Spinach & Pancetta Quiche

Well it’s official folks, I had my first big cry at work this past weekend… I thought I would make it through my first week without a hitch, but sadly I only got to day 3. By the time I got home on Friday night I was so brain dead that brushing my teeth required strict concentration 🙂 There were moments I contemplated just running out of the hospital with my hands above my head screaming obscenities!

Well with all this work nonsense going on, and the fact that I pretty much never have the opportunity to eat anymore, I decided to make something comforting for when I get home from work at midnight. I know shouldn’t complain since I have lost at least 5 lbs without even trying, but dammit people I’m freaking hungry!!

I know some of you might not think quiche + midnight = comfort food, but in my mind it is the perfect late night dinner. First off you can make it ahead of time, and then just cut yourself a slice whenever the mood. Second there is cured meat and cheese in there need I say more!

Ingredients (preheat oven to 350) Makes 4 serving

• 7 large eggs
• 2 table spoons heavy cream
• 3 tablespoons water
• salt and pepper to taste
• 4oz pancetta diced
• 1 + 1/2 cups sharp white cheddar cheese shredded
• 2 green onions (thinly sliced)
• 1/2 a box of defrosted chopped spinach drained
• 1 frozen pie crust defrosted

Directions

Start by pan frying the pancetta over medium heat until crispy, drain and let cool on a paper towel. In a mixing bowl crack eggs, add cream, water, salt and  pepper. Mix to combine with a whisk. Next, add 1 cup of cheddar cheese, green onions, drained spinach, and cooled pancetta stir to combine.  Transfer egg mixture to your defrosted pie crust, top with remaining 1/2 cup of cheese and cook for 40-45 minutes at 350. The center should not wiggle and the cheese should be lightly browned.

Brown Sugar Banana Cake

Last night I spent my evening with a great group of woman supporting the nonprofit organization Dining for Women. This months featured program was the Children of Vietnam. In a nut shell everyone brings a tradition dish to pass from the country that we are supporting. While we eat, we learn about the county and what our money will do to help support the women and children. At the end of the meeting you have the opportunity to donate if you feel so inclined. There is also wine and mingling, which is always good in my book!  If you don’t know much about this charity follow my link above. It’s a great organization that donates to a deserving cause each and every month.

With all the great food that was shared last night, I was inspired to get into the kitchen. While this recipe is far from ethnic I felt it was perfect for my day off.  And with a slight chill in the air I knew I needed to get my oven fired up. I also had 3 bananas that are about to go bad, so that was really the driving factor 🙂

Ingredients (Makes 8 servings)

• 1 cup granulated sugar
• 8 tablespoons (1 stick) unsalted butter, room temperature
• 2 large eggs
• 3 ripe bananas
• 1 tablespoon milk
• 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
• 2 cups all purpose flour
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 1 teaspoon salt

Brown Sugar and Cinnamon Topping

• 1/2 cup light brown sugar
• 1 teaspoon cinnamon

Stir to combine

Directions

Preheat the oven to 325 degrees F. Butter and flour  a 9in pie dish.

Cream the sugar and butter in a large mixing bowl until light and fluffy. Add the eggs one at a time, beating well after each addition.

In a small bowl, mash the bananas with a fork. Mix in the milk, vanilla, and cinnamon. In another bowl, mix together the flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt.

Add the banana mixture to the creamed mixture and stir until combined. Add dry ingredients, mixing just until flour disappears.

Pour batter into your prepared pan and top with brown sugar and cinnamon topping.

Bake for 50 minutes to 1 hour, or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. Set aside to cool on a rack for 15 minutes. Slice and top with a slab of butter and enjoy

Recipe was adapted from foodnetwork.com

Cinnamon Toast Crunch Bars

Well folks the big half marathon weekend has come and gone… I’m hear to report that I have survived :). But sadly all this running has forced me to start hitting the bottle hard…. the Ibuprofen bottle that is! Lets just say  I’m walking like a 95 year old woman, an it isn’t pretty. Besides all the leg pain I must say that the entire weekend was so much fun, and I’m so proud of what I have accomplished!

Since we were going to be up in Door County all weekend  I wanted to bring some snacks along to share with my fellow runners. In addition to the healthy snacks, I also made something sweet that could work for breakfast, or an after dinner treat. This recipe is so easy that even the baking challenged can make this!

Ingredients

• 4 Cups Mini Marshmallows
• 1/4 Cup Unsalted Butter
• 4 1/2 Cups of Cinnamon Toast Crunch Cereal

Directions

Start by spraying a 9×9 pan, and a large mixing bowl with with cooking spray. Melt the butter over low heat in a medium sauce pan. Add the marshmallows and cook till you have a smooth mixture. Combine the marshmallow mixture with the cinnamon toast crunch in the large bowl. Transfer to your prepared pan and allow to cool. Slice and serve.

These little treats totally hit the spot, and with only 3 ingredients they will be a making an appearance in my house time and time again! I hope everyone had a great weekend 🙂

Breakfast Pizza

To help celebrate a friends Birthday a few weekends ago I decided to make a big breakfast pizza to bring along to eat the next morning. I love making homemade pizza since I get to pick all the ingredients. For this pizza I like to keep it very traditional with your standard breakfast ingredients. To start preheat your oven to 400, and insert your pizza stone to let it start warming up. (If you don’t already have a pizza stone they are a great investment, and take your pizza crust from good to FANTASTIC! Here is a link to the one I use, it is Food Network brand from Kohls.)

Ingredients

• 1 fresh or frozen pizza dough brought to room temperature
•  Flour for dusting
• 2 Tablespoons of Olive Oil ( Use your Misto if you have one,  or a small brush if you don’t)
• 3 Eggs scrambled
• 1/2 lb of  Country sausage
• 1/2 Cup of assorted diced peppers
• 1 Small diced onion  (1/3 cup)
• 1 1/2 Cups shredded Colby Jack cheese.
• 1 Tablespoon chopped Parsley

Special Items Needed

• Rolling pin
• Parchment paper
• Pizza stone

Directions

Begin by preparing the pizza dough. Roll the dough into  a 12 inch round using  a rolling pin, adding flour as need. Transfer to a sheet of parchment paper to avoid any sticking, and place pizza on a cookie sheet since you will be transferring it into the oven. If you are not using a pizza stone place the pizza on whatever pan you plan to bake it on. Next  spray the dough using your Misto or brush with olive oil.  Allow the dough to rest while you prepare the other ingredients.

Cook the 3 eggs in a pan till just under done (They will finish cooking in the oven). In a separate pan cook the Country sausage along with the diced pepper and onions. Allow this mixture to cool before assembling the pizza.

To assemble start with the eggs. Spread evenly over the pizza leaving a 1 inch boarder. Top eggs with half of the cheese. Next add the sausage, pepper, and onion mixture . Finish by topping with the remaining shredded cheese and a sprinkle of parsley.

Since I am not baking my pizza right away I will cover it, and store it in the refrigerator over night.  In the morning I will allow the pizza to come to room temperature while my oven and stone preheat.

For those of you that plan on baking yours right away transfer pizza to your warmed pizza stone, and bake for  12-15 minutes. It many take a few minutes longer for those of you using an aluminum pizza pan. So watch your oven.

Once the pizza is bubbly, and starting to brown remove from the oven and allow the pizza to cool just slightly. Slice and serve warm with a big cup of coffee or an Almost Famous Bloody Mary!

This turned out so good I can’t wait to make it again!

Almost Famous Blood Mary

If you ever have the chance visit Milwaukee for the weekend, and have some time to spare on Sunday morning you will more than likely find yourself at a local bar/restaurant eating brunch. In addition to the eating you will also find yourself drinking. Correct I said it, day drinking, and no that doesn’t mean you have a problem 🙂

If you like Bloody Mary’s “Bloody’s”  this city is the one for you! We take our drinking very serious here, and that can also be said about our Bloody Mary’s. I’m not just taking tomato juice some celery salt and a dash of hot sauce. The Bloody’s around Milwaukee are truly gourmet. From the house made flavored vodkas, to the blue cheese stuffed  olives, and the plethora of toppings. These Sunday morning drinks can in them selves be a full meal.

Having lived in Milwaukee for the last 7 years I can say that I have been around the block when it comes to sampling Bloody’s in the city.  I know I may be impartial to one, (Alex, my boyfriend used to bar-tend here) but I truly believe The Wicked Hop serves the best Bloody Mary in the city. Since I have the inside scoop on the recipe I would like to share it with you so you can have this drink any day of the week! (This is not the exact recipe that the Wicked Hop uses, but I believe it comes very close)

Here is a shot of Lambeau trying to help me gather all my ingredients… That last all of 7 seconds

Here are all the ingredient you will need. I know it may look like over kill, but you probably have most ,if not all of these thing in your fridge already.

Recipe ( Makes 4 12oz Serving)

• 5 Cups V-8
• 1 Cup Vodka (Please don’t use your Grey Goose for this recipe. Flishmans or Smirnoff will do just fine)
• 1 Tablespoon Dijon Mustard
• 1/2 Tablespoon Horseradish
• 11/2 Tablespoon A-1 steak sauce
• 11/2 Tablespoon Worcestershire
• 4 Dash’s of Celery Salt
• Hot Sauce to Taste

Directions.

Place 1 cup of V8 , Dijon, horseradish, A-1, celery salt, hot sauce, and Worcestershire  into a martini shaker ( I find this the best way to mix the ingredients thoroughly) and shake shake shake. Add this mixture to the rest of the V8 and Vodka,  stir to combine. Serve in tall glasses filled with ice and a straw. For the finishing touch top with my list of must have fixings below!

In addition to this recipe you also need some good Fixings to turn this into a real meal. The Wicked Hop serves their Bloody’s with string cheese whips,  blue cheese stuffed olive, beef stick, pickled mushroom, baby dill pickle, jumbo shrimp, lemon, and lime wedges.

For my version I like to change it up a little bit. I prefer

Must Have Fixings

1) String cheese whips

2) Beef stick

3) Pickle

4) Celery stalk

5) Lemon and lime

This is hands down the best Bloody Mary in Milwaukee! Thank god I live within walking distance!

Cinnamon Roll Cookies

Recently while scouring Pintrest (AKA my new obsession) I found this great recipe for cinnamon roll pancakes from the blog Life as a Lofthouse. This recipe inspired me to try out the concept of cinnamon roll cookies! Cinnamon Rolls without all the yeast and rising time, I mean what could be better. While searching around the internet  I found a great recipe for cinnamon roll cookies on Real Simple. I used their basic sugar cookie recipe as my cookie base. Then finished by following the directions for their Cinnamon Pinwheels. Recipe below.

Ingredients

• 2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour, spooned and leveled, plus more for shaping the cookies
• 1/4 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/4 teaspoon kosher salt
• 1 cup unsalted butter (2 sticks), at room temperature
• 3/4 cup sugar
• 1large egg
• 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

Directions

1. In a large bowl, whisk together the flour, baking soda, and salt. Set aside.
2. Using an electric mixer, beat the butter and sugar until smooth. Add the egg and beat until fluffy, about 2 minutes. Beat in the vanilla.
3. With the mixer on low, gradually add the flour mixture, mixing until just incorporated (the dough will be stiff). Shape into a disk and (unless otherwise specified in an individual recipe) refrigerate, wrapped, for at least 1 hour and up to 3 days.

I allowed the dough to rest for an hour then followed the steps below to create the perfect cinnamon roll cookies.

Directions

1. Divide the Basic sugar cookie dough in half (do not substitute slice-and-bake dough). On a floured surface, roll each piece into an 8-by-12-inch rectangle.
2. Sprinkle with a mixture of ¼ cup sugar and 1 teaspoon cinnamon.
3. Starting from a long side, roll each rectangle into a log. Refrigerate until firm. Slice ¼ inch thick.
4. Bake at 350° F on parchment-lined baking sheets until just beginning to brown, 15 to 18 minutes.
5. Cool slightly on baking sheets, then transfer to wire racks to cool completely

Since this recipe didn’t include frosting, and I don’t know any cinnamon roll that doesn’t have frosting, I decided too add some to jazz things up!

Frosting Recipe

• 2 tablespoons unsalted butter melted
• 1 cup powered sugar
• 1/2 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
• 2 teaspoons milk

Whisk ingredients together and drizzle over the top of the cookies (Be sure that the cookies are completely cooled).

Yeh I totally think they needed the frosting drizzle! Ok, I guess that means it’s snack time! Happy Hump Day everyone!

French Toasted Goodness

Several months ago on a weekend trip to Door County I had the privilege of eating breakfast at The White Gull Inn. This quaint little hotel and restaurant has the most fantastic cherry stuffed french toast, and if you ever get the chance I would recommend you experience it for yourself. Ever since this trip I’ve been craving that sweet and savory breakfast dish. This past weekend my boyfriend (Alex) and were expecting his sister, her husband and their 9 month old, and I thought this would be the perfect time to treat my guests to a wonderful Sunday breakfast. Luckily I was able to locate the recipe using the web to use as a guide.

     Ingredients

• 1 loaf egg bread, unsliced ( I used Brioche from a local Milwaukee bakery)
• 1 8-ounce packages cheese cream, room temperature
• 1 cups tart Montmorency cherries, drained, divided ( I subbed frozen tart cherries)
• 3 eggs
• 1/2 cup milk
• cinnamon, for garnish
• powdered sugar, for garnish
• maple syrup, for garnish

     Cooking Directions

Trim ends from loaf and cut bread into six 1 1/2 inch thick slices. Make a cut three-quarters down the middle of each slice. Bread will appear to have to separate slices, but will be joined together at the bottom. Set aside.

In a small bowl, mix together cream cheese and one cup of the cherries. Spread approximately 1/6 cup of the mixture into the pocket of each slice of bread. Gently press slices together, evenly distributing filling.

In a separate bowl, beat eggs and milk together. Dip stuffed slices into egg mixture and coat all sides. Place immediately on a lightly oiled, heated griddle and sprinkle with cinnamon. Cook over medium heat until golden brown, turning to cook second side.

Remove cooked slices from griddle and place on a cutting board. Gently make a diagonal cut through each slice, forming two triangles. Arrange two triangles on individual plates. Sprinkle with powdered sugar and remaining cherries. Serve with maple syrup and butter.

Here are some shots of the end result!

Now look at the mound of french toast goodness! Trust me it tasted just as good as I remembered! The funny thing about this entire post is the fact that our house guests had to cancel at the last minute so poor Alex and I were stuck eating all of this…. Good thing it tastes just as good the next day! Did anyone do any cooking, baking, entertaining this weekend?