Saturday, July 30, 2011
Spinach, Leek and Mushroom Quiche with Sundried Tomatoes
My mom makes a mean pie crust. She says it’s easy to do but unfortunately I haven’t mastered it yet. The last time we went to visit, she made a gorgeous pie for dessert and she gave me the leftover pastry dough to take home with me. First I made a pie (of course) with fresh rhubarb and strawberries that we bought at the Strawberry Festival on Westham Island. I still had enough pastry left for one more pie shell without a top, so I thought I’d make quiche. Whenever I make quiche (which is rarely), I wonder why I don’t make it more often. It’s so yummy and lovely with a simple salad of mixed greens. Tony seemed to like it, but I think the boys we under the impression that we were having pie for dinner, so they were disappointed to find spinach in it. I’d still make this again though. The boys might grow to like it if they realize it’s quiche and not actually pie. Ok, probably not, but I can dream.
Spinach, Leek and Mushroom Quiche with Sundried Tomatoes
1/2 tbsp olive oil
1 clove garlic, crushed
1 cup leeks, sliced
1 cup mushrooms, sliced
1 tbsp basil, diced
1 cup fresh baby spinach
dash of salt and pepper
1/4 cup sundried tomatoes, diced
1/2 cup mozzarella cheese, shredded
1/2 cup milk
1/4 cup light mayonnaise
5 eggs, lightly beaten
1 9″ unbaked pie shell
Preheat oven to 400F. In a non-stick skillet, heat oil on medium heat. Add garlic, leeks and mushrooms and cook until tender. Add basil, spinach, salt and pepper and cook for another minute until spinach begins to wilt slightly. Place leek and mushroom mixture into pie shell. Sprinkle sundried tomato and cheese on top. In a large bowl, whisk together milk, mayonnaise and eggs. Pour egg mixture evenly over the other ingredients in the pie shell. Place pie on a baking sheet lined with foil. Cover quiche with foil and bake for 45 minutes. Uncover and bake another 10-15 minutes until top is set and golden brown.
Wednesday, July 27, 2011
Edamame Hummus
My boys were first introduced to edamame beans at daycare. Cole came home asking for 'Mommy Beans' and it took me a little while to figure out what he was talking about. So I bought edamame beans and we all enjoyed sitting around the table together, popping the shiny green beans out of their tough shells and into our mouths. Cole is now an expert at shelling edamame beans and likes to help out his little brother who hasn't quite figured out how to do it on his own yet. I recently bought a bag of edamame beans that were already shelled, so that it would be less work to eat them, but my kids wouldn't touch them that way. I guess the big part of the draw of edamame beans is the fun of popping them out of their shells. That left me wondering what to do with the rest of the bag of beans. Enter edamame hummus. I've been loving regular chickpea hummus lately, so I figured why not give edamame hummus a whirl. It turned out pretty good (although I think I still like regular hummus better) and everyone ate it, so I was able to use up the rest of the bag of beans pretty quickly. I liked how adding a little yogurt to the hummus gave it a nice creamy texture. I might try that with the regular kind next time.
Edamame Hummus
1 1/2 cups shelled and cooked edamame beans
1/4 cup plain yogurt
1/4 cup water
3 tbsp lemon juice
1 clove garlic
1/2 tsp cumin
1/2 tsp sea salt
2 tbsp olive oil
Combine all ingredients in a food processor and blend until smooth.
Friday, July 22, 2011
Butter Chicken Pizza
Fresh baby spinach
Mozarella cheese, grated
Spread sauce and chicken onto the crust. Top with spinach and cheese. Bake according to pizza crust directions.
Sunday, July 10, 2011
Ricotta and Spinach Gnocchi Revisted
One of my early posts, Ricotta and Spinach Gnocchi, documents my first attempt at making gnocchi. I had so much fun making it and the whole family liked it, so several more gnocchi attempts followed, like Yam Gnocchi and Leftover Mashed Potato Gnocchi (thankfully my photos have improved a little since then!). Not long ago, I decided it was time to make Ricotta and Spinach gnocchi again, since it had received a great reaction from my family before. I served it with a creamy garlic sauce and sprinkled it with parmesan cheese. I thought it was pretty fantastic but the boys wouldn't touch it. I had plenty of leftover gnocchi, so I covered it with tomato sauce, topped it with cheese and baked it. As you can see from the above photo, it looked pretty good and I thought for sure they would eat it this time, but no such luck. They still wouldn't eat it, but thankfully Tony was with us for that meal and he ate quite a bit of it. Between us two adults we did eventually eat up all the gnocchi for lunches over the following few days. It's always surprising to me how inconsistent the kids are with their tastes in food. They can love something one day and hate it the next. It baffles me! My children's tastes may change, but at least I'm fairly certain that I will always love gnocchi.
Baked Gnocchi with Chunky Tomato Sauce
1/2 tbsp olive oil
1 onion, diced
2 cloves garlic, crushed
1 red pepper, chopped
1 can (16 oz) crushed tomatoes
1 can (16 oz) diced tomatoes, drained
2 tsp sugar
2 tsp balsamic vinegar
1 tsp basil
1 tsp oregano
1/2 tsp salt
1/4 cup parmesan cheese
1 lb gnocchi (homemade or packaged)
3/4 cup grated mozarella or cheddar cheese (or combination)
In a non-stick pot, heat oil over medium heat. Add onions, garlic and red pepper; cook until softened, about 5 minutes. Add crushed tomatoes, diced tomatoes, sugar, vinegar, basil, oregano, salt and cheese. Simmer covered for 10 minutes. Cook gnocchi in boiling water as directed. Drain and place gnocchi in a greased baking dish. Pour tomato sauce over top. Sprinkle with cheese. Bake at 350F for 30 minutes, until bubbly and cheese begins to brown.
Creamy Garlic Sauce
2 tbsp butter
2 cloves garlic
2 tbsp flour
1 1/2 cups milk
1/2 tsp salt
2 tbsp cream cheese
In a saucepan over medium heat, melt butter and saute garlic for 1 minute. Sprinkle flour onto the butter and garlic and whisk until smooth. Slowly add milk while whisking. Turn heat to high and whisk continuously until milk begins to boil and thicken. Turn heat down to medium-low. Add salt and cream cheese. Whisk until cheese has melted and fully blended with the sauce. Serve over cooked gnocchi (or pasta) with parmesan cheese sprinkled on top.
Friday, July 8, 2011
Raspberry Cream Cheese Muffins
Sometimes for lunch I like to make muffins and serve them warm out of the oven with butter, sliced cheese and fruit. This is one of my favourite lunches, so I didn't even think twice when I packed Cole a couple muffins for his daycare lunch, along with fruit and cheese. Well, did I ever get an earful from him after I picked him up from daycare that day. "Mommy. You gave me muffins for lunch. That is NOT lunch, that's a SNACK." What a silly mommy I am, what was I thinking packing a snack for lunch? Even if muffins don't qualify as lunch to Cole, I still love them that way. These raspberry cream cheese muffins are delicious any time of day or night. Cole may not have liked them as lunch but he ate several of them for a snack and so did Bennett. They certainly disappeared very quickly in our house.
Raspberry Cream Cheese Muffins
1/2 cup light cream cheese, softened
3 tbsp butter, softened
1/2 cup sugar
1 tsp vanilla
1 egg
1 egg white
1/4 cup milk or buttermilk
1 cup all-purpose flour
1/2 tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp baking soda
1/4 tsp salt
1 cup fresh or frozen raspberries
Preheat oven to 375F. In a large bowl, beat together cream cheese and butter. Add sugar and beat until fluffy. Add vanilla, egg whites, egg and milk then beat until well combined.
In another bowl combine flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt. Add to wet batter and stir just until combined. Gently fold in raspberries. Spoon batter into 12 greased or lined muffin cups. Bake for 20-22 minutes.
Tuesday, July 5, 2011
Holy Crap
This delicious stuff is gluten free, lactose free, sugar free and nut free. It's made up of chia, hemp hearts, buckwheat, dried fruit and cinnamon. You don't need very much of it to feel full, just a couple tablespoons will do. You can have it with milk, but my favourite way to eat it is sprinkled over honey-sweetened greek yogurt. Sorry folks who were hoping for a recipe post, I realize that cereal and yogurt is not exactly much of a recipe, but trust me it's yummy! Plus I'm tired from studying and exam-writing today, so go easy on me.
Back to the cereal. I especially like the fact that this is made locally (well, for me anyway) on the Sunshine Coast of BC Canada. They have a website at holycrap.ca if you'd like to check it out. Has anyone else experienced Holy Crap? What did you think?
My kids like to whine, especially when it comes to the food they eat, but that doesn’t stop me from trying to make tasty and healthy meals for them. Follow along as I share family-friendly recipes and reviews from my picky family members, who I lovingly call “The Whine Critics.” 
