Quiche

I tried making a quiche today.  I used an instant pie crust that I found at the store.  I started with a quiche recipe from my sister-in-law, which I've had before and liked.  Unfortunately, the directions said to use a frozen crust, and since I already had the instant crust already made, I thought the baking directions might be inappropriate.

So I used this quiche recipe instead.  Of course, this recipe didn't use a pie crust, but I figured it would all work out.  I made the recipe as instructed (but added ham to mine in addition to the bacon).  In the mixing step, I wasn't able to get all of the flour lumps out.  I didn't want to start over, and I thought they were small enough, so I have it a shot.  I poured the quiche liquid into the pie crust and cooked, as instructed, for 35 minutes at 350 degrees.

At the end of 35 minutes, I tested it with a fork.  It was still soup!  I decided to cook it longer, and ended up cooking it for a total of 1 hr 15 mins to get it to where I was satisfied.  What the heck?!

I took it out of the oven, let it cool, and tasted it.  Overall, the flavor was good.  However, the pie crust wasn't quite done.  You couldn't tell based on the taste, though.

I wish to try again with another recipe.  Anyone have a good, simple recipe that you'd like to share?

Boeuf Bourguignon

Today's experiment - something French.  Inspired by the movie, Julie & Julia, I decided to try to make boeuf bourguignon.  I found a recipe that I liked, thanks to Google.  First I needed to find a bottle of Pinot of Burgundy.  I went to the local grocery store, which has a very decent wine selection, but I did not see it.  I then went to a wine store and asked the cellarperson if they had any.  They did not have any from Burgandy, but he was able to recommend a reasonably-priced "old world" pinot noir.

When I got home, I started the marinading process.  I let the meat marinate for the recommended 48 hours.  Today, the marinade was done.  After a lot of chopping, stiring, crying (lots of onions), and 3 hours of simmering, we were ready to eat.

I served the boeuf bourguignon over "no yolk" egg-white noodles.  On the side, I sauteed some carrots from the garden in some margarine and brown sugar.  It was very good - the meat was extremely tender and juicy.  The burgandy gravy was also interesting and unique.

Overall, I'd recommend it if you generally like beef stew and don't mind spending a lot of time in the kitchen (definitely a weekend meal).

• Recipe: Boeuf Bourguignon
  

Cranberry Chai Bread

I was looking through an old issue of Cooking for Two and found an interesting recipe for cranberry chai bread.  It has sweet potato, cream cheese, chai tea, cranberries, and more.  I didn't realize the recipe was for a mini-loaf until after I bought ingredients, so instead of a bread pan I made cupcakes.  They turned out very tastey.

• Recipe: Cranberry Chai Tea (Google cache)
  

Leftover Ham

I made a baked ham this past weekend, I wanted to maximize my use of the leftover ham.  I chose some recipes to make use of it -

 Ham & Potato Soup

I found this one on All Recipes.  I was a little concerned that it would be bland due to the lack of seasoning, but based on the reviews I decided to try it.  It was delicious.  I froze most of it for later consumption.

Vodka Pasta

Not really a recipe - more of a method.  It is something that I came up with after having it at a local Italian restaurant.

Scalloped Potatoes

My mom used to make scalloped potatoes when I was a kid.  It was a family favorite.  I tried her recipe, but it didn't turn out very well.  It tasted too "floury".  I think I didn't add enough milk.

Well, 2 out of 3 isn't bad. :)

Carrot Cake

It was Wanda's birthday today.  She wanted a home-made birthday cake.  She found a recipe, and for the first time, I made my own cake from scratch.  It wasn't hard, but it was time consuming.  It turned out delicious!  Not the most healthy treat, but it was yummy.

• Recipe: Carrot Cake