Quiche

Well I thought I was done with the blog on brunch, but my friend Jackie just won’t be happy until I post my quiche recipe. Quiche  is not as difficult as people make out it is just a simple savory egg custard. And yes real men do eat quiche and I will stomp on anyone who says different. This recipe is not mine but my Dad’s. Follow the basics and add whatever fillings you like.  Thanks to the quality of premade pie shells you don’t even have to bother with the mess of pie dough. I prefer Chef Pierre Pie Shells, they are the sturdiest.  Most of the time they come in packs of  2 shells. If you are in the Midwest and can get to a GFS store they sell them in packs of 5 shells. The following recipe is for 1 basic quiche.

Ingredients

3 large eggs

1 1/2 cups of heavy cream

1/2 tsp of salt

pinch of nutmeg

dash or 2 of tabasco depending on taste

1 cup of grated cheese( Gruyere, Cheddar, and Parmesan are the most common)

1 pie crust thawed out

1 to 1 1/2 cup of filling( cooked bacon, sauteed veggies, chopped ham, sliced cooked potatoes, Etc. whatever you like)

Preheat oven to 375. Line pie shell with parchment paper and fill with pie weights or dry beans and par-cook for 15 minutes. Remove parchment and save the beans to use again as  weights. Saute fillings together, cool, and grate cheese. Beat the eggs and cream together with the salt, tabasco and nutmeg and add fillings and cheese. pour into pie shell and bake for 30 to 35 minutes at 375 until set and firm. Let cool  for about 10 minutes and serve.

Italian Frittata Casserole

So here we are the last of our Sunday Brunch Blogs. Today is an Italian Frittata in a casserole dish made with orzo. It is pretty simple and you can get everything ready but the egg mixture  a day or two before hand.

Ingredients

1 cup of dry orzo

10 eggs

1 cup ricotta cheese

1 lb of  Italian sausage in bulk or 4- 4ounce links skin removed

1 medium onion diced

1 red pepper seeded and diced

1 green pepper seeded and diced

1 cup of parmesan cheese

2 tbl chopped chives

3 tbl of minced basil

salt and pepper to taste

olive oil

1 cup shredded fontina cheese

Cook Orzo according to directions on box, cool and set aside.  Crumble sausage in a saute pan and cook till browned and add onions. Saute until soft and add peppers, basil and chives. Cook until peppers are soft. You can cool the mixture or continue on. You need to have the mixture hot before you can finish if you prepared it ahead.

Beat eggs until foamy and add the two cheeses and mix in well. Oil a large casserole dish with olive oil and heat oven to 375. Toss cooled orzo into sausage and pepper mixture and cook under high heat until orzo just starts to crisp up and brown a bit. Season mix with salt and pepper to taste and take off heat. Let cool a few minutes and quickly stir in egg mix and pour into casserole. Bake for approx 20 minutes until set up. Sprinkle top with shredded fontina and brown under a broiler. Serve hot.

I hope you have enjoyed the brunch items I have layed out. One of the best parts of brunch is that you can put out practically anything you want  for your guests. If there is a favorite breakfast dish or other item you really like make sure to serve it. I am only try to give ideas here and not trying to stick you with a menu. Make sure to have lots of fruits and breads and cheeses for people to sample as well as lots of coffee and plenty of cocktails. You may even want to try some cold seafood trays or some hot seafood dishes. A baked ham or piece of roasted turkey breast or beef is also popular.  Hope you and your friends have a successful brunch. When you have one let me know and I will post your comments. You can even send pictures and I will put them up for  all to see.

Thanks for Reading

Eat Well and Enjoy Each Other

Chef Tim