Potato Crust Quiche

Today I bring you Potato Crust Quiche.

It's another recipe from Cuisine at Home, this one sent to me through their online recipes. I made it for dinner recently and it was a big hit. And it reheats really nicely for breakfast!

Recipe makes one 10"quiche. Total time: 1 hour

You will need:
3T unsalted butter, divided*
1/2 lb bulk Italian sausage
1/2 c onion, chopped
1/2 c jarred roasted red bell pepper, drained and chopped
2T vegetable oil*
1 pkg (1 lb 4 oz) fresh hash brown potato shreds
1 1/2 c fontina or Swiss cheese, shredded
6 eggs
1/2 c heavy cream
2 dashes hot sauce
8 slices Roma tomato
1/4 c parmesan cheese, shredded
1/2 c sour cream
1 T minced chives

Directions:
Preheat oven to 400 degrees.

Melt 1T butter* in a 10" ovenproof nonstick skillet over medium high heat. Add sausage, brown for 3 minutes. Stir in onion and saute 2 minutes. Transfer to a bowl. Stir in the bell pepper to combine. Return skillet to burner; heat 1T butter and the oil*.

Arrange hash browns in pan (I used a pie plate), pressing and spreading them up the sides to form a crust. Season with salt and pepper then dot with 1T butter. Cook 10 minutes or until the edges start to turn brown.

Sprinkle fontina over potato shell. Spoon sausage mixture over cheese.

Whisk together eggs, cream,hot sauce, salt & pepper to taste; pour over sausage and cheese.

Arrange tomatos on top. Sprinkle with Parmesan. Bake for 25 minutes or until filling is firm and tip of knife inserted near the center comes out clean. Let stand 5 minuts then run a spatula around the edge to loosen quiche. Slide onto a serving dish (I didn't) and cut into wedges. Combine sour cream and chives and add a dollop to each slice.

*I cut out the butter and the oil the second time I made this. It doesn't need it, in my opinion, and made it oily.

Meat & Cheese Calzones

I made this recipe last weekend when I was craving a cheesy pizza. They were a big hit with everyone. The great thing is that you can make any filling you want. I'm a pretty traditional pizza person so I used meat & cheese...

This is a pretty extensive recipe- everything is from scratch- but I promise that once you make these you won't want pizza delivery again.

Meat & Cheese Calzones

The recipe is from Cuisine at Home Magazine, February 2008.

Let's begin with the dough.

1 c warm water
1 pkg active dry yeast
1/4 t sugar
2 T olive oil

3 c bread flour
1 T sugar
2 t salt

Proof water, yeast and 1/4 t sugar in small bowl. Let stand 15 minutes then stir in oil. (Proofing yeast lets you know it's still alive. If the yeast you have mixed with the warm water and sugar is foamy and bubbly after 15 minutes it's active. If it's not you need new yeast- it won't rise)

Blend flour, sugar and salt in food processor or stand mixer with dough hook. With the machine running slowly add yeast mixture and process until a ball forms around the blade (about 30 seconds). If using a stand mixer let it run for another 10 minutes. If using a food processor knead the dough on a well-floured surface until smooth then form into ball. Place dough in a bowl that has been coated in non-stick spray, cover with plastic wrap and let rise 1 hour. Punch dough down, divide into four balls. Place on baking sheet coated with non-stick spray, cover and let rise 30-40 minutes more.

While the dough rises
prepare your filling

cornmeal
1/2 lb bulk Italian sausage
1 1/4 c fresh mozzarella, cubed (about 6 oz)
1 1/4 c ricotta
2/3 c shredded Parmesan
2/3 c pepperoni slices (4 oz)
olive oil

Preheat oven to 500 degrees. Liberally dust baking sheet with cornmeal (this keeps the calzone from sticking and creates a crunchy crust).

Saute sausage in a non-stick skillet over medium-high heat until coked through. Drain then combine with cheeses, pepperoni and salt. Let cool until dough has risen- you don't want the filling to be too hot when you make the calzones.

Dust counter with flour and roll dough into a 10" circle. Place 1 c of filling in the center of the bottom half of the circle. Rub edge with water and fold dough over filling so edges meet. Seal by pressing edges with a fork. Repeat with remaining dough and filling. Bake until golden, 10-15 minutes. Let rest 3 minutes, brush with oil. Garnish with parslet and shredded Parmesan if desired.

Serve with marinara

1/4 c olive oil
1 c diced onion
3 garlic cloves, sliced
1/4 t red pepper flakes
4 c fresh tomatoes, halved or quartered
1 t sugar
salt & pepper to taste
basil to garnish

Heat oil in large saute pan over medium. Add onion, cook util soft. Stir in garlic & pepper flakes; saute 1 minute.

Add tomatoes and sugar. Cook until tomatoes soften, about 5 minutes, then crush with a potato masher. Simmer 5-8 minutes to thicken; season with salt & pepper. Pulse in food processor if desired. Garnish with basil.

Sweet Zucchini Cupcakes with Cream Cheese Frosting

Sometimes I send treats to work with Doug. His co-workers all seem to appreciate it. Go figure...

Not long ago I sent these and received rave reviews:

Sweet Zucchini Cupcakes with Cream Cheese Frosting
A reader recipe from Everyday Food

Makes 12 * Prep Time 20 minutes * Total Time 1 hour 30 minutes

You'll Need
1 1/2 c all purpose flour (spooned and leveled)
1 c packed dark brown sugar
2t baking powder
1/2 t ground cinnamon
1/2 t salt
1/2 c coursely chopped pecans or walnuts (optional)
1 zucchini, coarsely grated (1 1/2 c)
1/3 c vegetable oil
2 large eggs, lightly beaten
1/2 t vanilla extract

Directions:
Preheat oven to 350. Line muffin tin with paper cups.

In a medium bowl mix flour, brown sugar, baking powder, cinnamon and salt. Mix in nuts.

In another bowl combine zucchini, oil, eggs and vanilla; add to flour mixture and mix until combined. Do not over mix.

Divide batter among cups. Bake until a toothpick insrted comes out clean; 40 to 45 minutes.

Cool completely.

Make cream cheese frosting:
Beat 4 T room temperature unsalted butter and 4oz room temperature bar cream cheese until smooth. Add 2 c confectioners sugar and 1/2 t vanilla extract. Beat until light and fluffy. Refrigerate until ready to use.

Tomato and Fresh Mozzarella Salad

I bring you: the easiest summer salad ever.

You need:
large tomato
fresh mozzarella
fresh basil
olive oil
salt & pepper to taste

What you do:
Slice tomato
Slice cheese
Arrange prettily on plate
Chop basil and sprinkle over tomato and mozzarella
Sprinkle with salt and fresh ground pepper
Drizzle with olive oil or balsamic vinegar
Chill to let flavors combine
Enjoy!

Chocolate Zucchini Cake

Last fall Doug acquired a monster zucchini from a co-worker:

So with it I made Chocolate Zucchini Cake:

Recipe from Meritt's An American Housewife blog. Where I see other zucchini recipes. And since I still have zucchini you may see more appearing here...

Recipe will make one large bundt or two loaves.

1 3/4 c sugar
3 eggs
1 c vegetable oil
2 c shredded zucchini
1 T vanilla
3 c flour
1/2 c cocoa
1 1/4 t salt
1 t baking soda
1 t cinnamon
dash baking powder
1/2 c mini chocolate chips

Preheat oven to 350. Lightly grease a bundt pan. In a bowl mix together the sugar, eggs and oil until blended. Stir in zucchini and vanilla. In another bowl whisk together the flour, cocoa, salt, soda, cinnamon and baking powder. Add the dry ingredients to the wet and stir just until blended. Add the mini chocolate chips. Pour into pan and bake 1 hour until done. Cool completely and drizzle with chocolate frosting or sprinkle with powdered sugar just before serving with whipped cream or vanilla ice cream.

I actually doubled the recipe and made a bundt, a "baby" bundt and a loaf. Doug took the bundt to work where it was extinguished almost immediately. The girls love it and my nephews, very picky eaters, love it. It's moist and chocolately. Mmmmm....

Fudgy Brownies

This is my absolute favorite comfort food. If I am craving something chocolately and chewy this is what I make. Honestly, I used to make these so much that I had the recipe memorized!

1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter
2 ounces unsweetened chocolate
1 cup granulated sugar
2 large eggs
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/3 cup all-purpose flour
1/8 teaspoon salt
1 cup chopped nuts, optional (I opt out of the nuts- I'm a brownie purist!)

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.
Melt the butter and chocolate together in a medium pan over very low heat. Stir together and remove from the heat. Add sugar, eggs and vanilla. Mix well. Stir in the flour and salt. Add nuts. Spread the mixture into a buttered 8-inch square pan. Bake until set, about 40 minutes. Cool before cutting.

The recipe and photo are both from Food Network.