Monday, February 3, 2014

Sausage, Spinach and Mushroom Quiche

I have been craving a quiche lately but trying to convince the man of the house that quiche is something he'd enjoy, let alone try, is a difficult task. So I decided to create a quiche with ingredients that he WILL eat and just not explain the whole "quiche" thing to him. I created a Sausage, Spinach and Mushroom Quiche that was absolutely fantastic! What's even better is that you can enjoy this dish for breakfast, lunch or dinner! To print recipe, click Sausage, Spinach & Mushroom Quiche
Ingredients:
2 tablespoons butter
2 cups of fresh baby spinach, stems removed and torn in half
6 green onions, chopped
1 (8oz) package of baby bella mushrooms (you can use white if you like) sliced then chopped in half
1 pound of ground pork breakfast sausage (You  don't have to use the entire package, use about 1/2-3/4 and save the rest for another dish)
3 eggs
1 cup half and half cream
1 cup shredded cheese (I used a monterey jack/mozzarella cheese blend)
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 (9inch) unbaked DEEP DISH pie crust (you can find this in the freezer section of your grocery store)
Directions:
1) Preheat oven to 400°F. 
2) Crumble the sausage in a large skillet or pot and cook until brown. Drain and set aside.
3) Chop green onions, mushrooms and remove the stems from spinach leaves.
4) Melt butter in a large sauce pan and add the green onions, mushrooms and spinach leaves. Stir continuously, about 5 minutes. Remove from heat and set aside.
5) Place pie crust in the pre-heated oven and bake for about 10 minutes. You want to do this before adding the ingredients first so that the bottom of the crust does not get soggy.


6) While pie crust is pre-baking, in a large bowl, mix together the eggs, add the half and half cream, cheese and salt.
7) In another bowl, take the drained sausage and add it to the green onions, mushrooms and spinach mixture. Stir well.
8) Take the egg, cream and cheese mixture and pour it in with the sausage mixture. Stir well.
9) 10 minutes should be up now, remove the pie crust from the oven and set aside.

10) Pour the mixture into the pre-baked pie shell. Be careful, if you pour too quickly, it might spill over the edges, which isn't a huge issue, but it's always good to avoid it. Also, MAKE SURE YOU ARE USING A DEEP DISH PIE CRUST!
11) Bake in the oven for 30 minutes, until crust is brown and egg mixture has set. You can check the middle of the quiche with a toothpick to see if it has set. If the toothpick comes out clean, it's done. If it comes out runny, put it back in the oven. Once cooked properly, let stand for 10-15 minutes before serving. 



Nutrition Facts
Servings 6.0
Amount Per Serving
Calories 584
% Daily Value *
Total Fat 45 g69 %
Saturated Fat 20 g98 %
Monounsaturated Fat 15 g
Polyunsaturated Fat 4 g
Trans Fat 0 g
Cholesterol 211 g70 %
Sodium 980 mg41 %
Potassium 414 mg12 %
Total Carbohydrate 17 g6 %
Dietary Fiber 1 g4 %
Sugars 2 g
Protein 27 g55 %
Vitamin A1 %
Vitamin C27 %
Calcium2 %
Iron85 %
* The Percent Daily Values are based on a 2,000 calorie diet, so your values may change depending on your calorie needs. The values here may not be 100% accurate because the recipes have not been professionally evaluated nor have they been evaluated by the U.S. FDA.
Copyright © 2013 Kellicipes

Saturday, February 1, 2014

Simple Tzatziki Sauce

This Tzatziki recipe is so simple and seriously, I could eat it with just about anything...even though I made it for our Gyro night! If you're not a fan of Greek yogurt, you can definitely use sour cream instead. To print the recipe click HERE.
Ingredients:
1 cucumber, peeled, seeded and finely diced
1 teaspoon of Kosher or sea salt
1 cup Greek Yogurt (or sour cream)
2 cloves garlic, minced
1/4 teaspoon dried dill
1/4 cup lemon juice
Directions:



1) Finely dice your cucumber, toss with salt and then let sit in a colander for about 10 minutes.




2) In a small mixing bowl, mix yogurt (or sour cream), garlic, dill, lemon juice and then add the diced cucumber. Stir to combine.




3) Let sit in refrigerator for at least 20 minutes before serving. Enjoy! 





Best with Easy Loaf Pan Gyros!





Nutrition Facts
Servings 4.0
Amount Per Serving
Calories 52
% Daily Value *
Total Fat 0 g0 %
Saturated Fat 0 g0 %
Monounsaturated Fat 0 g
Polyunsaturated Fat 0 g
Trans Fat 0 g
Cholesterol 3 g1 %
Sodium 588 mg24 %
Potassium 188 mg5 %
Total Carbohydrate 7 g2 %
Dietary Fiber 0 g2 %
Sugars 3 g
Protein 7 g13 %
Vitamin A0 %
Vitamin C27 %
Calcium1 %
Iron8 %
* The Percent Daily Values are based on a 2,000 calorie diet, so your values may change depending on your calorie needs. The values here may not be 100% accurate because the recipes have not been professionally evaluated nor have they been evaluated by the U.S. FDA.
Copyright © 2013 Kellicipes

Easy Loaf Pan Gryos

One of my favorite meals that DOES NOT involve cheese, I know, craziness...is a good Gyro! It's so cold outside and we're seriously having a blizzard that I just couldn't bare to trek out into the elements and go to my favorite Mediterranean restaurant. Luckily, we have a wonderful market just around the corner, so I was able to make a quick trip to the store to get the ingredients for this recipe. This is simply WONDERFUL! In the past, when I've had homemade gyros, the meat has more of a meatloaf consistency, but this recipe and the technique used is amazing and not difficult to make! It calls for both 1lb of ground beef as well as 1lb of ground lamb. If you are not a fan of lamb, I am sure you could just use all ground beef and it would taste great as well. I found this recipe on AllRecipes.com  and will definitely be making it again! The only thing I changed was the last part of the cooking time. Makes great leftovers as well! I purchased store made hummus and tabouleh, but I personally like my recipe for both better. I will make sure to make these and post my version shortly! Also served with my Simple Tzatziki Sauce. To print the Gyro recipe, click HERE
Ingredients:
1/2 onion, finely chopped
1 lb ground lamb
1 lb ground beef
1 tablespoon minced garlic
1 teaspoon dried oregano
1 teaspoon ground cumin
1 teaspoon dried marjoram
1 teaspoon ground dried rosemary
1 teaspoon ground dried thyme
1 teaspoon ground black pepper
1/4 teaspoon kosher or sea salt
Directions:


1) Finely chop 1/2 onion. Then place a paper towel over it and press down to soak up some of the liquids from the onion.






2) Place the onions in a mixing bowl with the lamb and beef. Mix well. Add the garlic, oregano, cumin, marjoram, rosemary, thyme, black pepper and salt. Mix well with your hands.

3) Cover and refrigerate for 1-2 hours so that the seasoning blends well with the meat.
4) Preheat oven to 325°F. Boil a water in a large pot, enough to fill a roasting pan 1/2 way up.

5) Remove mixture from the refrigerator and place in a food processor. Pulse for about a minute until finely chopped and the mixture feels tacky, almost to a paste consistency, but not totally.




6) Press the meat mixture into a 7x4 inch loaf pan and make sure there are no air pockets. Line a roasting pan with a damp kitchen towel, place the loaf pan on the towel and fill the roasting pan with the boiling water to reach halfway up the sides of the loaf pan.
7) Bake for about 45 - 60 minutes, so that the internal temperature reaches 165°F on a meat thermometer. Remove the roasting pan from the oven and take the loaf pan out and put back in the oven on Broil for about 7 minutes, or until you have a nice brown crust on the meat.
8) Remove loaf pan from oven and pour out any excess liquid or fat in the pan. Place on a cutting board and let cool a few minutes before slicing.

9) Slice thinly.

10) Serve in a pita with tomatoes, onions and Simple Tzatziki Sauce. I served hummus and tabouleh on the side, but you can also add that to the pita if you like. ENJOY!





Nutrition Facts
Servings 8.0
Amount Per Serving
Calories 323
% Daily Value *
Total Fat 23 g36 %
Saturated Fat 10 g50 %
Monounsaturated Fat 10 g
Polyunsaturated Fat 1 g
Trans Fat 1 g
Cholesterol 92 g31 %
Sodium 141 mg6 %
Potassium 368 mg11 %
Total Carbohydrate 2 g1 %
Dietary Fiber 0 g2 %
Sugars 0 g
Protein 25 g50 %
Vitamin A0 %
Vitamin C3 %
Calcium0 %
Iron97 %
* The Percent Daily Values are based on a 2,000 calorie diet, so your values may change depending on your calorie needs. The values here may not be 100% accurate because the recipes have not been professionally evaluated nor have they been evaluated by the U.S. FDA.
Copyright © 2013 Kellicipes