‘Quiche’ Articles at Sweetnicks

Recipe: Broccoli & Cheddar Quiche {Cabot}

April 23, 2019 · Narrative

The simplest recipes are usually my favorite. This delicious Broccoli & Cheddar Quiche is perfect for a light meal and takes just a few hands-on minutes to prepare.

Farm to table is one of my favorite paths to getting a healthy and delicious meal on the table for my family, and now that farmer’s markets are in full swing, it’s the perfect time to take advantage of the bounty that is available. Although broccoli is available year ’round, its peak season is ending in just a few weeks, so now is the time to stuff yourself silly of the green goodness, and this Broccoli & Cheddar Quiche is just the way to go.

This is one of my favorite Springtime recipes because it is so simple to make and so adaptable to different taste buds. Once you have the basic guideline down pat, mix it up and add different vegetables and cheeses – you are only limited by your imagination. Because broccoli is one of the green vegetables that everyone in my family agrees on, that’s often my choice for this quiche, and when my kids aren’t around, I add in portobello mushrooms as well. With only a few minutes of prep time and 40 minutes of baking time, if you keep these basic pantry ingredients on hand, you’ll be able to whip this up for crazy busy weeknights, a week’s worth of simple breakfasts, or unexpected guests.

Now for the cheese … you can’t go wrong with any cheese really, but I usually stick to Extra Sharp Cheddar, or a mix of Extra Sharp Cheddar and something creamier like a Monterey Jack or Colby Jack. And I know it’s a little bit more time consuming, but please, please, please hand grate your cheese instead of buying the pre-shredded mix. A few extra minutes of effort on your part imparts so much extra flavor in the finished product. And, well, you know how much I love Cabot, so that’s my go-to source for all things cheese. The next time you head to the grocery store to stock up, you may notice that their packaging has changed. They are celebrating their 100th anniversary with a little refresh.

Add a nice simple green salad dressed with just olive oil, lemon juice, salt and pepper, and a fruit salad to this quiche and you are all set. Enjoy!…

Recipe: Crustless Broccoli Quiche

June 29, 2015 · Narrative

An easy and delicious crustless quiche that is perfect for a week’s worth of breakfast.

If you’re a regular reader, you know I’m a fan of grab-and-go breakfasts, because our mornings (like yours, I’m sure), can be a little chaotic. And if making breakfast ahead for the week means we get a few extra minutes of sleep in the morning … well, sign me up.

I could very easily become vegetarian, since I love vegetables so much, but then I get an intense craving for a juicy burger and that’s the end of that. But in the meantime? Enter this Crustless Broccoli Quiche. Seriously the easiest recipe ever. Just pour a few ingredients into a pie plate and bake.

And in forty minutes, you have a delicious veggie-stuffed, slightly cheesy, mostly healthy quiche that is perfect for an easy breakfast (just slice and warm it up), or a light summer lunch.

If you’re not a fan of broccoli, you can easily swap in your favorite vegetable. I wouldn’t use zucchini, because of the high water content, but carrots would be delicious, as would cooked potatoes.

Go crazy….

Recipe: Asparagus and Artichoke Crustless Quiche

February 19, 2015 · Narrative

A super simple, very healthy recipe for quiche that is perfect for a light lunch, breakfast, or just because.

Here’s the thing about quiches … they are super forgiving. Once you get the basic premise of how many beaten eggs you need in the oven for how long, you’re golden. After that, it’s all about clearing out your fridge or catering to whatever your taste buds are craving.

Today’s crustless quiche was a bit of both.

Lately I’ve been making a quiche on the weekends, because it sets me up for breakfast for the week.

Or slightly less than a week when you discover your seven year old all the sudden likes quiche.

And asparagus.

(and she also recently discovered a love for scrambled eggs and requests them on the daily, so holla!)

Crust for your quiche is awesome, particularly if it’s the light, flaky kind, but since that’s not allowed on Whole30, I just did away with it.

You won’t even miss it.

I had a huge bunch of asparagus that I had just bought, and I was looking for something else to do with them besides just roasting.

Add in some diced artichoke hearts, onion, garlic, seasoning, eggs.

Bake and boom.

You’ve got a slightly light, slightly hearty, mostly delicious bite for whenever you want it.

This is a great recipe to mix and match whatever vegetables or other add-ins you have available. Sausage bits, roasted red pepper strips, and mushrooms all would be wonderfully delicious additions. As would cheese. Natch.

Enjoy!

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Recipe: Egg and Kale Breakfast Quiche {Whole30}

February 9, 2015 · Narrative

A super hearty, super healthy breakfast that is simple to make and delicious.

I started doing Whole30 today. For those that aren’t familiar with it, it’s basically clean eating … but jacked up, with the additional requirements of no dairy, no sugar, and no gluten.

That black coffee today was rough.

But as the Whole30 originators said, “Beating cancer is hard. Childbirth is hard. Drinking black coffee is. not. hard.”

And so I did.

With the exception of a one year flirtation with Medifast, I have been doing clean eating since 2010, and while I tow the line, there are moments of indulgence. A Hershey Kiss here, an uber-cheesy mac and cheese there.

And I just wanted to tighten things up a bit.

Ok, a lot.

And I like a challenge.

Once I commit to something, whether it’s an iPhone, hitting the gym, going back to school, or an eating plan … I am all in.

As with anything, it’s the getting there that’s the hardest.

You know, first steps and all.

To me, the greatest way to achieve success with Whole30 is to menu plan.

Because you can’t just reach for this, that, or the other or do things on the fly when you’re embarking on something with a few rules and guidelines.

Once it becomes ingrained in the rhythm of your day, and becomes second-nature, then yes, absolutely.

But not in the beginning.

And so this weekend, I sat down with books, notes, recipes, and I pulled together a plan for this week.

I laid out breakfasts, lunches, snacks, and three dinners.

Only three dinners because 1) Madeline’s birthday is on Wednesday and 2) I like to plan for leftovers.

I grocery shopped over the weekend, having to hit a few different stores to properly stock my pantry, and spent yesterday afternoon cooking ahead a bit to set up the week on the right foot. Or bite, if you will.

First up? This Egg and Kale Breakfast Quiche.

I do believe this is my first time cooking with kale.

It might even be my first time eating it.

I survived. You can too.

To be honest (or #TBH if you’re a pre-teen), there aren’t any greens I *don’t* like.

To the kale, add mushrooms. Some garlic. An onion. Spices. Eggs.

Mix together and bake.

And in just about 25 minutes, you will have breakfast for the week.

I portioned it out and packed it all up, so my grab-and-go breakfast is ready as we come flying through the kitchen in the morning.

To be completely candid, it took GREAT willpower not to add cheese to this.

Because usually when I’m making a quiche or frittata or omelet, cheese is a given.

And I’m on the Cabot Cheese Board, so my refrigerator drawer overfloweth with cheese.

But I remained strong.

Because this is DAY ONE, people, and I’m not working hard just to fail.

Cheese can wait until Day 31 when some things come back in.

(And while this recipe is delicious, cheese would make it that much more so, so if you’re not doing Whole30, by all means, add it in).

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Recipe: Hearty and Easy Lasagna

March 22, 2011 · Narrative

I love a good splatter on a casserole dish. It’s when you know that good comfort food awaits.

Sometimes I feel like I’m not a very good Italian. I need to represent my heritage a little better, because truth be told, I don’t cook a lot of Italian food. Sure, nearly every holiday starts with our traditional Antipasto, and we have pasta a couple times a month, but platters of ziti, stuffed shells and lasagna are not always simmering from my stove-top. Nor is cook-all-day sauce. I should work on that. So many dishes, so little time.

Last Friday night, Nick and I had some one on one time, and a friend was kind enough to stay at the house to watch Madeline. In exchange, I offered to make them whatever she wanted for dinner, and lasagna was requested first. And then stuffed shells. And then my friend couldn’t decide. I said I would surprise her and ended up going with lasagna. I can’t remember the last time I made it, or even had it. Nick went through a phase a few years ago when he wanted it every time I turned around. And then he wanted nothing more to do with it.

In the grand scheme of things, lasagna has always seemed like one of those things that you don’t really need a recipe for. Layer noodles, sauce, meat, cheese, repeat. The recipe below is how I usually make our lasagna, but think of it as a guideline. Sometimes I add sausage to the meat portion of it. Sometimes I add different kinds of cheese. But the recipe remains the constant framework for how the dish comes together. I always add the spinach in with the cheese. The kids can see it (I am SO not a fan of disguising vegetables) and will eat it just fine. I get a little more green vegetables in their little bellies and it’s such a small dose of it, they don’t complain. Winner, winner, lasagna dinner.

Now to catch up on a few programming notes. If you’re looking for more recipes, do pop on over to Betty Crocker’s web site and check out my newest additions over there:

Banana Walnut Pancakes, one of Nick’s favorites. Gosh, I do love that photo. Nothing like a little dripping maple syrup to start your day off right.
Three-Cheese Vegetable Quiche. I lived on this for a week – best lunch ever. I wanted to make something quiche-like, but more vegetables and less egg. This was the result.
Carmelized Shallot Sausage Con Queso. You think the picture looks good? Wait ’till you taste the queso. Melted cheese is a weakness for me, and after a few bites of this queso, I had to give the rest of it away. Pronto. The temptation was far too great.
Double Cheese Chicken Fingers. Baked. Not fried. Love that.

And lastly, a few weeks ago, I was lucky enough to be a co-host for a Virtual Cooking Class sponsored by The Motherhood and Con Agra. If you missed the class, you might want to check out the transcript from it. The one hour went by crazyfast, but it was packed with all sorts of excellent ideas for desserts, sinful and otherwise.

Project 365
March 22, 2011, Photo #79
Three compliments today on the maiden voyage of this new necklace I bought recently. From an online store. Owned and run by a 15-year-old. Totally feeling like an underachiever now, but still loving the necklace.
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Recipe: Broccoli Pie

January 14, 2010 · Narrative

I keep promising to give a friend this recipe. After the third request, I figure I’d better get on it, and since I hadn’t yet written about it here, I might as well kill two birds with one stone. It’s definitely a keeper, after all, and I’d hate for you to miss out on it. We all can use more of these types of recipes in our regular rotation.

A few weeks before Christmas, my friend and her family came over for dinner. Since it was so close to the holidays, I wanted to keep the meal low-key and stress-free, so we could have more time to talk and catch up. I made the Cook All Night Beef Brisket, turning it into BBQ Beef Brisket Sandwiches, and made this Broccoli Pie as a side item/vegetable. I knew she liked quiche, so she was the perfect guinea pig for a new recipe.

Just like the brisket, this recipe could not be simpler. Mix a few things together, pour it into a pastry shell, bake and eat. My kind of recipe. I’ve actually made it twice since then, and since it’s such a forgiving recipe, it’s perfect to use as a basic starting point, mixing and matching cheeses and vegetables that might be more suited to your own tastes. The first time I made it, it was the side dish to dinner. The next time, thin slices became the appetizer. And the last time, it served as lunch for a week. However you serve this one, I’m fairly certain you’ll keep coming back for more.

Project 365
January 14, 2010, Photo #14

Even though I spent the time cutting all the chicken off the bone for her, do you think she eats that chicken off the plate? Nope, just grabbed the bone and started digging in.

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