Caramelized Onion Quiche

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I wasn't sure if I should post this recipe or not, because I don't like how the photos turned out so much. I wasn't really planning on taking photos of it, but this quiche tasted so good that I thought it wouldn't be fair not to share it. I am a huge fan of caramelized onions, to me it is one of the easiest, simplest and most inexpensive ways to turn a good dish into a great one.  A while ago I made a quick list of my most affordable recipes, this quiche definitely deserves a place on that list too. Using one onion, eggs and  gruyere cheese, this is as budget-friendly as it gets, but if you want to spend even less than that, substitute the gruyere with mozzarella.

The quiche crust is nothing more than a flaky pie crust, the type you find in every supermarket and it is a real time saver. But if you have time, making your own is super easy and (again) inexpensive. It freezes very well and all you have to do is thaw it overnight in the refrigerator. I normally have some in my freezer and I use it for savoury quiches like this one, vegetable pies or sweet fruit pies. I listed the recipe I use here, so you can choose to make it or just use store-bought ones, whatever fits you.

One last note about the onions. When caramelizing onions, don't rush the process, they should cook slowly at a medium-low temperature gaining colour towards the end of the cooking time (normally 20-30 minutes).

 

 

 Caramelized Onion Quiche Recipe:

makes one 9 inch round quiche

 

You will need:

 

1/2 recipe of flaky pie dough, store-bought or homemade (recipe bellow)

2 tablespoons of unsalted butter

1 tablespoon of fresh thyme, chopped

1 large onion, thinly sliced

3 eggs

3/4 cup of milk ( I use 2%)

1 cup of shredded gruyere cheese

salt and pepper

 

 

Preheat oven to 375 degrees.

On a floured surface, roll the dough until you have a circle 10-11 inches in diameter. Lay dough into a 9 inch pie pan. Be careful not to stretch the dough, or it will shrink back in the oven. Trim edges around the pie plate leaving a 1/2 inch border. Prick the bottom of the dough with a fork and refrigerate it for about 30 minutes.

Cover pie plate with foil paper and top it with pie weights or dried beans. Bake until golden, about 30 minutes, removing the foil paper and beans on the last 10 minutes. Set aside until it cools.

While dough bakes, melt butter over medium-low heat, add the onions and thyme and cook slowly until onions are browned, about 20 minutes. Season with salt and pepper, set aside.

Lightly beat the eggs with the milk and season with salt and pepper.

Spread 1/2 cup of the cheese on the bottom of the quiche, add the onions on top and cover with the remaining 1/2 cup of cheese. Pour the egg mixture and bring quiche to the oven. Bake it until golden brown and puffed, about 40 minutes.

Enjoy it warm or at room temperature along with a simple salad.

 

Making a Flaky Pie Dough:

This recipe makes 1 double-crust or 2 single-crust 9-inch pies. I used half for this quiche and froze the other half for later.

2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour

1 teaspoon salt

1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, cold, cut into small cubes

1/4 cup ice water

 

In the food processor, combine the flour and salt and pulse once. Add the pieces of butter and process until mixture forms small pieces of dough, like a crumb. With the processor on, slowly add the water until the dough comes together. Test it by squeezing a piece between your fingers, it should hold together. If the dough is not coming together yet, add more cold water, a tablespoon at the time. The dough should be a moist one.

Turn dough onto a floured surface, divide it in 2 parts and form disks. Wrap each disk with plastic film and store in the fridge for at least 1 hour before using, or freeze it.

 

Skillet Pancake with Strawberry

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I simply cannot make  good pancakes on the griddle.  My past attempts on pancakes have been disastrous, I either burn them, or brake them, or both. And the house is covered with smoke and burnt  smell, not pretty... I personally don't care for pancakes very much, but Andrew does, and so I make this every once in a while, normally on the weekends. This is also known as Dutch Baby Pancake. The batter is blended, transferred to an oven-proof skillet and baked in the oven. Almost impossible to mess up, and certainly less messy than making regular pancakes on the stove. The batter puffs up a lot, but it falls down as soon as it's removed from the oven, so it is important to be ready to eat it when it's finished baking.

To make it more interesting, I like to add fruits to the pancake. Here I chose sliced strawberries which were added to the batter in the skillet. I also added a list of possible variations for this same recipe, so try out a few. For toppings, I normally just use good Canadian maple syrup, but powdered sugar and lemon juice are popular options as well.

 

Skillet Pancake with Strawberry Recipe:

makes one 8 inch skillet

 

You will need:

 

3 large eggs

3/4 cup whole milk

1/2 cup of flour

1/4 teaspoon salt

1/2 teaspoon of vanilla extract

1/4 cup of sugar

2 tablespoons of unsalted butter

1 cup of strawberries, sliced

 

Preheat oven to 425 degrees.

Mix all ingredients except for butter and strawberries in a blender. Make sure the flour is incorporated, scraping down the sides of the blender if necessary.

Melt the butter in a oven-proof skillet (I like using cast iron). Add the batter and the sliced strawberries. Transfer skillet to hot oven and bake until puffed and golden, 20-25 minutes.

Serve immediately with maple syrup.

 

Variations:

Cinnamon: add 1/2 teaspoon of cinnamon to the batter. Skip strawberries.

Apple: slice 1/2 an apple and cook it on the melted butter until lightly golden. You may add a pinch of cinnamon to it. Skip strawberries.

Blueberry: use 1/2 cup of blueberries instead of strawberries.

Banana: add 1 sliced banana to the melted butter and cook it until golden, but still firm. You may add a pinch of cinnamon to it. Skip strawberries.

Chocolate chip: add 1/2 cup of your favourite chocolate chip to the batter in the skillet.  Skip strawberries.

Chocolate: add 1 tablespoon of cocoa to the batter.

Plain: skip strawberries and top baked pancake with a squeeze of lemon juice and powdered sugar.

 

 

Grilled Asparagus and Poached Egg Salad

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Here is a super-quick, super-healthy meal, perfect for those days when time (or disposition to cook) is not really on your side. That happens to me often, and it is so easy to just settle for  a grilled cheese, but having a good meal always makes me feel better, and having too many grilled cheeses in a week make me feel like I am not really looking after myself... My trick then is to keep lots of vegetables in the fridge that are easy to prepare as well as washed, ready-to-eat salads.

Asparagus and eggs are always a good combination, I often have scrambles eggs with sauteed asparagus and roasted tomatoes  for lunch. This time I poached my egg (oops, that didn't sound right...) and used one of those bagged mixed salads.

This dish took me no time to prepare and it is so easy to make I even feel a bit silly posting a recipe for it, but here it goes anyway.

 

Grilled Asparagus and Poached Egg salad Recipe:

 

A handful of asparagus, tough ends trimmed

1 large egg

Mixed greens or your salad of choice

Lemon vinaigrette (*see recipe bellow)

Parmesan shavings

 

 

Heat the grill.

To poach the egg:

Fill a large pot with water about 3 inches deep and bring it to a simmer. Add a splash of white vinegar to the water and use a spoon to make a gentle swirl. Crack the egg in a small bowl, cup, ramekin or a soup ladle. Be careful to keep the yolk intact. Lower it into the water and cook until done, 3-4 minutes.

Meanwhile, coat asparagus with olive oil and grill for about 10 minutes, until they are cooked but still firm. Dress the salad greens with the vinaigrette. 

Plate the salad by layering the greens, then asparagus and topping it with the poached egg. Add fresh Parmesan shavings and season to taste.

 

* Lemon Vinaigrette:

Use 1 part lemon juice, 1 part olive oil, salt and pepper to taste. Shake it well.  Sometimes I add dried oregano to it, or Dijon mustard.

 

Spinach Soufle

Pin It This is the first time I made a souffle, I was a bit nervous about it. I heard that it's tricky to make it right. I read all the tips, did my best not to break the whites when folding them into the souffle, and I think it turned out very nice.


After I removed it from the oven though, it kind of lost it's fluffy top. I don't really know if it is normal for souffles to "sink" after it's been seating around for a while, but I thought the consistency and taste were really good. I will keep trying other types of souffles, maybe carrots will be next.

This recipe is from the book Eating by Color by Williams-Sonoma.

Spinach Souffle Recipe:

1 tablespoon grated Parmesan cheese
6 oz spinach leaves (about 1 bunch)
4 1/2 tablespoons unsalted butter
2 tablespoons chopped onion
1/4 cup all-purpose flour
1/8 teaspoon nutmeg ( a pinch)
1 cup (8 oz/240 ml) milk
4 whole eggs, separated, plus 2 egg whites, at room temperature

Preheat oven to 375 degrees F. Butter a -quart (1 liter) souffle dish and sprinkle with cheese so it covers bottom and sides. Set aside

Make the spinach mixture:
Quickly blanch spinach leaves in boiling water and run under cold after. Squeeze all excess water and chop it.
Melt 1 tablespoon of butter, add onions and cook until translucent. Add spinach and cook for about 2 more minutes. Set aside.

Make a white sauce:
Melt 3 1/2 tablespoons of butter, when it foams remove from heat and whisk in nutmeg, flour 1 teaspoon of salt and 1/4 teaspoon of black pepper. Return to medium-high heat and slowly whisk in milk. Cook, whisking constantly until it thickens. The sauce should cover the back of your spoon. Remove from heat and let it cool.
While it cools, beat 6 egg whites until stiff peaks form. In another bowl, beat the 4 egg yolks until creamy.

Whisk egg yolks into cooled white sauce until well blended. Sir in spinach mixture. Sit about 3 tablespoons of the egg whites into the mixture to lighten it, then gently fold in the rest of the egg whites,. The best way to do this is to use a rubber spatula.
Pour it into prepared souffle dish and bake it until golden brown, about 35-40 minutes.