Asparagus Quiche

When we picked up our CSA last week, it included 2 lbs of asparagus and a dozen eggs (among other things). In the CSA newsletter, they usually include a recipe for some of the ingredients. They included this one for asparagus quiche, but I made some changes... so here is my version.

Ingredients:

1 uncooked pie crust (home made, or I used refrigerated Pillsbury crust, but will make my own next time to make it healthier.)
4-6 green onions 
1 small package chopped mushrooms
1/4 cup vegetable broth
1 pound of asparagus
1 cup shredded Baby Swiss (or other mild cheese)
1 handful of shredded Parmesan cheese
4 large or 5 small eggs
3/4 cup So Delicious Unsweetened Coconut Milk (while I'm not a vegan, I think the dairy industry is pretty messed up and I try not to support it when possible)

Directions:

1. Finely chop the green onions and place them into a skillet with the broth on medium-high heat. While they are heating up, wash and chop (if necessary) your mushrooms into small-ish pieces, then add them to the green onions. Stir them occasionally and let them sautée until soft.
2. While the veges are cooking, prepare your asparagus. I steamed mine in the microwave (put it into a covered microwave-safe container with a little water) for 3 minutes. I like it cooked but not mushy- it still had a tiny bit of crunch to it.
3. Chop the asparagus into 1/2" pieces.
4. Place the asparagus pieces and the mushrooms and green onions into a large bowl. Add the Parmesan and Baby Swiss cheeses and mix it all together.
5. Dump the vegetables and cheese into your pie crust.
6. Whisk together your eggs and the coconut milk, then pour this on top of the vegetable mix in the pie crust.
7. Bake at 400 degrees for about 35 minutes.

A couple of notes-
1. The original recipe calls for bacon. The first time I made this, I followed the original recipe and used Smart Bacon- which if you're watching your calories and fat, or are a vegetarian, Smart Bacon is pretty damn good, honestly. I mainly used it because I was afraid the quiche would be bland without it. But my husband (and I, too,) thought the quiche was a little too salty and rich. He asked me to try making it without the bacon. So I exchanged it for mushrooms :)

2. I used the So Delicious Coconut Milk because I've been a fan of it for a long time and found that it's great in coffee, for cereal, for smoothies, and for cooking and baking. It also stays good for a long time so I like to keep it around. I haven't tried almond or soy or hemp milk (or moo-cow-f**k milk, as Lewis Black would say...), so I'm not sure how well those would work.

3. When our quiche was done, it was kind of watery on the inside. Sometimes this happens when I make quiches with a lot of vegetables, especially mushrooms- I think- because they tend to release a lot of water. It tasted super awesome though. But if you have suggestions as to how to keep the quiche from being watery, I'm open to hearing (or reading) :)

Green Smoothie 1

I've been trying to drink more smoothies lately as a lunch replacement. It's a great way to get more fresh fruits and vegetables into your system, especially when you add greens and make a Green Smoothie.

Here's the 2nd green smoothie I made, and it was fantastic. The first one sucked. I used mustard greens. DON'T USE MUSTARD GREENS IN A SMOOTHIE EVER, EVER, EVER.

Ingredients:

• 3 handfuls of green grapes
• 2 big handfuls of baby spinach
• 1 banana
• 1 pear
• 1/2 green pepper
• About 1/2 cup vanilla greek yogurt
• Some water & some ice cubes

You even get a picture of this one in all it's neon-green-glory. Check out the Mr. Hankey glass.... classy!

Usually when I make a smoothie, I start by putting in whatever liquid I'm using (water, fruit juice, coconut water is also great) and a handful or so of fruit. I blend that all up until it's smooth and then I add other stuff, one or two things at a time, blend some more, and keep stopping and adding more until either the blender is full or until I've used up all my ingredients. If it gets too thick you can add more liquid. Then I set it on "Food Processor" and let it go for a minute or two.

The cool thing about smoothies is you can sort of just start throwing in whatever crap you've got sitting around in your fridge that you need to use up. Like the 1/2 green pepper in this one? It was in the fridge for a couple of days and I was afraid we'd forget about it, so I tossed it in. The grapes were also not in great condition for eating- they were getting a little soft- so in they went. The baby spinach was also sort of starting to go...
See where this is going?

This smoothie was just a product of trying to empty out all of the produce in the fridge and not let it go to waste.

Greens and Tomato Soup: It has a flavor.

I've eaten made my fair share of bland, boring soups, and this is definitely not one of those!
I started with this recipe as the base:
http://www.epicurious.com/recipes/food/views/Spicy-Kale-and-Chick-Pea-Stew-11641
and doctored it cause that's what I do (and... the store was out of kale) and holycrapamazing and I'm SURE the original recipe is great, too.

Ingredients:
2 nice, big leeks, chopped up
3 garlic cloves, minced
2 green bell peppers, chopped
1 package of chopped mushrooms (if you like them)
1.5 - 2 lbs leafy green vegetables such as kale, mustard greens, swiss chard, spinach (or you can do a mix, which is what I did), stems removed and chopped coarsely
2 cans of chickpeas or other white beans (you can use 15 or 19 oz cans, depending on how bean-y you want it!)
8 cups of your favorite vegetable (or other) broth
2 x 28-ounce cans plum tomatoes including the juice, chopped
6-ounce can tomato paste
1 teaspoon chili powder (more if you want it spicy)
1 teaspoon dried thyme
1 teaspoon dried oregano
1 teaspoon ground cumin
1 teaspoon sugar
1 bay leaf

Directions:

1. In a bigass pot, sauté the leeks and garlic with a splash of the vegetable broth over medium-high until the leeks are tender.
2. Add the green pepper and optional mushrooms and sauté another 10 minutes, stirring occasionally.
3. Add the beans, rest of the broth, leafy greens, tomatoes AND the tomato juice, the tomato paste, and all of the spices. Mix well and stir everything together.
4. Bring to a boil and continue simmering the soup, uncovered, for an hour. Give it a good stir every 10 minutes or so.

Enjoy.
The.
YUM.
Look, you EVEN GET A PICTURE.

And I didn't even add Insta-Crap defects!

Side note, is it weird that handling those canned whole tomatoes reminds me of what it might be like to handle a human heart? Eeewww.

Sun Dried Tomatoes

Here's a great way to add some yummy flavor to a meal...
If you buy sun-dried tomatoes in a jar, they're usually packed in some kind of liquid (most times oil, I think). Save the oil and use it to sauté vegetables or fish. My husband especially enjoyed some salmon that was sautéed in sun-dried tomato olive oil!

Carrot Soufflé

The carrots in this make it quite sweet. If you make it and would like it sweeter, you can add more sugar.

Ingredients:
2 lbs Carrots, chopped up
1/2 cup Melted Butter
1/3 cup sugar
3 Tablespoons All Purpose Flour
1 teaspoon Baking Powder
1 teaspoon Vanilla Extract
3 Eggs, beaten

Directions:

1. Heat oven to 350.
2. Place the chopped up carrots into a steamer and steam them until they are soft.
3. Drain the carrots and mash them up.
4. Add the rest of the ingredients and mix well.
5. Place into a 2-qt casserole dish.
6. Bake for 30 minutes. Serve hot; can be enjoyed cold as well.

I've made this and substituted margarine for the butter, and egg whites for the whole eggs. I thought it tasted great both ways :)

Roasted Potatoes

Use any combo of 'taters suitable for baking that you like. Here's a combo we like:

Ingredients:
3 cups raw, cubed Red-Skinned Potatoes
3 cups raw, cubed Sweet Potatoes
1/2 teaspoon Salt
1/2 teaspoon Garlic Powder
1 teaspoon Basil (dried works well)
1 Tablespoon Rosemary (fresh is wonderful, finely chopped, of course)
1-2 teaspoons of Olive Oil (a healthy splash)

Directions:

1. Heat oven to 350.
2. Cube the 'taters into about 1/2"-3/4" cubes. (Think homefries.)
3. Dump all the 'taters into a large bowl- with a lid, if possible.
4. Add olive oil to the taters and mix to evenly coat all of your 'taters
   (if you're using a bowl with lid, place the lid on the bowl and shake it up).
5. Add the herbs and salt. Replace lid, if you have one, and again, mix/shake well.
6. Spread the 'taters onto a baking sheet in a single layer.
7. Cook them for about 30 minutes, turning them over once or twice during cooking.

Tuscan Pasta

(You can add 1 pound of cooked chicken cut into strips to this if you'd like meat in there.)

Ingredients:
6 oz. Penne or Rotini Pasta (half a box)
1 can (15 oz) Great Northern Beans
1/2 cup Roasted Red Peppers, chopped
1 C Baby Spinach, chopped
1 clove Garlic, minced
1 teaspoon finely chopped Rosemary, preferably fresh
1 teaspoon broth
Fresh Parmesan cheese
1 lb. of chicken, if desired.

Directions:

1. If using chicken, cook the chicken and cut it into thin strips. Set aside.
2. Cook pasta according to directions.
3. Heat the broth in a large skillet. Add the beans, vegetables, and spices. Cook 3-5 minutes or until the spinach begins to wilt a little.
4. Toss with pasta (and add the chicken if you're using it).
5. Top with Parmesan cheese.

If you're using a box of pasta and you'd prefer to cook the entire box, just double the rest of the ingredients for a larger meal.