A quiche with dramatic presentation! Puff pastry gives quiche a little life! Almost like a piece of art.

Why puff pastry instead of a pie crust? Well, we were expecting a hurricane last month, and when you know it could possibly be on its way, well, that’s a really good time to start eating out of your freezer. Use up what you have stored. I had one sheet of puff pastry, and I had two dozen eggs in the fridge, so, what to do? That sounded like a quiche to me, but how? Well after a little research I found recipes with the ingredients that I had on hand, or at least roughly, so I made it. It turned out both beautiful and delicious, this would be a perfect brunch dish, I served it with a pretty salad (had to use up the remaining lettuce, cucumbers, tomatoes, etc.).

This was so easy, it can hardly be called a recipe! – Click HERE to print this recipe from Bon Appetit!

My notes to the original recipe below… I was trying to use up what I had, so I made a few changes. I only had 1 tablespoon of cream cheese, so I used it, I used part milk and part half and half, I used a bag of fresh spinach that I sautéed until it wilted, and I used more than 1/2 cup of cheddar cheese. – everything else was done as shown below and it was divine! I think next time I make it I will still use fresh spinach, or maybe crispy bacon and gruyere cheese??

And THIS is the beauty that you will pull out of the oven, almost hard to cut into, it’s just so pretty! PS, Fred said it heated up great the next day!

Catch you back here tomorrow!

The beginning of something wonderful…

Oh! Looks like art doesn’t it? I love beautiful food! To start this recipe I use a large pasta bowl (serving dish) and put a few tablespoons of pesto in the bottom, add some grape tomatoes cut in half… let it sit while you’re getting things ready, you don’t want cold pesto…

What dreams are made of…

This is such a quick recipe to throw together. Fred usually grills the chicken while I get the rest of it ready and whip up a small salad. This dinner will be as good as your pesto, so if you have pesto that isn’t very tasty, it’s not going to be the best that it can be. There are many prepared pesto’s on the market, I used Bear Pond Farm Premium Basil Pesto – bought at Whole Foods. It was nice! Really nice!

This recipe doesn’t involve a lot, boiling your pasta, toasting some walnuts, grilling the chicken, and mixing basil pesto into the pasta. Top with a little parmesan and you are set!

Click HERE to print the recipe as shown below:

Catch you back here tomorrow!

This is an all time favorite and a definite crowd pleaser! This makes a good 8 servings, it also freezes well! This is one of those recipes to keep around because you can throw it together pretty quickly and have a meal fit for a king! In parenthesis I noted the brands that I used, pretty much Whole Foods everything, but… it makes a difference, especially when it comes to sauce. If you use a sauce that you don’t know that you love then it can turn out completely different… make sure you like the sauce! I believe I used one jar of tomato basil and one jar of marinara.

To print the recipe below, click HERE:

ENJOY!

Catch you back here tomorrow!

This quick and healthy meal has become an addiction. It’s so fresh and tasty and hold you for quite a while.

Super easy, this is what I did, tailor it to fit what you like…

INGREDIENTS

Pita

Cheese, sliced (Havarti is what I used)

Cucumbers, sliced (I slice long pieces without seeds)

Grape tomatoes, slice length wise

Hummus (I use regular)

Dry Dill (fresh would be good too) and Pepper

DIRECTIONS (well, kind of)

Pita, sliced in half (as shown above) or about 3/4 of the way, then use the small piece smear hummus and place a pretty grape tomato half on.

I put the pita on a plate, cover with a paper towel that I have gotten wet and wrung out completely, then I cover the pita with the moist paper towel, in the microwave for 15 seconds, then take off the paper towel.

Insert cheese (I use Havarti), then spread hummus (I put it fairly thick), then sliced cucumbers (I slice long ways with no seeds, but to each his own…), add some grape tomatoes cut in half (length-wise), sprinkle with dill and pepper. Serve with a handful of blue chips.

Ok, ya ready? Take a bite! I KNOW! I KNOW! It’s a mixture of the fabulous crunch from the cucumber, the oh so wonderful creaminess of the cheese and the hummus, the freshness of the dill, and the juice of the grape tomato! Get outta here!

Catch you back here tomorrow!

Do you ever get in a rut? Eating the same lunches… do you need something different? I have an idea!

Tomatoes are so good right now, and my basil is thriving, so I thought, hmmmm, what to make for a quick lunch!  I picked up some Ciabatta rolls at Trader Joe’s – popped them in the oven until they got nice and warm. Then I added sliced tomato (oh! ah!), sliced fresh mozzarella, leaves of basil, then I drizzled with olive oil and balsamic vinaigrette, slapped on the top half of the roll and tada! Lunch is served!

What do you make when you get in a rut? Something different! Let me know!

Catch you back here tomorrow!

This is a quick meal that can be put together in no time flat. You can even cook the chicken ahead of time and just do a quick reheat.

For 5 corn tortilla’s we grilled one chicken breast and sliced it thin, (if you need it faster, using kitchen scissors cut the chicken breast into small pieces and sauté until done, if they aren’t thick, it should cook quickly). Heat the tortillas*, then top with what you like, we topped with pepper jack cheese for a little kick, some fresh salsa and I whipped up some guacamole. This was delicious!

*Heating the tortillas. I have a gas stove, so the best way (for us) has been to place a tortilla on a (clean) grate of the stove. Approximately 10 seconds, then flip, until it starts to wilt downwards, then another quick flip just for a sec (I think maybe because I like to flip?). It takes no time. I then placed it in foil to keep it warm (and wrapped in a clean kitchen towel), I heated all tortillas and then assembled.

Add what you like, doesn’t matter what it is, you could use black beans in place of chicken, etc. I buy corn tortillas with three ingredients: corn, water and lime. Nothing else. I served this with blue chips and the rest of the guacamole!

Note: I made 5 tortillas, 2 for me and 3 for Fred – it was enough with the added guacamole and chips.

Enjoy! Catch you back here tomorrow!

Let me tell you, this is the stuff dreams were made of! Inspired by a few recipes (one was Ina Garten’s and the other was from Food.com). I merged a few recipes together, made some changes and came up with the recipe below. Recipes should be made with things that you like. They’re a guide, but the sky is the limit!

A note about this recipe. The first time I made it, I made a 1/2 recipe to be sure we would like it. It was beyond like. It was love at first site, ha ha. So, if you have a busy week coming up, make a full recipe, it gets better and better each day!

Click HERE to print my version (below) of this recipe – it’s a keeper! The use of onion is optional. I’ve tried it both ways, I love onions, so I always add it but it’s excellent without in case you have someone opposed to onions!

Catch you back here tomorrow!

One of my favorite things in the world… AVOCADO TOAST! (Pictured above with red pepper flakes – YUM!)

There are so many renditions of avocado toast, each as wonderful as the next, but a few of my favorites are the avocado toast from The Daily in Charleston, SC –  Last summer it had a slice of an AH-mazing heirloom tomato on top of the avocado- WOW! Lately it’s been avocado on grilled crusty bread with za’atar spices (OH MY GOSH!) and a drizzle of olive oil.

I had some good crusty bread from the bakery and thought I would give it a whirl. I didn’t have the Za’atar spices (will buy for next time, they sell them at The Daily), so I toasted the bread (I didn’t grill), then spread avocado, a drizzle of olive oil and S&P. I took a bite, hmmm, good but missing something, so I sliced a small lemon wedge, gave a little drizzle. BINGO! That was all it needed to brighten the flavor and take it from good to GREAT in a second or two!

Soooo good with or without the red pepper flakes! What’s your favorite rendition? Do you like the avocados smushed (YES!) or simply sliced (I think they slide off the toast like this, but it’s pretty!)

Catch you back here tomorrow!

Continue reading “Quick and Easy Wild Rice with Cranberries and Walnuts in a Citrus Dressing!” →