Crustless Asparagus and Mushroom Quiche

 Every week, I make a crustless quiche to have for breakfasts for the week. What goes into it depends what I have on hand. When I went shopping this week, I found a beautiful bunch of asparagus. Today, I felt like asparagus, mushroom, roasted red pepper and bacon. I admit, I took the shortcut on the mushrooms, but you could easily use fresh mushrooms. If you do, I would saute them in butter to cook off as much water as you can (plus give it a really nice flavor). As for seasonings, I just add what sounds good to me.

Crustless Asparagus and Mushroom Quiche

1 lb asparagus, cut in 1" pieces

2 4oz cans mushroom pieces, drained

1 lg roasted red pepper, diced

2 cups low-fat cottage cheese

2 cups cheddar/parmesan blend, divided

8 slices cooked bacon, diced

12 large eggs

3 cups 2% milk

1 tsp salt

1/2 tsp mixed ground pepper

1 tbsp chives

1 tbsp dried basil (fresh is better)

1 tsp paprika

Preheat oven to 375⁰ F.  Place asparagus in a microwaveable bowl with 2 tbsp water. Cook for 4 minutes. Set aside. If using canned mushrooms, drain. Chop pepper and bacon. In a prepared baking dish (I use a half chafing pan), spoon in cottage cheese, vegetables, bacon and 1 cup cheese. Lightly mix to distribute ingredients. 

In a large bowl, whisk eggs with seasonings until uniform color. Slowly whisk in the milk until mixture is a uniform lemon color. Pour over filling and sprinkle with remaining cheese.   Bake for 40 minutes or until set in center. Allow to rest 10 minutes before serving.

Lasagna with Yellow Lentil Noodles

 I have been asked to post my lasagna recipe, although I will tell you that this will only be the actual construction of the lasagna.  I make my lasagna with whatever sauce I happen to have made.  This latest version uses a fresh sauce with ground turkey, red and yellow peppers, and yellow squash.  I of course used some fresh tomatoes and some of the fresh basil I have been maintaining over the winter, but that is a different recipe.

Lasagna with Yellow Lentil Noodles

4 cups Spaghetti sauce (I used turkey vegetable sauce)

24 oz low-fat cottage cheese

2 cups shredded Italian blend cheese

1 1/2 cups shredded parmesan

2 eggs

1 pkg Simply Nature Yellow Lentil Lasagna Sheets (from Aldi)

Filling: Mix Cottage cheese, eggs and 1/2 cup shredded parmesan until will mixed.  Set aside.

To construct the lasagna, spray a baking dish (I used a half pan banquet pan, or you could use a 9 x 13 x 2 baking pan).  Spread 1 1/2 cups sauce in the bottom of the baking pan.  Place one layer of lasagna sheets over the sauce.  Spread 1/2 of the cheese mixture over the noodles.  Sprinkle with 1/3 of the Italian cheese blend and a handful of the parmesan.  Spread 1/3 of remaining sauce over cheese.  Repeat layers ending with a layer of noodles.  Spread the remaining sauce over the noodles and sprinkle with the remaining cheeses.  Cover and bake 30 minutes covered.  Remove the foil and bake 25 minutes longer uncovered.  Allow to sit for 10 minutes before serving.

To be honest, I do not know why I don't make lasagna more often.  As you can see, it is very simple and you no longer have to cook the noodles before putting it all together.

Beef and Barley Stew - Slow cooker

I have always preferred spring/summer to winter when it comes to vegetables.  But one thing I do love is a good Beef and Barley stew.  It's been a long time since I made one, but I just had a taste for it, so here is the recipe.

 

Beef Barley Stew for slow cooker (can be done on stove)

3 lb Chuck roast, fat trimmed and cut into ½ in pieces

2 Tbsp Olive oil

1 large onion

8 ounces sliced mushrooms

1 ½ cups red wine (may use broth)

2 sweet peppers, large dice (I used 1 red and 1 orange)

4 large carrots, peeled and cut into 1 inch pieces

6 small stalks celery and leaves, cut into 1 inch pieces

8 cups beef broth

1 tsp dried thyme (use 1 Tbsp if fresh)

2 bay leaves

1 Tbsp Italian seasoning

Salt and pepper, to taste

1 cup barley

 

1.      Trim chuck roast of fat and cut into bite-sized pieces.  Heat 1 Tbsp oil in large skillet over medium high heat and sear beef, in batches as necessary.  Place beef into base of slow cooker.

2.      Dice onions and and mushrooms (large pieces).  Heat rest of oil over medium heat in same skillet.  Add onions, cook until the onions start to look translucent.  Add mushrooms and cook another 5-8 minutes until liquid from mushrooms begins to evaporate.  Add garlic and cook for about a minute longer.  Pour vegetable mixture over beef.

3.      Turn off heat to skillet and pour wine into skillet to de-glaze pan (get all those good dark bits!).  Pour wine into slow cooker.

4.      Prepare peppers, carrots, and celery by cutting to large dice (bite-sized pieces).  Add to slow cooker.  Pour broth over all and add seasonings.  Mix well, then cover and cook on LOW for 8 hours.

5.      At end of cooking time, change to either SAUTE or HIGH to bring broth to a boil.  Add barley, cover and cook for 15 minutes.  Barley will continue to thicken the stew as time goes on.  Adjust seasonings and serve!

Note: I really prefer using my slow cookers for stews and soups.  However, this could be done in a Dutch oven by simmering for about 45 minutes to an hour after everything is added (except barley.  Test the vegetables and once they are cooked to taste, raise heat to bring back to boil and add barley.  

 

 

Eggplant and Heirloom Cherry Tomatoes

 While I miss having a CSA to rely on, I do visit the Farmers Market every chance I get.  This past weekend, I got the first of the eggplant for the season.  Unfortunately, there was only one small one!  So, last night, I decided to make a quiche out of it with some beautiful heirloom cherry tomatoes.  It is important I decided to do this last night because as always, when you want to put fresh vegetables into a quiche, you must do what you can to reduce the extra liquid added to the dish.  Instead of only doiing 20 - 40 minutes with the salt, I decided to slice the eggplant last night, salt it and let it rest in the refrigerator over night, to get as much liquid out as I could.  I didn't, however, remove the liquid from the tomatoes, even though I roasted them until they burst, so I am fully expecting liquid around the quiche.  But it smells so good while it is cooking!!!

Roasted Eggplant & Heirloom Cherry Tomato Crustless Quiche

Serves 6

Ingredients

1 small eggplant*, sliced lengthwise into ¼ inch slices

2 cups mixed heirloom cherry tomatoes*

1 head garlic*

Cooking spray

6 large farm fresh eggs*

Salt & Pepper to taste

1 ½ Cups Milk (I used 1% organic milk)

1 oz crumbled goat cheese

1 up shredded Swiss & Gruyere cheese

Directions:

1.      Line cookie sheet with parchment paper. Slice the eggplant and lay in a single layer on sheet.  Sprinkle with salt.  Allow to rest 1 – 8 hours (refrigerate if over 1 hour).  This will draw excess liquid from the eggplant.

2.      Preheat oven to 400F.  Pat the eggplant slices to absorb excess moisture.  Line a large cookie sheet with foil and spray with cooking spray.  Lay eggplant slices evenly over the cookie sheet.  Spread tomatoes between the slices.  Cut the top and bottom off garlic head and place head in middle of cookie sheet.  Spray all with cooking spray.  Roast for 20 minutes, turning pan halfway through cooking.  When done cooking, reduce oven to 375F.

3.      Remove garlic to cutting board to cool.  Place tomatoes in a colander to drain excess liquid.  Pat dry the eggplant.

4.      In a medium mixing bowl, crack eggs and season with salt and pepper.  Beat eggs until uniform in color.  Slowly add milk and beat until a light lemon yellow.

5.      To assemble: Spray baking dish with cooking spray.  Place one layer of eggplant in the bottom of the dish.  Add burst tomatoes.  Peel cloves of garlic and spread throughout the tomato layer.  Place a second layer of eggplant over tomatoes.  Sprinkle with goat cheese.  Slowly pour eggs over vegetables, then sprinkle Swiss/Gruyere over top.

6.      Bake at 375F for 40 minutes, or until toothpick, inserted into center, comes out clean.  Allow to sit for 5-7 minutes before serving. 

* Farmer's market items.

Instant Pot Red Wine Short Ribs

 Well, it is official, I am ready for the farmer's market to open again  I thawed the last batches of local short ribs and decided to make ragu.  And I just happened to have a package of potato gnocchi I needed to use.

Instant Pot Red Wine Short Ribs

adapted from: https://www.lifasastrwberry.com/instant-pot-short-ribs

2 lbs boneless beef short ribs

salt & pepper to taste

2 Tbsp extra virgin olive oil

1 medium sweet onion, chopped

3 cloves garlic, minced

12 oz baby portobello mushrooms, sliced

2 Tbsp balsamic vinegar

1 1/2 cups red wine (I used a red blend)

3 cups homemade roasted tomato marinara

Instructions:

1) Generously salt and pepper all sides of your short ribs

2) Set Instant Pot to saute setting and add olive oil.  When pot is hot, add short ribs and sear for 3-5 minutes per side until golden brown. 

3) Remove short ribs from pot and set aside. 

4) Add onions and mushrooms to pot and stir to combine.  Cook until all water from mushrooms is evaporated.  Add garlic, cook a minute until it becomes fragrant.

5) Add balsamic vinegar and red wine to pot to deglaze.  Make sure to scrape any browned bits off the bottom of the pan with your spoon or spatula.  Bring to a simmer.

6) Press "cancel" button to turn off saute setting.

7) Add short ribs back to the pot, nestling them in with the onions and mushrooms.  Pour tomato sauce over the ribs (do not stir).

8) Lock the Instant Pot lid in place, move the valve to "sealing" and set the cook time to 65 minutes on high (if you are using boneless ribs, cooke at 50 minutes)

9) When cook time has finished, let the pressure release naturally for 15 mintues, then do a quick release of any remaining pressure by carefully moving the valve to venting. Let the pot vent until the pin drops.  Then carefully remove the lid away from you to avoid steam.

10) Remove the cooked ribs to a plate to cool.  

11) Add the gnocchi to the pot and stir.  Place lid back into place and move the valve to "sealing".  Press cancel to turn off "Keep warm".  The set the cook time to 6 minutes on high.

12) While the gnocchi are cooking, remove the beef from the bones and fat.  

13) When the cooking time is over, do a quick release by carefully moving the valve to "venting"

14) Once the pin drops, carefully open the lid away from you.  Stir the shredded ribs back into the pot.  Let the mixuter cook for about 5-10 minutes more to thicken a bit.

 

Summer Staple - Ratatouille Quiche

 The thing that I love the most about summer is the ability to get all of the ingredients for Ratatouille.  It is one of my two favorite dishes to eat.  I make a big batch and then use it in other dishes.  Today, I used it in my quiche.  The most common recipe I use for my ratatouille is very wet, as I like to use it for a pasta sauce, so I have to remove as much moisture as I can before using it in the quiche.  It has been quite a journey to find the best material to use to do that.  Today, I tried a linen napkin, with pretty good results.  But the weave might be just a bit tight, so the experimentation continues.

Ratatouille Quiche with Goat Cheese

2 cups Ratatouille

1 cup goat cheese crumbles

8 basil leaves, chiffonade

8 large eggs

2 cups milk (I used 2%)

salt & pepper

1 1/2 cups Swiss cheese, shredded

Directions:

1) Preheat oven to 375 F.  Using cheese cloth or a linen towel, squeeze as much moisture as possible from the ratatouille.  Place ratatouille in a prepared casserole dish.

2) Sprinkle vegetables with goat cheese crumble.  Chiffonade the basil and sprinkle over the vegetables and goat cheese.

3) In a large bowl, mix together the eggs, milk and salt & pepper until well mixed. Pour over the vegetables.  Sprinkle with Swiss cheese.

4) Bake for 40 minutes or until center is set.  Allow to sit for 5 minutes before serving.

Note: the recipe for my ratatouille is linked above.