Quiche Lorraine

If you haven't tried Quiche Lorraine, you really should.  My husband is not a big fan of quiches, but they are something that has always struck a cord.  They remind me of Easter Sunday where sometimes the maker knew what they were doing and it turned out well, but the other times the quiche was wet and leaky and just not so good.  (Those were more the mass produced for a large group of people.)  Quiche Lorraine is different though because it isn't a thick quiche, so the flavors of whatever you put in it - in this case crisp bacon and a bit of cheese - really comes through without having to weed through all the eggy batter to figure out what the flavor should be.

Another good memory of Quiche Lorraine was on a visit to Germany.  My parents had an exchange student whose family I was visiting.  They live on the boarder with France.  One of the many delicious meals I ate with the family included a Quiche Lorraine.  It was quickly put together and it helped feed the family gathering we were at one afternoon.

I was reading through Homemade by Clodagh McKenna which is where I stumbled across her version of Quiche Lorraine.  This is based off her recipe.

Quiche Lorraine  (serves about 8)
Pastry:
1 1/2 cups flour
pinch of salt
1/2 stick (4 tablespoons) unsalted butter
1 egg, slightly beaten

Filling:
1 cup grated sharp cheddar cheese
bacon - I used thick cut bacon, about 5 -6 pieces fried (about a cup), broken or cut into pieces
4 eggs beaten
2/3 cup milk
1/3 cup cream
salt and pepper to taste

Pastry: sift the flour and salt into a bowl.  Rub in the cold butter until you have a small crumbly texture.  Add the egg and and bring the mixture together to form a dough.  (Add water if the mixture is too dry.)  Wrap in plastic and place in the refrigerator for half an hour.  Remove from the refrigerator and roll out the dough into a big round.  Butter a tart pan and place the dough on it.  Chill again until the filling ingredients are ready.

Preheat the oven to 375F.  Remove the dough from the refrigerator and place parchment and dough weights in the center.  Bake for 20 minutes.  Remove the pie weights and parchment and return the pie shell to the oven for another 3-5 minutes.  Reduce the oven temperature to 325F.  Sprinkle the cheese onto the bottom of the pie shell.  Sprinkle the bacon bits on top of the cheese.  Combine the eggs, milk and cream and whisk.  Add salt and pepper to taste.  Pour the mixture over the bacon and cheese.  Trim the pastry.  Bake for 30-40 minutes or until set.  Remove from the oven and let cool.  This will allow the pastry to set a bit more as it cools.  Slice and serve.

Quinoa Salad with Leek, Bacon and Parsley

I have an obsession with collecting cookbooks.  Therefore, every Christmas there always are a few cookbooks on my wish list.  I love to read through them, learn new ingredients, and to give me inspiration to try even more different types of things and to think of new flavor combinations.  This past year I have also come to love farro a lot, but I went to buy some this summer and strangely enough there were problems with the supply, so instead I turned back to quinoa.  So with more quinoa in my cupboard and my mother-in-law wanting to try something with quinoa in it while she was visiting, I found this recipe based off of one in Homemade Winter by Yvette Van Boven.  My husband was a little bit cautious as he thought there were too many things going on, but I disagreed and the flavors seemed like they would go well together with the hearty quinoa adding some filling to otherwise not very filling salads.  In the end, it was a hit and the topping of bacon made everyone happy.

Quinoa Salad with Leek, Bacon and Parsley

Salad:

5 smaller leeks, cut into 1/2 inch pieces

1/2 cup dry white wine

salt

2/3 cup quinoa, soaked

5 oz. bacon

2-3 tablespoon sesame seeds

1 bunch parsley

arugula (3-4 cups)

Dressing:

juice of 1 lemon

2 cloves garlic, pressed

2/3 cup extra virgin olive oil

salt and pepper to taste

In a non-stick skillet, fry the bacon.  Remove when crisp and let cool on a plate covered in paper towels.  Reserve the bacon fat to cook the leeks over a medium heat heat.  When they are hot, but not yet browned, add the white wine and lower the heat and braise with the lid on the pan for about 20 minutes.  Stir occasionally.

Bring a small saucepan of water to a boil.  Add the quinoa and a pinch of salt.  Cook the quinoa for 10 minutes.  Immediately drain and rinse with cold water to stop the cooking.  Make sure quinoa is well drained.  Check on the leeks.  If they are done, place on a plate to cool.  In a medium bowl, combine the quinoa, leeks, sesame seeds and most of the parsley.  (Leave a little parsley for garnish.)

For the dressing, whisk together the lemon juice and garlic.  Continue whisking as you add the olive oil.  Season with salt and pepper.  Pour over the quinoa and leek mixture.

Arrange the arugula in a bowl, then place the quinoa and leek mixture over the top.  Finally, garnish with the rest of the parsley and bacon.

Mikko's Bacon Grilled Mushrooms

I have been to Finland a couple of times.  The last time was in the summer of 2011 where I met my cousin and my host brother, Mikko.  He took us to their summer cabin where he grilled for us.  One of the things that we had as an appetizer were these wonderful bacon wrapped mushrooms.  They are filled with a mild blue cheese and as the cheese melts and the bacon crisps it all comes together in a mushroom cup.  These are best served nearly immediately off the grill, but be careful not to burn yourself on the lovely melted blue cheese.

Mikko's Mushrooms

Mushrooms - your choice the type

8 oz. blue cheese

bacon

Wash the mushrooms and remove the stem.  They should just pop out.  You want a nice sized cap, but not too big.  Ideally, you want the same number of mushrooms as bacon slices.  Divide the blue cheese into how many mushroom pieces you have.  Stuff the blue cheese into the cap of the mushroom.  Then wrap the bacon around the outside of the mushroom.  Grill until the bacon is crisp.  Serve after a few minutes while the cheese is still not, but not too hot!

Serves 4-6

Fight Snow Day Woes with Fresh Bread and Soup

So what do do you do when you have the day off of work unexpectedly and it is freezing cold out with even colder winds?  You dig in and make soup!  Since I had the ingredients to make fresh homemade soup and I thought a wonderful addition to it would be fresh bread.  Plus, an excuse to turn on the oven was also welcome given the cold wintery day outside.  My boyfriend said this soup only rated 3 stars in his book because everything else we have been eating has been so much better.

So today's variation of Irish Clam Chowder comes from New Covent Garden Soup Co.cookbook which was given to me years ago by a friend from Scotland.  The twist on the Irish Soda bread was found on the 101cookbooks.com website.  Both recipes have been modified as that is just my way.

Irish Clam Chowder
Serves: 6

About a pound of scallops

3 leeks, sliced very finely

2 medium potatoes

About 5 slices of bacon

12-16 oz of sweetcorn

6 oz sour cream

1 cup cream

2 cups chicken stock

2 oz. butter

1 teaspoon honey

2 teaspoons flour

Salt and pepper to taste
Fresh parsley to garnish

Saute leeks, potato and bacon in butter for about 20 minutes until soft.  Add 3/4 of the stock and cook for 10 minutes, then add sweetcorn. Mix flour with remaining stock and add to the saucepan and heat until warmed through.  Add the sour cream, cream and scallops.  Heat gently until the scallops are firm.  Be careful not to cook too quickly or for too long or the scallops will become tough.  Add honey just before serving and season to taste.  Sprinkle with fresh parsley and serve with crusty bread.

Seeded Soda Bread

Seeds: 12 Tablespoons seeds (sunflower, pumpkin, sesame, poppy, flax etc.)

1 teaspoon fennel seeds

1 cup spelt flour

3/4 cup whole wheat flour

2 cups all-purpose flour

1 3/4 teaspoon baking soda

1 teaspoon fine sea salt

1 3/4 cup buttermilk

Preheat oven to 400F.  Combine chosen seeds.  Sift flours, baking soda and salt into a large bowl.  Stir in all but 2 -3 Tablespoons of the seeds.  Make a well and pour in the buttermilk.  Stir just until combined.  Add extra buttermilk if needed.  Knead on lightly floured surface for one minute.  Place dough on a lightly floured baking sheet and mark with an X cutting 2/3 of the way through.  Brush with buttermilk and sprinkle remaining seeds.  Bake 35-40 minutes or until golden brown on top.  Cool on a wire rack.  Makes 1 loaf.

Shrimp Bog

So who knew that bog meant rice?  I always knew that a bog was related to cranberries.  Even more interesting was actually seeing a working bog to grow them in Wisconsin.  However, this recipe has nothing to do with cranberries and everything to do with shrimp.  The recipe came from the book Edible by Tracey Ryder and Carole Topalian.  They do explain that a bog is close to a pilau and that it probably got it's name because rice also grows in a bog...who knew?

What drew me in to cook this particular recipe was the shrimp and rice combination...well plus the picture!  I always like to know what I am supposed to be doing even if it isn't what I determine the recipe should be once I start reading it.  Anyway, the authors state this should take about 30 minutes to make which is due to the time it takes to cook rice, but in this case you get a whole meal.

Sullivan's Island Shrimp Bog

Make 6 servings

1 1/2 cups long-grain white rice

1/2 pound sliced bacon, finely chopped

2 medium onions, finely chopped

1 teaspoon kosher salt

3/4 teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg

1/4 teaspoon freshly ground cayenne powder

2 1/4 cups chicken broth

1 can (14.5 oz.) diced tomatoes

2 teaspoons freshly squeezed lemon juice

1 1/2 teaspoons Worcestershire sauce

2 pounds medium shrimp (40 count), shelled and deveined

1/4 cup ver finely chopped flat-leaf parsley leaves

1 lemon wedge, cut into 6 wedges

In a fine mesh strainer, rinse the rice well under cold running water.  Drain well; set aside.

In a large heavy Dutch oven or stockpot, cook the bacon over medium heat until golden, about 5 minutes.  Using a slotted spoon, transfer the bacon to a paper towel-lined dish; set aside.  Pour off and discard all but 3 tablespoons of the bacon fat remaining in the pot.  Add the onions to the pot and cook over medium heat, stirring occasionally, for about 3 minutes.  Add the drained rice, salt, nutmeg, black pepper and cayenne and stir for 1 minute.

Stir in broth, tomatoes with liquid, lemon juice and Worcestershire sauce.  Bring to a boil, cover the pot, reduce the heat, and simmer gently for about 20 minutes.  Stir in the cooked bacon and the shrimp and cook uncovered, stirring occasionally, until the shrimp is cooked through, adding more broth if the rice seems to be drying out, about 10 minutes.  Stir the bog with a fork.  Taste and adjust seasonings as needed.  Sprinkle with parsley, garnish with lemon wedges, and serve immediately.