Bad Behavior: Slow Roasted Tomato Quiche with Leeks and Gruyère

Like so many before me, I’m afraid to say, I have some unflattering qualities. I’m prone to interrupting and am wildly competitive. My hair makes me look like a Fraggle when I wake up and I have been told on more than one occasion that I am nearly unbearably cheerful in the morning. I think To-Do lists are fun, and find a timer a helpful addition to more situations than is healthy. And I am a hideous control freak. It’s bad. I’m working on it. Well, sort of…part of me has just given in to this reality that I have a strong, undulating need to control most situations. Like I said…it’s bad.

Such little jewels…cherry tomatoes waiting to be roasted.

As proof of this dreadful quality I input all my receipts into a monthly Excel spreadsheet. Are you shuddering yet? You should be. And yes I know about Mint but am too much of a control freak to trust it. This past weekend as I was closing out August I gasped in horror at my Groceries line item. As you would probably expect I tend to spend more on food than some people do, but August was out of control. Let’s just say if you can feed a starving child in Africa for $1 a day I could have fed a few children for a few years. And this doesn’t even address my “Eating Out” or “Fun” line items. It was time for drastic measures.

And so, with the determined resolution you could only expect from someone like myself, I put a moratorium on all food purchases. Admittedly, I have a very stocked kitchen to begin with (add “obsessive and irrational fear of second potato famine” to the list of faults), but I’m actually now having fun seeing how many gourmet meals I can create with just what’s in my kitchen at the moment.

This quiche was one of my first attempts to take a classic and fake it a bit with ingredient swaps. Craving a rich quiche, but not having any milk or cream I decided to use some yogurt, of which I have loads. The result was nearly as good as if I’d made it with the traditional heavy cream or half and half, and as an added bonus was healthier to boot.

What are your favorite “Use Up Everything In the Refrigerator” recipes?

Roasted Tomato Quiche with Leeks and Gruyère

Slow Roasted Tomato Quiche with Leeks and Gruyere

• 1 pate brisee crust
• 1 cup cherry tomatoes, halved (learn about how to support Slave Free tomatoes here)
• 2 cloves garlic, thinly sliced
• 1 TB + drizzle Extra Virgin Olive Oil
• Grind of Salt and Pepper
• 1 leek, white and light green parts finely chopped
• 1 cup Gruyère, grated (or whatever cheese you like…chevre or cheddar would also be lovely)
• 4 eggs beaten
• 3/4 plain nonfat greek yogurt

1. Preheat oven to 365.
2. Toss the tomatoes, garlic, drizzle of olive oil, and grind of salt and pepper in a cast iron pan, and roast until liquid is melted and flavor is concentrated. About 30 minutes. Set aside.
3. Meanwhile, saute the leek in remaining 1 TB olive oil, until softened, about 6 minutes. Set aside.
4. Combine the eggs and yogurt, and vigorously beat to combine, there should be no lumps from the yogurt
5. On a lightly floured surface, roll out the pate brisee until a slightly larger circle than the pie plate. Fold in half for easy transfer, and move over to the pie plate. Unfold, trim the edges so even, fold crust under itself, and flute the edges.
6. Add the leeks, cheese, and tomatoes to the pate brisee. Cover with the egg/yogurt mixture and bake 20 – 25 minutes on the middle rack, until golden brown, egg set, and cheese slightly bubbling.
7. Can be served warm or room temperature.

Total Control: Vegetarian Carbonara with Summer Greens

Her single command thus far….”Sit”, which she does eagerly and quite brilliantly (or so I’m told).

My life is a little nuts right now. It’s all good, and I’m very lucky, but things are a little crazy. I have my husband, my family, and my friends with whom I want to spend time. I have my job, my food blog, and my volunteer work with puppy rescue.  I have many wonderful trips to look forward to this summer including a wedding in Vermont, a clambake in Massachusetts, and girl’s wine weekend in Walla Walla. I have my meager attempts to get some sort of exercise to balance out said food blog and wine trips, not to mention my book club, my horseback riding, and my laundry. I have lots and lots of laundry lately it seems.

Happily chewing on an elk antler…and my running shoes…and my coffee table…

So it will come as no surprise that what seemed like the most logical decision, the most sensible way to go, was to get a puppy. In all honesty, I’m blaming this one squarely on Matt. He found a darling Neapolitan Mastiff puppy in Tacoma on Wednesday, emailed me in Boulder about it on Wednesday night, and by Thursday at noon she was happily chewing on Duke’s ear and quickly climbing the ladder to Number One Cute Pup In Town if you ask any non-biased person. To be fair, I didn’t exactly kick her out of bed for eating crackers either.

She is incessant in her need to be near Duke and he graciously obliges…I think he even likes it.

So this Monday night when I realized this was my only night off this week, and my fridge was exploding with goodies from our Hand Farmed Organics CSA and another box was arriving tomorrow [insert panic and self loathing at thought of throwing away organic vegetables HERE], I figured I’d better get cooking. A little quiet time in the kitchen always calms my nerves, and the self-righteousness that comes with making a delicious meal out of what’s in your fridge is hard to beat.

We try to do Meat Free Mondays, but honestly we usually don’t. Add that to the list of things that have gone to the wayside in our busyness. But tonight I succeeded, creating a sort of Vegetarian Carbonara and triumphantly using all the chard, spinach, and radishes up. It was surprisingly delicious, light and yet satisfying, and on the table in less than 30 minutes. A perfect meal when all you really want to do is play with the new puppy, and ignore the piles laundry building up in your temporarily empty guest room.

Vegetarian Carbonara with Summer Greens

Vegetarian Carbonara with Summer Greens

Serves 6

Carbonara is typically made with pancetta or bacon, but I didn’t have any and thought a vegetarian twist on the Italian classic might work. The radishes give it some nice bulk, and when the beaten egg is slowly added as you vigorously toss the pasta you get a rich sauce you’d swear had heavy cream in it.

1 lb pasta, whatever is in the cupboard

3 TB Olive Oil

3 cloves garlic, minced

1 leek, white part only, thinly sliced

1 bundle of radishes, about 6, washed and thinly sliced with a mandolin

1 bunch chard, washed and coarsely chopped

1 bag spinach, washed

1/2 cup chives, thinly sliced (this seems like a lot, but is delicious and gives it a nice kick)

3 eggs, beaten

1/2 cup good parmesan cheese grated, plus more to taste

1. Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. Cook the pasta according to directions. Drain and set aside.
2. Meanwhile, in a large non-stick pan over medium-low heat, cook the garlic in the olive oil until just beginning to turn golden, 2-3 minutes.
3. Increase heat to medium, add the radishes and the leeks, and cook until turning translucent, about 5 minutes, stirring regularly.
4. Add the chard and spinach, returning heat to low, and cook until wilted and radishes and leeks fully cooked, another 5 minutes.
5. To assemble take the warm pasta (you don’t want it too hot or the egg will scramble), and vigorously tossing with tongs slowly add the beaten egg, until it creates a rich coating.
6. Add the chard/spinach mixture, chives, and the parmesan and continue tossing vigorously until all nicely mixed and coated.
7. Serve with additional parmesan to taste and truffle salt.

Dog Days of (Almost) Summer: Smoked Salmon Quiche with Sauteed Leeks and Chevre

Smoked Salmon Quiche with Sautéed Leeks and Chevre

People often ask me where I get my recipe ideas. Well, they come from all places, and inspiration tends to strike at the oddest times, leaving me foggily trying to remember what brilliant foodie idea I had while standing in the yard at 3a with the new foster puppy silently beseeching her to “do your business” so I can go back to bed.

Yes, there’s a new pup in town and we call her Ella. She arrived from Georgia on Sunday, having been pulled at the 11th hour from being put to sleep. She is as sweet as they come, and we are excited to see the lovely dog that emerges with love. Sadly, she is currently at the 24-hour vet clinic, having taken ill with severe pneumonia. We are keeping all fingers and toes crossed that this special little girl pulls through and can go on to find the loving forever home she so deserves.  (To learn more about the rescue group Georgia Peaches, please visit our Facebook page).

Slowly beginning to trust us and giving in for a little snuggle.

This particular meal idea is good old-fashioned copying. The Columbia City Bakery (which incidentally was just recognized by Bon Appetit as making one of the 10 best baguettes in the country), had the most amazing quiche the other day and I enjoyed every crumb of it. It was a smoked salmon quiche with sautéed leeks and chevre. Their crust is to die for, and there was almost too much goat cheese to seem like it was okay, except that I (not so) secretly loved it.

I’m pleased to say my carbon copy was pretty dang close and was the perfect center piece for a Saturday morning brunch before wine tasting in Woodinville. The perfect addition to any lazy morning, or light summer supper.

Smoked Salmon Quiche with Sautéed Leeks and Chevre

1 Pate Brisee (recipe follows)

4 oz smoked salmon, thinly sliced (you can add more or less pending on your affinity for it)

1 leek, white part only, split in half, thoroughly washed, and thinly sliced

1 TB olive oil

1/2 cup goat cheese (yes, it’s a lot, but it’s worth it)

1/2 cup half and half

1/2 cup 2% milk

3 large eggs

1 TB chives

1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Put rack one rung up from the bottom of the oven.
2. In a non-stick skillet on low saute the leeks until nearly all color is gone, about 30 minutes.
3. Meanwhile, on a lightly floured surface, roll out the pate brisee until a slightly larger circle than the pie plate. Fold in half for easy transfer, and move over to the pie plate. Unfold, trim the edges so even, fold crust under itself, and flute the edges.
4. Sprinkle the leek mixture evenly along the bottom of the crust, follow with the goat cheese, and top with the salmon, creating a pinwheel design if you like.
5. In a glass mixing bowl combine the eggs with the cream, milk, and chives and whisk until foamy.
   

   An assortment of garden herbs can be added, pending on preference and what’s in your pots.

6. Pour over top of filling and carefully move to oven.
7. Cook until egg is fully set and crust is golden brown. About 30-35 minutes. Allow to rest for 10 minutes before serving. Makes beautiful leftovers too.

Pate Brisee (aka buttery pie crust)  – From the Silver Palate Good Times Cookbook

1 1/2 cups sifted unbleached all-purpose flour

1/2 tsp salt

1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, cold, cut into small pieces

1/4 cup ice water

1. Using a food processor fitted with a steel blade, (because it makes it so easy, and hey, there is no shame in that) process the flour and salt just to sift and mix.
   

   Making the pate brisee.

2. Add the butter and process with repeated pulses until the mixture resembles a coarse meal.
   

   Pulse until the butter and flour mixture resembles a coarse meal.

3. With the machine running, add the ice water through the feed tube and process until the dough leaves the side of the bowl.
4. Turn the dough out onto a lightly floured surface, shape into a thick circle, and wrap in plastic wrap.
5. Refrigerate at least 30 minutes before using. If chilling overnight, pull out 30 minutes before use to allow to slightly thaw.