Broccoli and Cheddar Quiche

Quiche is great for any meal − breakfast with sliced fruit, lunch with a light salad, or dinner with a glass of white wine. Make it even easier by using a store-bought crust. Remove the crust from the freezer and thaw for about 10 minutes, prick all over with a fork, and bake at 400-degrees for about 10-15 minutes, remove from oven and set aside. Turn down the oven heat to 325-degrees while you prepare the filling.

Today I used broccoli and cheddar, but use any combination of vegetable and/or meat and cheese that you have on hand for the filling. The method is the same − pre-bake the crust; sauté the filling ingredients in a tablespoon or two of butter until soft, then set aside; grate the cheese; and whisk the custard ingredients in a separate bowl. Place your cooked filling on the bottom of the pie crust, sprinkle with the cheese, pour the custard on top, and bake!

Recipe

FILLING IDEAS
★ 1/2 c. thinly sliced shallots or onion, 1 cup chopped broccoli, 1 c. grated cheddar cheese (pictured above)
★ 1/2 c. thinly sliced shallots, (1) 10-oz. pkg. frozen chopped spinach, defrost and squeeze out all the water, 1 c. grated gruyere cheese. For this quiche I sautéed the shallots separately and put on the bottom of the pie crust, sprinkled the cheese, spread the spinach on top of the cheese and pour the custard on top.
★ 6-8 slices cooked bacon, crumbled, 2 chopped green onions, 1 c. grated gruyere or swiss cheese
★ 1-1/2 lbs. asparagus cut into 1" pieces and cooked, toss with 1 c. freshly grated parmesan
★ Onion Quiche: Peel and slice 4-5 medium onions, saute in 1/4 c. butter until soft and brown and all the moisture has cooked away, and season highly with salt, pepper and paprika. I don't usually add cheese to this one. Makes a good appetizer if you bake in a square pan and cut into bite-size square pieces.

CUSTARD
1 c. heavy cream
4 eggs
3/4 tsp. salt
1/8 tsp. freshly ground black pepper
1/8 tsp. cayenne
pinch of freshly grated nutmeg
Beat the ingredients with a whisk for about 15-20 seconds. Pour over filling ingredients.

Put the quiche on a baking sheet and bake at 325-degrees for about 50 minutes.

Mushroom Velouté

The nights are longer, the weather is crisp and rainy − time for soup. This creamy mushroom soup is quick and easy, a perfect first course to a hearty beef stew. It's worth finding dried wood ear mushrooms (also known as tree ear or cloud ear) for a garnish. I found a 3-oz. package of dried cloud ear mushrooms at a Mediterranean market. Use 1 or 2 of the larger pieces as they really expand when simmered in the soup.

Recipe

2 T. butter
1 c. sliced shallots
1 T. very thinly sliced garlic (or use a vegetable peeler)
1-1/2 T. flour
4 c. chicken stock, heated
3/4 tsp. salt
1/4 tsp. freshly ground black pepper
1 pound button mushrooms, washed and coarsely chopped
1-2 pieces dried cloud ear mushroom
1/3 c. sliced almonds, toasted for a few minutes on top of the stove or in the oven until lightly browned
1 c. half 'n half

Heat the butter in a saucepan over medium heat and add the shallots and garlic. Cook for 2 or 3 minutes or until softened. Add the flour and stir well for about a minute, then stir in the hot stock, salt, and pepper and bring to a boil.

Add the mushrooms to the stock with a few pieces of the dried cloud ear mushroom. Bring back to a boil, reduce the heat and simmer, partially covered, for 30 minutes. After about ten minutes, remove the cloud ear mushroom, let it cool, then slice in strips to use as a garnish when the soup is done.

When the soup is done, use an immersion blender to puree the soup to a creamy consistency. You can make the soup ahead at this point. When ready to serve, heat the soup, add the half 'n half, stir, and bring back to a boil. Take off the heat and ladle into bowls. Garnish with some of the cloud ear mushroom strips and sliced almonds on top.

– Jacques Pépin, "Fast Food My Way"

Mini Almond Cakes in Raspberry Sauce

The almond cakes can be made a day in advance. Just strain the raspberry sauce, add fresh fruit and you have a quick, delicious and healthy dessert. Serves 4.

Recipe

ALMOND CAKES
1/4 c. whole raw almonds
1/4 c. sugar
1/4 c. flour
1/4 tsp. baking powder
1 egg
3 T. melted butter
2 T. dark rum

RASPBERRY SAUCE
12 oz. frozen raspberries, defrosted
1/3 c. strawberry or raspberry preserves (seedless)

GARNISH
1/2 c. blueberries
1/2 c. sliced strawberries
4 sprigs fresh mint

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Put 4 paper liners in muffin tins. Put the almonds, sugar, flour, and baking powder in a small food processor and process until smooth. In a medium bowl whisk together the egg, melted butter and rum. Add the almond mixture and whisk gently until just combined. Pour the batter into the muffin cups and bake 15 minutes. Unmold and cool on a rack.

For the sauce, push the defrosted raspberries through a food mill and then strain through a sieve.

Put the almond cakes on a plate and surround them with the fresh fruit. Generously drizzle the sauce over, garnish with a sprig of mint and serve. If you like your cakes more saturated, roll them around in the raspberry sauce, then put on a plate.

– Jacques Pépin, "More Fast Food My Way"

Vegetable Risotto

Hearty and creamy. Feel free to add whatever vegetables you like. For mine I used fennel, asparagus, peas, red pepper and mushrooms.

Recipe

2 T. olive oil
1/4 c. chopped onion
1 c. Arborio rice
32 oz. vegetable stock
2/3 c. chopped fennel bulb
5 asparagus spears, trimmed, peeled and cut into 1/2" pieces
1 c. frozen peas
1 red pepper, peeled (peel with a vegetable peeler), seeded and chopped
5 large mushrooms cut into 1/4" thick strips
3/4 tsp. salt
1/2 c. freshly grated Parmesan
2 T. butter

Heat the oil in a large skillet, then add the onion and sauté for 1 minute. Add the rice, stir well, then stir in 2-1/2 c. of the stock. Cook for 12 minutes, covered, over medium heat – stir 2 or 3 times otherwise the rice will stick to the bottom of the pan. Uncover and continue cooking, stirring occasionally, until the stock has been absorbed.

Add the fennel, along with another cup of the stock and cook, covered, for 5 minutes, stirring once or twice.

Add the remainder of the vegetables, the remaining stock and the salt and cook, uncovered for another 5-10 minutes, stirring until the mixture is creamy and the rice is tender. Remove from the heat, stir in the cheese and butter and serve immediately. Top with more grated parmesan.

– adapted from Jacques Pépin, "Essential Pepin"

Stuffed Artichoke Hearts

An elegant start to any meal. You can trim a whole artichoke to get at the heart, or buy frozen artichoke bottoms at any Mediterranean market. The cooking method is the same whether fresh or frozen (no need to thaw the frozen artichoke bottoms). I served as a first course to a grilled New York steak with lemon-thyme butter and vegetable risotto.

Recipe

2 T. butter
2 c. chopped mushrooms (1/2" pieces)
1 T. cognac
2/3 c. heavy cream
1/4 tsp. salt
1/8 tsp. freshly ground pepper
1 T. chopped mixed fresh tarragon and parsley
1/2 tsp. potato starch dissolved in 1 T. cold water
6 artichoke hearts (bottoms)
2 T. freshly ground parmesan (or pecorino romano)

Cook the artichoke hearts (bottoms) in 4 c. water, 2 T. olive oil, 2 T. fresh lemon juice and 1/2 tsp. salt. Bring to a boil, reduce the heat, and simmer 35-40 minutes until hearts are tender when pierced with a knife. Remove from heat, drain and arrange on a baking sheet.

For the sauce, melt the butter in a large saucepan over medium heat. Add the mushrooms and cook until the liquid from the mushrooms has evaporated. Add the cognac and cook for 30 seconds (you can flame it, or not). Add 1/4 c. of the cream, salt, pepper and herbs and bring to a boil. Add the dissolved potato starch, mix well and boil to thicken. Remove from the heat.

Preheat the broiler.

Whip the remaining cream until stiff and rapidly fold into the mushroom mixture; immediately fill the artichoke bottoms and sprinkle with the cheese. Put under the broiler for 2 minutes or until browned.

– Jacques Pépin, "Essential Pepin"

Asparagus with Mustard Sauce

The mustard sauce adds a bite to the smooth taste of asparagus. Best when served immediately after cooking the asparagus, while it's still warm. The sauce can be made ahead of time - cover and keep refrigerated until serving time.

Recipe

2 eggs, hard boiled and peeled
1-1/4 lbs. asparagus
salt
1 T. minced fresh chives for garnish

MUSTARD SAUCE
1/2 c. mayonnaise
2 T. Dijon mustard
1 T. water
1 T. red wine vinegar
Freshly ground black pepper

Put the hard boiled eggs, one at a time, in an egg slicer. Cut through them, then rotate 45-degrees in the slicer and cut through them again to create strips. If you don't have an egg slicer, chop with a sharp knife. Set aside.

If your asparagus are thick, peel the lower third with a vegetable peeler and snap off the ends, otherwise cut off the tough bottom part of the stalks. In a large saucepan, bring 3 c. salted water to a boil over high heat. Add the asparagus in one layer, cover partially and bring back to a boil; cook for 3-5 minutes (depending on thickness of the asparagus) until tender but still firm. Remove from the pan with a slotted spatula and put on a platter.

For the sauce put all the ingredients together in a small bowl and whisk until smooth.

At serving time, arrange the spears so the bottoms are close together and the tips are fanned out. Coat the lower third of the asparagus spears with the sauce and sprinkle the eggs and chives over and around them.

– Jacques Pepin, "More Fast Food My Way"