Breakfast Casserole

While we were visiting with our son, daughter-in-law and grandchildren on our vacation our daughter-in-law served this breakfast casserole one morning. It is one of those wonderful recipes that is put together the evening before, refrigerated overnight, and baked the next morning. I love this one because it has lots of cheese, bacon and sausage in it making it a very filling and satisfying start to a busy day, which all of our days were. I have never made this recipe but I have eaten it twice, and I can attest to how good it is! Blessings...

Recipe:

10 slices white bread (trimmed)
1 lb. Jimmy Dean Hot Sausage, fried and crumbled (see note)
1/2 lb. bacon, fried and crumbled
1/2 lb. sharp cheddar cheese, grated
6 eggs, beaten to blend
3 cups milk
1/2 tsp. salt

1. Layer in 9 x 13-inch pan bread, sausage, bacon, and cheese.
2. Mix eggs, milk, and salt; pour over casserole.
3. Cover and let stand in the refrigerator overnight.
4. Remove cover and bake in a preheated 350 degree oven for 40 to 60 minutes or until set.
5. Remove from oven and let stand for 10 minutes before serving.

Yield: 12 servings
Note: the hot sausage is needed for flavor and does not add undue spiciness. It is wonderful!

Turkey Artichoke Quiche

A year or two ago on Thanksgiving weekend, when I was in need of something to feed my family for brunch, I thought of making a quiche. Because of that need, a Broccoli Cheddar Quiche was created, the recipe will be shared later, but from that recipe I created this quiche this week for dinner. We love the combination of poultry, in this case turkey, and artichokes in a casserole, so I figured it might work well in a quiche. We thought it was very good, maybe your family will, as well. Quiche is a nice change of pace; not something usually found on the family menu as it is a little bit more work with the pie crust, but so worth the effort. Blessings...

Recipe:
Pastry for a 10-inch one-crust pie
1 cup cooked chopped turkey or chicken
1 cup grated medium cheddar cheese (4 ounces)
1 cup chopped artichoke hearts, from a 13.75 ounce can, well drained
1/3 cup minced onion
1-2 tsps. butter
4 eggs
1 cup whipping cream
1 cup half-and-half
1 few grinds white pepper
1/2 tsp. Fines Herbes
1 tbsp. fresh minced parsley

1. Line 10-inch pie plate or 10-inch quiche dish with pastry. Make high fluted edge and set aside.
2. In small frying pan over low heat, melt butter. Add onion and fry until golden in color, remove pan from heat.
3. Heat oven to 425 degrees.
4. Carefully spread cooked onion in pie plate.
5. Sprinkle turkey, cheese and artichokes over onion.
6. Whisk together last 6 ingredients in a medium size bowl until well combined. Carefully pour cream mixture into pie plate.
7. Bake 15 minutes. Lower oven temperature to 300 degrees and bake another 30 minutes or until knife inserted in center comes out clean. Cover crust last 10 minutes if it is browning too quickly. Remove quiche from oven and let rest for 10 minutes before cutting.

Yield: 6 main dish servings
Note: Fines Herbes is a blend of chervil, minced parsley, French tarragon and chopped chives that is not very popular, but very good in a quiche or vegetable dish.

Egg Salad for Sandwiches

If you dyed Easter eggs with the kids and have bunches to use up, this recipe might just fill your needs for lunches this week. The addition of cumin makes this egg salad very different, and delicious. This recipe comes from Lee Bailey's City Food. Blessings...

Recipe:

6 eggs, hard-boiled, peeled and smashed with a fork
3 generous tablespoons mayonnaise
1/4 tsp. salt, or to taste
1 tsp. ground cumin, or to taste
Grind of black pepper (I omit)
2-3 drops of Tabasco sauce, optional

Mix all ingredients thoroughly and refrigerate for at least 30 minutes before serving. Taste and adjust seasonings if necessary.
Serve as a sandwich filling with lettuce or with crackers.

Yield: 6 servings

Chili Egg Puff - Brunch Anyone?

The winter cold causes most of us to slow down a bit on the weekends and may give us a bit more time to prepare and enjoy a brunch dish. This easy meatless recipe can be made the night before and baked when needed the next morning. The combination of cheese and chilies gives the dish a subtle Mexican flair. While the dish bakes, prepare some fruit and maybe fry up some bacon or heat some ham to go along side. A wonderful brunch like this will not only fuel the body, but will draw the family together for some great time of sharing after a busy week. Blessings...

Recipe:

10 eggs

1/2 cup flour

1 tsp. baking powder

1/2 tsp. salt

1 pint creamed cottage cheese

1 lb. Monterey Jack cheese, shredded

1/2 cup melted butter

1-2 (4 oz.) cans diced green chilies (I use 1 can)

1. Grease a 9 x 13-inch pan.

2. Beat eggs until light and lemony. Add flour, baking powder, salt, cheeses, and butter. Blend until smooth. Stir in chilies.

3. Pour into prepared pan and bake in a 350 degree oven for 35 minutes or until lightly browned on top and set. A bread knife inserted in the middle of the dish will come out clean, like if you were testing a pumpkin pie.

Yield: 12 servings

A Surprise Visit

This past weekend we had the most wonderful little "package" show up on our doorstep after dinner. Our son and I spoke Friday morning, so I knew he was going hunting in Oregon over the weekend. He asked me if we would be home to receive a package sometime on Saturday, to which I replied positively. Little did I know that the package that he was talking about was our precious little granddaughter! What a blessing.

Sunday morning I made this quiche recipe that I'm sharing today. This recipe is one that I have been making since our son was a little boy and our family always enjoys. After breakfast I had a very special little kitchen memory created for myself by putting my footstool up to the counter for my granddaughter to stand on so she could help with dishes. She is two-years-old and got very serious about helping grandma by drying dishes. Drying a wooden spoon is a very serious task and a "picture" I will always treasure. My husband and I are very blessed...

Recipe:

Pastry for a 9" One-crust pie
1/2 pound bacon, crisply fried and crumbled
1 cup shredded natural Swiss cheese
1/3 cup minced onion (I've also used green onion with good results)
4 eggs
1 cup whipping cream
1 cup half-and-half cream (I use fat-free with good results, a few less calories)
Salt if needed, be careful because of the bacon
1/4 tsp. sugar
1/8 tsp. cayenne red pepper

1. Prepare pastry
2. Sprinkle bacon, cheese and onion in pastry-lined pie pan.
3. Combine remaining ingredients with a fork and pour mixture into pie pan.
4. Bake quiche in a 425 degree oven for 15 minutes. Reduce temperature to 300 degrees and continue baking for an additional 20 - 30 minutes or until table knife inserted 1 inch from edge comes out clean. Let stand for 10 minutes before cutting into wedges.

Serves 6 - 8

Mama's Quiche

We had a wonderful Thanksgiving! I hope you did as well. Our son, Troy, his wife, Kim, and their baby, Peyton, came to visit for the week. It was so wonderful to have this time to get to know the newest member of our family better. Peyton is our fourth granddaughter, and what a blessing she is.

On Friday morning I needed something for breakfast and remembered this quiche recipe. I didn't have all the ingredients so I needed to improvise with what I did have. The quiche turned out very good and was very easy to put together. It helped that I had left-over pie crust in the freezer to use. This recipe is an adaptation of "Mama's Quiche" from my San Francisco a' la Carte cookbook. A terrific cookbook. Blessings...

Recipe:

1 egg

4 teaspoons all-purpose white flour

1/2 cup mayonnaise

1/2 cup fat-free 1/2 and 1/2

10 ounces medium cheddar cheese, shredded

1 4-ounce can diced green chili peppers ( I used mild)

1 tablespoon finely minced onion

1 prebaked 9" pie crust

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Beat egg with a wire whisk, blend in the flour, and then blend in mayonnaise. Add the 1/2 and 1/2 and blend well. Fold in the cheese, chilies, and onion. Spread the mixture evenly into pie shell and bake for 45 minutes, or until a knife inserted into the center of the pie comes out clean.

Yield: 4 to 6 servings

Note: I have not tried this recipe with "lite" mayonnaise, so I do not know if it would work.