8.04.2002
BJ and Mandy (Jack's best man and best man's fiancée) were here today, and they and Jack went to see the Phillies play the Dodgers. The Dodgers are BJ's favorite team, so they went to see his little friends while I was at work. =) Anyway, I fixed quiche for them for lunch, and they told Jack I should post the recipe here. I know several of you have experienced this food, and it's something my mom made almost every day when I was at home (well, not that often, but Bill would tell you that anyway). You can get creative and put any kind of vegetable or meat in it, though I wouldn't suggest anything too watery or squishy. The sky's the limit, though... my sorority sister Alison is in love with pineapple and suggested that I try that sometime. Here goes the recipe for two quiches, because it's easier to make two at a time, in not very exciting format:
Ingredients:
2 cups grated cheese (cheddar, american, whatever makes you happy)
1 can evaporated milk
5 eggs
2 refrigerated pie crusts (Pillsbury, etc.--they're with the cinnamon rolls and breadsticks and stuff)
vegetables, meat, or something in between (I usually use spinach, zucchini, tuna, tomatoes, or make it plain, and since you'll have two, you can try different things)
Preheat the oven to 350. Pull the pie crusts out of the little red box and put them floured-side-down in two pie pans (9" or 10"). If the crust breaks on one of the creases (they come folded into fourths), just squish it back together with your fingers so that no egg stuff can seep through. Smoosh the crusts around so that they get formed to the pans. Fold the top 1/2 inch back down over itself all around the top, and if you're feeling adventurous, flute the edges with the tines of a fork. It makes it look pretty and also helps the edge adhere to the pan. Poke a few holes in the crust with the aforementioned fork so that big bubbles don't appear in the crust... I usually poke it 10 or 12 times around the bottom. Bake the crusts in the oven for about 5 minutes, and take them out once you notice them starting to cook (they'll lighten and get a little harder). The most complicated part is now over.
Once you've taken the crust out of the oven, put whatever toppings float your boat into the crusts. Put enough that you'll be able to taste it, but make sure to leave room for all the egg mixture. This is one of those things that makes more sense after you do it once, so don't stress about it.
Break 5 eggs into a large mixing bowl, and break the yolks with a fork or a whisk. Add the two cups of grated cheese and the can of evaporated milk to the eggs. Now comes my very favorite part... stick one or both hands into the mixture to get the ingredients all mixed up. I wouldn't recommend doing it with a spoon or any other utensil since the cheese tends to get sticky. Just throw your hand in and squish it around as if it were yellow mud. After that's all mixed together, pour the mixture into the crusts over the veggies and/or meat. You'll need to use that messy hand again to make sure the cheese gets evenly distributed, because it tends to hang out in the bottom of the bowl. If you feel like it, sprinkle a little more of the veggie or meat on top to garnish, but this is not necessary. I do this with zucchini, but it just sort of makes it look nice and lets your eating companions know what they're about to eat. No fair putting one thing on top and then surprising them with something entirely different inside...
Anyway, using both hands for each pan, put the quiches in the oven. Be careful putting them in, because if egg spills over the edge, it can make it harder to get the silly stuff out of the pan later. Bake them for 35-40 minutes. You'll know they're done when the top starts to get a little brown.
Let them cool for a couple of minutes before trying to cut into them, because the cheese is a little too runny when it first comes out. I usually cut each one into six pieces, and that makes a good-sized serving so that you can have a little of both quiches if you make them different.
Hey, that was fun. I've never thought about this recipe in that much detail before... I just sort of watched Mom do it and then went at it myself. Good luck. I promise it's really good, even to people who aren't "big quiche eaters" as Mandy put it earlier. =) Of course, it's not the most healthy thing you could eat, but you can try egg beaters or low-fat cheese to make it a little better for you. No promises, as I've never actually used either of these things and cannot attest to their appropriateness in the above recipe. That was my disclaimer.
Hey, if I had more recipes, I would think about writing a cookbook. I hope my attention to detail has not bored those of you who don't really care how to make quiche or who don't know what fluting or tines are. Email or call me if you have another question. Sorry if you wanted to read more about me in this update... this is why I'm going to work on having an actual webpage instead of just updates, so I can put things like this separate. Maybe if I feel like it, I'll do it one day this week with the help of my super-techno fiancé. He taught me enough code last week to make the links in my updates (even the part that shows up when you put your cursor over the link but don't actually click on it), so I'm getting there. =) ~E
Ingredients:
2 cups grated cheese (cheddar, american, whatever makes you happy)
1 can evaporated milk
5 eggs
2 refrigerated pie crusts (Pillsbury, etc.--they're with the cinnamon rolls and breadsticks and stuff)
vegetables, meat, or something in between (I usually use spinach, zucchini, tuna, tomatoes, or make it plain, and since you'll have two, you can try different things)
Preheat the oven to 350. Pull the pie crusts out of the little red box and put them floured-side-down in two pie pans (9" or 10"). If the crust breaks on one of the creases (they come folded into fourths), just squish it back together with your fingers so that no egg stuff can seep through. Smoosh the crusts around so that they get formed to the pans. Fold the top 1/2 inch back down over itself all around the top, and if you're feeling adventurous, flute the edges with the tines of a fork. It makes it look pretty and also helps the edge adhere to the pan. Poke a few holes in the crust with the aforementioned fork so that big bubbles don't appear in the crust... I usually poke it 10 or 12 times around the bottom. Bake the crusts in the oven for about 5 minutes, and take them out once you notice them starting to cook (they'll lighten and get a little harder). The most complicated part is now over.
Once you've taken the crust out of the oven, put whatever toppings float your boat into the crusts. Put enough that you'll be able to taste it, but make sure to leave room for all the egg mixture. This is one of those things that makes more sense after you do it once, so don't stress about it.
Break 5 eggs into a large mixing bowl, and break the yolks with a fork or a whisk. Add the two cups of grated cheese and the can of evaporated milk to the eggs. Now comes my very favorite part... stick one or both hands into the mixture to get the ingredients all mixed up. I wouldn't recommend doing it with a spoon or any other utensil since the cheese tends to get sticky. Just throw your hand in and squish it around as if it were yellow mud. After that's all mixed together, pour the mixture into the crusts over the veggies and/or meat. You'll need to use that messy hand again to make sure the cheese gets evenly distributed, because it tends to hang out in the bottom of the bowl. If you feel like it, sprinkle a little more of the veggie or meat on top to garnish, but this is not necessary. I do this with zucchini, but it just sort of makes it look nice and lets your eating companions know what they're about to eat. No fair putting one thing on top and then surprising them with something entirely different inside...
Anyway, using both hands for each pan, put the quiches in the oven. Be careful putting them in, because if egg spills over the edge, it can make it harder to get the silly stuff out of the pan later. Bake them for 35-40 minutes. You'll know they're done when the top starts to get a little brown.
Let them cool for a couple of minutes before trying to cut into them, because the cheese is a little too runny when it first comes out. I usually cut each one into six pieces, and that makes a good-sized serving so that you can have a little of both quiches if you make them different.
Hey, that was fun. I've never thought about this recipe in that much detail before... I just sort of watched Mom do it and then went at it myself. Good luck. I promise it's really good, even to people who aren't "big quiche eaters" as Mandy put it earlier. =) Of course, it's not the most healthy thing you could eat, but you can try egg beaters or low-fat cheese to make it a little better for you. No promises, as I've never actually used either of these things and cannot attest to their appropriateness in the above recipe. That was my disclaimer.
Hey, if I had more recipes, I would think about writing a cookbook. I hope my attention to detail has not bored those of you who don't really care how to make quiche or who don't know what fluting or tines are. Email or call me if you have another question. Sorry if you wanted to read more about me in this update... this is why I'm going to work on having an actual webpage instead of just updates, so I can put things like this separate. Maybe if I feel like it, I'll do it one day this week with the help of my super-techno fiancé. He taught me enough code last week to make the links in my updates (even the part that shows up when you put your cursor over the link but don't actually click on it), so I'm getting there. =) ~E
Labels: friends, kitchen adventures
- posted by erica 8/04/2002 11:39:00 PM
-
