Individual Mushroom & Feta Crustless Quiche

Here’s a little something to think about for your weekend breakfasting, although they are quick and easy enough to make on weekdays too.  I love the individual servings, which make it easy to customize the ingredients if needed.  Plus they just look a little fancy.  Perfect for a brunch or just for the heck of it.  Feel free to use any combo of veggies or meats you like in these.

Delicious Mushroom & Feta Quiche

Individual Mushroom & Feta Crustless Quiche
(This recipe makes 4 quiches.  To make just one, use 1-2 eggs and about 1/2 cup of half & half)

3/4 cup mushrooms, sliced
1/2 cup onions, sliced
1 small clove garlic, minced
5 eggs
1 3/4 cup half & half
Salt & pepper
Feta (about a tablespoon for each ramekin)

Saute the mushrooms, onions and garlic in a little olive oil until onions are tender.  Spray each of 4 ramekins with cooking spray.  Divide the veggie mixture among the ramekins.

Sauteed veggies. Feel free to substitute whatever you like if mushrooms and onions don’t rock your world.

In a bowl beat eggs with half & half and some salt & pepper. Pour into each ramekin on top of the vegetables.  Sprinkle with feta.

All ready to pop in the oven.

Bake for 20-30 minutes, until tops are brown and it stays set when you jiggle it a bit.  Let them cool for 5 minutes or so before eating.

Lime Pudding Cake

Sometimes when politics and pissy people get you down, there is just one solution.  Dessert.  It is impossible to eat these fluffy delights without smiling.  There may not be many subjects we can all agree on, but for most of us, a little sweetness goes a long way toward putting us in a happy mood.  And for me, puttering about in my kitchen is a way to relax as much as is enjoying the fruits of my labors.

I found these little treasures in a Tyler Florence cookbook at the library.  Single servings, simple ingredients and they looked so light and fluffy.  I just had to make them.  I was delighted with the results.  Sweet, tart, rich and creamy.  For this chocolate lover, it was a little off the beaten path, but I was happy to wander.  After all, that’s how you make the best discoveries.

I dare you to eat this without making yummy noises.

Lime Pudding Cakes. Delicious.  Next time I think a little shower of raspberries would be a nice added touch.

Lime Pudding Cakes
(recipe courtesy of Tyler Florence)

1 tbsp. unsalted butter
Sugar (superfine if you have it)
2 eggs, separated
2/3 cup buttermilk
1 tbsp. lime zest
2 tbsp. lime juice
1/4 cup flour
2/3 cup superfine sugar (regular sugar will work too)
1/4 tsp. salt

Preheat oven to 325˚.  Butter and lightly sugar four 6-ounce ramekins.  Using the paddle attachment on a kitchen stand mixer, beat yolks, buttermilk, lime zest and lime juice on medium speed until well combined.  Reduce the speed to low and slowly add flour, the 2/3 cup sugar, and the salt, until just combined.  Transfer to another large bowl.  Thoroughly wash mixing bowl with soap and hot water and dry well.  Return to stand mixer.  Using the whisk attachment beat egg whites in the clean bowl until stiff peaks form.  Gently fold the beaten egg whites into the yolk mixture, a little at a time.

Divide mixture evenly among ramekins.  Place ramekins in a roasting pan and fill the pan with hot water halfway up the sides of the ramekins.

All cozy in the oven.

Bake about 1 hour, until the top springs back when gently pressed and the cakes have a light golden color.  Remove ramekins from water; allow to cool slightly.  Carefully invert each onto a plate.  Garnish as desired or just dig in.

Cooling down just a bit before presentation time.

Huevos Rancheros Cups

I love Huevos Rancheros but I’m not always in the mood to make (or eat) a big huge breakfast.  And let’s face it, it’s probably not the greatest thing for my waistline either.  But healthy diet or not, there is no way I’m giving up Mexican food.  So…I made this stripped down version for a quick and healthy breakfast.  It’s not as elaborate as most huevos rancheros dishes but it is definitely delicious and it’s the perfect size portion for eating healthy too.

I usually keep a batch of salsa in my fridge for things just like this.  I occasionally buy a jar when I’m feeling lazy.  The other day I looked in my fridge and found a jar in there that had to be at least six months old.  It was still fine.  How is this possible?  Makes me wonder what goes in it that keeps it from going bad.  In any case, I prefer to make my own.  If you want to as well you can find my salsa recipe here. It will keep in the fridge for several weeks, if it lasts that long.

Huevos Rancheros Cups

Huevos Rancheros Cups

For each ramekin:

1 corn tortilla
2-3 tbsp. salsa
2 eggs
1-2 tsp shredded jack or cheddar cheese

Preheat the oven to 400˚.  Spray ramekin with cooking spray or rub with a bit of oil.  Slice tortilla into strips and fan out in the bottom of the ramekin and up the sides.

Top tortilla strips with a scoop of salsa.

Break eggs on top of salsa.  Top with a sprinkle of cheese.

Pop in the oven for about 20 minutes.  Jiggle to make sure eggs are set (if not leave in for a couple more minutes).  Remove carefully and eat!

 

Baked Eggs with Potato & Brie

And it’s time for another round of “What Can I Throw In A Ramekin?”  Today my fridge was looking a little bare since I’m way past due for grocery shopping, but I did have eggs and potatoes and really, I could survive on that, no problem!  Add a little scrap of brie and some leftover herbs and I had myself a gourmet breakfast.

Baked Eggs with Potato & Brie

Baked Eggs with Potato & Brie

For each ramekin:

1 small yukon gold or red potato
1-2 eggs
2-3 slices of brie cheese
fresh thyme leaves

Preheat oven to 400˚.  Spray your ramekins with cooking spray.  Poke the potato with a fork a few times and microwave on high for 5 minutes, until fork tender (or you can use leftover baked or mashed potatoes for this if you have any).  Slice and place in the bottom of the ramekin.

A lovely bed of potatoes.

Sprinkle with a pinch of salt & pepper.  Break eggs over the potatoes.  Top with cheese and thyme.

Ready to pop in the oven.

Place in the oven and bake for about 12-15 minutes, until eggs are set.  Dig in!

Baked Eggs with Tomato & Feta

Breakfast is one of my favorite things and among breakfast things to eat, eggs are tops (second only to hash browns…maybe).  Nobody was more thrilled to watch the health news evolving again from “eggs are evil and will kill you” back to “eggs are good for you.”  I eat them almost every day.  And why not?  They are quick to cook, full of protein and delicious to boot.  Plus you can combine them with almost anything.

I just knew when I bought my little ramekins that I would find many fun things to do with them.  And I was right!  You don’t necessarily have to use ramekins for this, but I like the individual servings and they cook up perfectly (and quickly) in a small dish like this.

Eggs baked with tomatoes, feta and spinach. Yum!

Baked Eggs with Tomato & Feta

1-2 eggs per serving
Tomato, sliced or chopped
Fresh baby spinach
Crumbled feta cheese
Salt & pepper

Spray your ramekin with cooking spray.  Put a slice of tomato (or chopped tomatoes) in the bottom.  Cover that with a little bunch of spinach.  Sprinkle in some salt & pepper.  Break eggs over the veggies.  Top with chopped tomato and feta.  A little more salt & pepper on top and you are ready to bake.

Ready to go in the oven. There is spinach and tomatoes under there somewhere.

Bake at 375˚ for about 15-20 minutes until egg whites are white and yolks are done as much as you like.  Start checking after about 10 minutes so you don’t overcook them if you like them yolky.

 

I Can Make A Soufflé!!

Few things intimidate me in the kitchen (other than chefs who yell, but I think they are mostly on TV).  One of those things is soufflés.  They look difficult.  They look fussy.  What if they don’t poof up right, or if they fall down?  What if it tastes bad because I did it wrong?  But then I realized, who cares?  I can always order pizza if they don’t turn out, right?  Besides, attempting a soufflé gave me a reason to buy something new I’ve been wanting for my kitchen, mostly just because they are so darn cute.

Ramekins! Aren't they adorable? Yes, I'm a food geek.

So…new ramekins in hand, I decided to start with a simple cheese soufflé.  If it turns out I’ll move on to chocolate.  Don’t want to waste good chocolate on a botched first attempt, after all.  I made my soufflés, and in the process, I made a realization:  I am an idiot!  Soufflés are not difficult, and they aren’t fussy.  I was silly to be scared of this poofy little thing.  They were actually pretty quick to make, turned out perfect the first time, and they were delicious!  I can’t wait to make more!

Cheese Soufflé! I did it!

Cheese Soufflé
(adapted from Cooking Light)

2 tsp. unsalted butter, softened
8 tsp. grated Parmesan
2 1/2 tbsp. flour
1/8 tsp. cayenne pepper
1/8 tsp. nutmeg
1/8 tsp. black pepper
1/2 cup plus 2 tbsp. 2% milk
2 tbsp. dry white wine
1/4 tsp. salt
2 oz. shredded swiss cheese (I used smoked swiss)
1/2 cup finely chopped chives
2 large egg yolks
4 large egg whites

Coat each of 4 (1 cup) soufflé dishes evenly with 1/2 tsp. butter.  Sprinkle each dish with 2 tsp. parmesan cheese, tilting to coat sides and bottom.  I didn’t have one cup dishes; mine were 6 ounce dishes, but they worked just fine.  Combine flour, cayenne pepper, nutmeg and black pepper in a saucepan over medium heat.  Gradually add milk and white wine, stirring with a whisk until smooth.  Cook for 4 minutes or until mixture is thick and bubbly, stirring constantly.  Remove from heat.  Add salt, chives, and cheese.  Stir until cheese melts and mixture is smooth.  Transfer mixture to a large bowl, and let stand for 5 minutes.  Stir in egg yolks.  Place egg whites in another large bowl.  Beat with a mixer on high speed until medium peaks form (do not overbeat).  Gently stir one-quarter of egg whites into cheese mixture.  Gently fold in the remaining egg whites.  Spoon into prepared dishes.

Ready to go in the oven. In retrospect, I could have used 5 or 6 dishes instead of just 4 since mine were a little smaller than the recipe called for. But these still worked great.

Place dishes on a baking sheet, and place in 400˚ oven.  Immediately reduce oven temperature to 375˚.  Bake for 17 minutes or until puffy and golden.  Serve immediately.

Fresh out of the oven! Aren't they beautiful?

What’s the most intimidating thing you’ve tackled in the kitchen?