Shrimp, Smoked Fontina & tomato Quiche with Shredded Potato Crust

This all Started Because we have WAY too many eggs & like 10 kinds of Cheese in our Fridge. I said I would make Quiche in the Morning , went to bed and dreamt Quiche recipes all night long.

I had pie crust but thought that a Crunchy Potato Crust would add more flavour & texture.  It worked really well . Took quite a bit more time so if you are in a hurry using a pie crust would be a better idea.This would have been amazing with the Shrimp left out and Spinach added as well.

IF you want a Basic mix your own ingredients/crust options check out the Moosewood cookbook.  Here is a version of that.
http://www.jewishfood-list.com/recipes/vegn/quiche/quicheformula01.html

Shrimp, Smoked Fontina, Tomato Quiche with Shredded Potato Crust

Crust
2 med Potatoes Shredded (scrub & leave peels on)
1 TableSpoon  Flour
1 Tablespoon Coconut Oil
Salt , Pepper to taste

Preheat Oven to 400. Place 9 inch cake pan with 1 Tablespoon of Coconut Oil in the oven while it heats up.

Shred the Potatoes and then use paper towels to pat them Dry.  toss potatoes with Flour , Salt & pepper.

Take the Pan out of the oven & lightly press the potatoes into the bottom of the pan. The Oil should sizzle when you put the potatoes in.
Bake at 400 for 30 min. 
When its done it should be a bit Crunchy like Good Hashbrowns.

Filling

6 eggs
4 slices of Smoked Fontina
1/2 C. Cottage Cheese
1/4 C Milk
16 shrimp
1 med Tomato sliced
1 Tablespoon Flour
Thyme
Salt & Pepper

Take Pan out of the Oven & set aside.

Place Cheese on top of the Crust.
Lay the Shrimp on top of the Cheese.

In a Bowl thoroughly mix eggs, milk , cottage Cheese, flour & seasoning.
Pour in the pan over the Shrimp.
Lay Tomatoes on egg Mixture.

Bake at 350 for 40 min.

Mommo's Coleslaw Salad

All I had to do for dinner tonight was make a salad. My Friend Theresa was coming over to make Home Fried Chicken.  I was wandering thru the veggie aisle at the grocery and Pre-shredded Coleslaw was on Sale for $.98 . I decided to make the Coleslaw Salad that my Mother used to make.  It is great the first day but Better the next when all the Veggies have wilted a bit. ( This was Coleslaw Salad in my family because it had tomatoes & Cucumbers in it )

Tonight I made a small batch. Double it to take to a Potluck.

Mommo's Coleslaw Salad

1/2 bag pre shredded Cabbage
3 Med tomatoes diced
1 Cucumbers Diced
3 green onions chopped including green parts
2 tablespoons sweet Relish
1/2 C Mayonnaise
Salt  & Pepper to taste

Mix all of the ingredients together in a bowl. Make sure to get all the Juices from the cutting board.   Let sit for a while before eating to let the flavours meld. 

Roasted Cauliflower with Vindaloo Spice & Rice with Indian Spices

The other night I felt like playing with my Indian Spice Box that I got during an Ambien night on Amazon. It is amazing and when I opened it My Living room smelled sooo exotic. http://www.amazon.com/Shantis-Spice-Box/dp/B001NZLUYG/ref=sr_1_1?s=grocery&ie=UTF8&qid=1329941056&sr=1-1

I don't really have recipes for these Items as it was a toss in what looks pretty ;-P

For the rice I toasted 1 tsp turmeric, 1 tsp dried Garlic Flakes, 1 whole dried Chile (break open if you want Spicy) & about 1/4 tsp of each of these yellow Mustard Seed, nigella seeds, white Poppy seeds, cumin seed, ground cumin, coriander seed, ground coriander . After the spices have toasted for a bit and are smelling fragrant add 1/4 C coconut oil (or Ghee or Butter even) and let the Spices infuse into the oil for a few min.  Add this to your Rice make with the makings for 3 Cups rice.  Instead of Water I used Chicken stock.  This rice came out with a really luxurious taste and texture.  Totally worth the time Toasting the spices.
 (It also goes with all kinds of Flavours. I used this with Cannelini beans & Roasted Veggies with Puttanesca Sauce both were yummy)

For the Cauliflower I used Penzy's  vindaloo spice mix, Garlic , Coconut Oil & A bit of Roasted Sesame Oil. I toasted the Spices and then melted the coconut oil and let them infuse.  I tossed this with 3/4  of a cauliflower & one Sliced Onion & finished it with a drizzle of Roasted Sesame oil.  Bake at 400 for about 1/2 hour.

We also roasted Brussell Sprouts & Radishes. Just toss With Olive Oil , garlic, Salt , Pepper & maybe a bit of flavoured Vinegar.  Radishes are actually Sweet when roasted. give them a try.

With the leftover Cauliflower heat it up and cook for a bit in Chicken(or Veggie) broth then Blend it for a soup with a major taste explosion. 

This is a ridiculously healthy and satisfying meal.  You won't miss the Meat. Trust me , give it a try. Go play with your own spice box.

I walked a few times today and am tired(but improving)so Tony is being my Cooking Hands.
I am trying to be good and use what we have in the house for meals. Since we have way too much in the house that gives us a lot to play with.
Tonight we are having Pork Chops w/ Apples & Onions served over Buttered Egg Noodles. Earlier this week Julie made Beer-Thyme Mustard from Scratch and I thought this would be great with Pork.  This is where I got the recipe. http://www.tastebook.com/recipes/613460-Beer-Thyme-Mustard

This turned out wonderfully. So tender and the flavours melded perfectly. Everyone liked it, even Eric (the Picky eater).

Pork Chops

4-6 Pork chops or steaks
4 Apples (cored & sliced fairly thinly)
2 med or 1 large Onion (Halved & Sliced thin)
2 Tblsp of Beer Thyme Mustard (Any Grainy Mustard will do)
2 cups Broth (if not using Beer Thyme Mustard add a bit of Apple Cider Vinegar to this)
1 Tblsp Maple Syrup (Optional)
Sage
Garlic powder
salt & Pepper
Olive Oil
Butter
Flour for thickening sauce

1.   Season Chops on both sides and brown in Olive oil.
When both sides are brown remove from pan & add butter.

2.  Add apples and Onions to the pan and cook Stiring occasionally till they are starting to get soft.  Add a bit (maybe 2 Tblsp) of flour and stir till the Oil & Butter are absorbed.

3. Add Mustard and Broth.  Stir to mix well.

4. Return Chops to the Pan and bring to a boil.

5. Reduce Heat to med. & cover pan.

6. Let simmer for 30 min.

I thought this would be good with a little Maple syrup added with the Apples. Tony thought it was too much.  What do you think?

Lately I have really been wanting Mjadra (http://www.discoverlebanon.com/en/recipes/lentil_rice_pilaf.php), but my brain got ahold of the concept and went nuts with it.  I wanted veggies involved and we had some ground lamb that needed to be used.  My thanks go out to Julie who is out in the kitchen cooking this for me(I chopped the veggies).  It smells delicious. We have bread with Zaatar (http://mideastfood.about.com/od/middleeasternspicesherbs/r/zaatar.htm) on it just in case we need more food.

Update( It turned out wonderfully all these wonderful flavors blended together, but each standing out)

Lentils & Rice w/Lamb

1lb Ground Lamb

2 cups lentils

2 cups Rice

2 1/2 large onions Sliced(Caramelized)

1/2 large Onion Diced

3 carrots Chopped

3 stalks Celery Chopped

2 red peppers chopped

8 oz mushrooms sliced

Raw Spinach 

Olive Oil & Butter

Garlic

Cumin

Red & Black seasoning (Penzy's Cayenne & Black pepper)

Sezhuan pepper & Salt to taste

Directions

1. Slice onions & cook with olive oil & butter over low heat until onions are deep brown.
2. brown ground Lamb with garlic, cumin & Black & red spice.
3. add celery, carrots, peppers, mushrooms,  diced onions & a bit of Olive oil for a few minutes. Add tomatoes, 4 Cups Broth/ water & lentils. Cook for 15 min on Med heat. (add more water if needed for rice)
4. Add Rice & cover. Cook for 15 min.
5. Serve with Caramelized onions on top.
6. put a bit of spinach in your Bowl and spoon the hot Lentil/Rice on top and stir. The Spinach should wilt a bit 

big plans for tomorrow

Tomorrow I am going to Drive my car for the first time since August 10th. I am really excited to take this big step towards having my life back. 

I am also going to wedge myself back in the Kitchen & cook again.  Beans & greens italian style.   I know it is a bit annoying for my sweeties to have t help me with this, but its worth it to get back into doing as much as I can.  Soon I will be able to reach for things myself.

I was out walking yesterday and today. It was sunny and amazing.  200 feet each time.  Tomorrow I am gonna go out again.  It takes someone following me very Closely with the wheel chair , but thats OK for now.

Thanks for letting me share my excitement.  I will let you know how the beans & greens turn out.

I did it ---- Chicken Stew

I actually sat in my kitchen & participated in making a meal.  Tony cleaned the kitchen a bit then put away Groceries so that there would be Space for me and the Kitchen Chair. 

Earlier I had inventoried the big freezer and pulled out a bag of Turkey Broth & a package of Chicken thighs.  I decided I was gonna cook tonight.  
Well it was my vision and I did the chopping .  Considering its the first time since August that I have been able to get in my kitchen, I am happy with that as a start.

My Vision was a chicken Stew with fresh egg noodles in it.  We had Potatoes instead of noodles and it was perfect.  So comfort foody.  Dumplings would also be perfect with this.  I like the Bisquik dumplings with a bit of Sage added.

Chicken stew

6 boneless skinless chicken thighs

6 cups chicken Broth (we used home-made Turkey stock that was in the freezer.

Roughly chop:
3 Stalks Celery
3 Carrots
1 Onion

8-10 baby Red Potatoes (halved)
1 small or 1/2 large bag of frozen Peas

Feel free to throw in other veggies that you like Turnips, parsnips, squash & or kale would be great too.


Spices
Garlic Powder
Toasted onion powder (Penzy's)
Dried Sage
Salt /Fresh ground pepper
Butter/Olive Oil


Heat Olive Oil & Butter in a large heavy pan.
Season Chicken with onion /garlic Powder, sage & salt & pepper.

Cook Chicken until Brown on all sides.  Remove Chicken to a plate.

Put Onions, celery & carrots in to cook for several minutes until they are softening.  (Mushrooms would be good added at this point.)

Add the Broth & chicken and let cook on Med Low for 30 minutes . 

Add Potatoes and cook till tender. Add Peas and cook for a few minutes.  If you want the broth to be thicker , you can add some Flour & Butter(that has been mushed together)

Serve with well buttered rolls.

Playing With Spices

I love Spices! All kinds.  
I decided that I want to work on organizing what I can even though I can't get into the kitchen yet.  The obvious place to start was the Spice drawer because it is easily moved out to my bed.   (my bed now smells like Vindaloo)


Most of my spices are bought in bulk bags at Penzy's or on line.  The bags make the spices hard to find in the Drawer.   I was given 3 doz baby food jars. I labelled them on the Lid and the Side of the jar so that when you look down in the Drawer it is easy to find what you need.  Each of the Penzy's 4oz bags filled 2-4 Jars.

I will need to get more Jars (hopefully a little bigger jars) I will put up Pictures when I have it all fixed up.


My favorite Spices are :garlic, Cumin, fresh sage, rosemary, Thyme, Oregano & all kinds or Peppers.    What are your favorites?