tim was out of town and the kids were uninterested…. I think it’s the texture of flan that people either love or hate.

Me - I’m a lover.

Please see Fine Cooking for the complete recipe. (I did not use the Cajeta – no time to drive to the big grocery store for a specialty product- I was in a panic to get this baby in the oven!)

Gather ingredients according to recipe.

Make the cake layer. Make the flan layer and gently pour it over the cake. Set the entire thing in a hot water bath.

Kinda ugly bottom, but just wait till tomorrow! 

Run a hot knife around the edge of the pan. Gently coax the dessert out onto a plate.
Enjoy!

breakfast braid

Saturday mornings at our house can be pretty lazy. I’m an early riser, but usually I just sit around, read and drink coffee all morning. I just finished reading the 2011 Newberry Medal winner Moon over Manifest by Clare Vanderpool. Since I teach Middle School Language Arts, I usually try to keep up with those titles. I’m also reading Julie of the Wolves by Jeanne Craighead George along with my students. It's been a while since I've read it and I'm greatly enjoying it. My grown up book this week is Travels with Charley by John Steinbeck.

Our two oldest kids are home from college for spring break this week, so Saturday was the perfect time to spend just a tiny bit of time on a hot breakfast for them. This was the first time I have made this and it was pretty good, but I can see lots of variations and possibilities. Next time I will jazz up the eggs with some green peppers, onions and tomatoes. You could make it spicy with green chilies or even jalapeno peppers and hot sauce in the egg mixture.

Here’s what you need:

½ C milk (I used skim)

4 oz. low fat cream cheese

8 eggs

2 packages low fat crescent rolls

6 oz. deli ham, thinly sliced

1 C shredded cheddar cheese

Here’s what you do:

Preheat oven 375 degrees. Lightly spray baking sheet and lay out one package of crescent rolls in a large rectangle. Press the seams together so the goodness does not leak out too much while baking. Arrange the second package of crescent rolls along the edges of the rectangle of dough. Place the wide end on the dough and hang the point of the triangle over the edge of the baking sheet. Layer the ham on the dough. Mix the cream cheese and milk until blended; whisk in eggs, salt and pepper to taste.

Gently cook the eggs until just cooked – they should remain very soft. Spoon the eggs over the ham, sprinkle with shredded cheddar.

Fold in the tips of the crescent roll triangle to form a braid. Bake for about 25 minutes or until roll is nicely browned. I suggest a serrated knife to create a pretty slice. 

(printable recipe)

huevos rancheros yucateca

Huevos Rancheros Yucateca

I have been away on a fabulous second honeymoon with the love of my life! After 25 years of marriage, Tim and I spent 5 wonderful and very adventurous days driving across the Yucatan Peninsula! We did it all: from pyramids to pink flamingos; from road side taco stands to 5 star restaurants; from tiny pueblos to the big city of Merida. I can’t say enough how much we loved it! The people were so warm and friendly, the food (of course) was outstanding and our accommodations could not have been better.

We stayed at Luz en Yucatan, right in the heart of the old colonial part of Merida. Our penthouse room had an outdoor kitchen in one of our two rooftop patios. Have kitchen- will cook:  so huevos rancheros it was for breakfast!

Here’s what you need:

Huevos

Salsa roja y verde

Tostaditas o otro tipo de tortilla

Frijoles

Poco de aciete

One very romantic roof top outdoor patio kitchen in the heart of Merida Yucatan, Mexico

Here’s what you do:

Lay around in the hammock until you are plenty hungry

Venture to the supermercado to purchase necessary ingredients

Warm up frijoles y tostaditas

Fry the huevos

Smother it all in salsa and voila! Huevos Rancheros a la Yucataca

I am blessed beyond measure!