Crustless Quiche

This quiche is a quick, easy and delicious idea for dinner.  As long as you have milk and eggs you add just about anything to it.  The one I made below is diced ham, leek and cheddar, but any meat, veggie, cheese combo will work too!

ingredients:

6 eggs
1¹⁄₂ cups 2% milk
1 cup sharp cheddar cheese
2 leeks, white and light green parts chopped
1 cup diced ham
dash of tabasco sauce
salt and pepper to taste
1 tablespoon olive oil for the leeks

Preheat the oven to 400°F.  Lightly whisk the eggs and milk and set aside.  Sauté the leeks in some olive oil, over medium heat, until soft.  About 5 minutes.  Add the leeks and the rest of the ingredients to the milk and eggs.  Pour into a 9 inch pie/baking dish and bake for 30 minutes or until puffy and golden brown on top.

If you using other vegetables either roast or sauté them before mixing them in with the eggs.

Serve with some toast and a big green salad.

Serves 4

Rosalie's Padella

Our garden has been churning out zucchini like there's no tomorrow.  I'm almost to the point of "I never want to see another zucchini again". However I am really enjoying this very easy sausage, tomato, zucchini dish.  You can't go wrong with an easy dinner, that everyone enjoys and best of all there is only 1 skillet to wash!

ingredients:

1 tablespoon olive oil

1 onion, coarsely chopped

2 cloves garlic, thinly sliced

8 ounces Italian sausage

3 cups stale French bread, torn into about 1 to 2 inch pieces

1 pound tomato, chopped, with juice and seeds

1 pound zucchini, quartered and sliced

1/4 cup basil, leaves only, torn into small pieces

Salt and pepper, to taste

Parmesan cheese, to taste

In a large skillet over medium heat, sauté olive oil, onion, garlic and sausage. Sauté for about 8 minutes, or until meat is brown and onion and garlic are softened. Drain excess oil from the pan so there is about 2 tablespoons remaining.

Add chopped zucchini to the pan with the sausage. Increase heat to medium high, and sauté for about 5 minutes, until the zucchini is just beginning to soften. Add tomatoes and their juice, and continue cooking for 2-3 minutes until the tomatoes begin to release more of their juice in the pan.

Toss the French bread into the pan, stirring the bread so it begins to absorb the cooking juices. Add salt and pepper and continue to cook until all the vegetables are tender, and the mixture starts to appear drier and the bread is heated all the way through, about 6 minutes more.

Toss in the torn basil leaves at the last minute.  Divide onto plates and serve with Parmesan cheese.

Serves 6

Recipe: Rosalie's padella.  Laura Gilliam  

Ricotta Pie

This is one of those kid-friendly, super fast and easy dinners that we make about once per week.  The recipe is from my mother-in-law and is one that my husband ate a lot of growing up!  Good thing he likes it.....

ingredients:

1 lb good quality, whole milk, ricotta
3 eggs
7-10 swiss chard leaves, lightly steamed
1 cup mozzarella, sharp cheddar or your favorite cheese

parmesan
salt and pepper to taste

Preheat the oven to 350°F.  After steaming the swiss chard lay it on a towel to dry.  Meanwhile mix the ricotta, cheese, eggs and salt and pepper in a medium bowl.  Chop the swiss chard and add it to the bowl.  Mix.  Pour the ricotta mixture into a 8 inch baking dish.  Sprinkle with parmesan cheese.  Bake for about 50 minutes until golden brown and puffy.

It makes a complete meal when served with brown rice and a salad.

Serves 4

Recipe from TM