Apple Pear Crumble

I made this for breakfast... it could be dessert, too!

Apple Pear Crumble

2 apples
2 pears
juice of 1/2 a lemon
1 T. sugar
1/3 C. (40g) flour
1/3 C. rolled oats
1/3 C. (60g) dark brown sugar
1/4 t. ground cinnamon
1/4 t. ground ginger
a few grates of nutmeg
pinch salt
2.5 T butter

- Preheat oven to 375F. Lightly great an 8x8 casserole dish or pie plate.
- Chop apples and pears into 1/2in (1cm) cubes. Place in bowl, pour on lemon and sugar and toss to combine. Transfer to baking dish.
- In a small bowl, combine the flour, oats, sugar, spices and salt. Cut the butter into small pieces and drop into the bowl. Use your finger tips to work the butter into the flour mixture, rubbing it between your fingers until the butter is incorporated and the mixture looks like coarse breadcrumbs.
- Sprinkle the topping evenly over the fruit mixture and bake for 30-40 minutes or until the topping is golden and the fruit is tender. Serve hot or at room temperature.

Sauteed Califlower

Made this Whole Foods recipe last night... very good! Crunchy with great flavor!

Sauteed Cauliflower

2 Tablespoons finely diced walnuts

1 Tablespoon Romano cheese (we used Parmesan)

1 Tablespoon olive oil

4 cups chopped cauliflower florets

salt and pepper to taste

1 tablespoon water, if necessary

Heat oil in a saute pan over medium heat and saute cauliflower with salt and pepper for about 6 minutes, adding water if it starts to dry out. Combine walnuts and cheese in a small bowl. Stir cheese/walnuts in saute pan and cook for additional 2 minutes so that cauliflower is lightly coated. Serve warm.

Spinach Quiche

Doug made this for supper last night... it was really good! It is another recipe from Pamela.

Spinach Quiche

10 oz. frozen spinach, thawed

2 T. minced scallions or shallots

2 T. butter

salt, pepper & nutmeg

3 eggs

milk (enough to make 1-1/2 cups with the eggs)

1/4 cup grated Swiss cheese

8" baked pie crust

Saute spinach & scallions in butter until tender; season to taste with salt, pepper & dash of nutmeg; let cool briefly. Combine eggs & milk; add to spinach. Sprinkle cheese in pie crust; pour in spinach mixture to within 1/8" of rim. Bake in upper middle level of oven at 375 degrees Fahrenheit for 30-35 min, until quiche has puffed & top has browned. Serves 6.

Tomato Goat Cheese Tart

We had this yummy dish as part of our supper tonight. It is a recipe from Pamela.

Tomato Goat Cheese Tart

1 piecrust

1 T. Dijon mustard (Grey Poupon or similar)

3 large tomatoes, thinly sliced

5 oz. soft goat cheese

garlic powder, oregano & basil

2 T. olive oil

Place piecrust in a tart dish; prick with a fork; spread on mustard; arrange tomato slices in concentric circles; crumble cheese on top; sprinkle with a little garlic powder, oregano & basil; drizzle with oil; salt & pepper. Bake at 450 degrees for 10 min; lower heat to 350 degrees and cook for another 20 min. Serves 4.

Double Crust Apple Pie

I saw this recipe a few weeks ago on Whole Foods' blog, and I finally tried it today. Yum! And SO easy! I think I'll make it again for the church potluck Sunday since it is different than a pie you would typically have in France.

Double Crust Apple Pie

-2 pie crusts

-2 tablespoons flour

-3/4 cup brown sugar

-2 teaspoons cinnamon

-1/4 teaspoon salt

-6 apples (I used 3 gala and 3 granny smith... or you could throw in a few pears if you wanted), cored and sliced

-1 tablespoon butter, cut into small pieces

-1 tablespoon milk

-1 teaspoon raw sugar

Lay one pie crust in a pie dish. In a large bowl, combine the flour, sugar, cinnamon, and salt. Add sliced apples and stir until apples are coated with sugar mixture. Pour into pie crust and dot with butter. Lay second crust on top and cut slits for air to escape. Press edges of the two crusts together. Brush milk on the top crust and sprinkle raw sugar on top. Bake at 350 for 1 hour 15 minutes.

Mushroom Gruyère Quiche

We made this quiche this weekend and it was pretty good ! I still had a lot of mushrooms from the market, so I only used those (rather than the mixture)- they were white. Next time I might add a little bacon to it, but it was good just as it was. I liked the oven roasting method... it was much quicker and easier than browning in batches in my tiny sauté pan like I did for the mushroom bacon tart. Additionally, I don't have a kitchen scale, so I just kind of guessed on the amount of mushrooms. And I didn't have thyme so I used some herbes de Provence and some fresh Italian parsley. And one more thing- I didn't prebake the shell.

Here's the recipe:

Mushroom Gruyère Quiche
1/4 pound cremini mushrooms, cut into quarters or eighths, depending on size

1/4 pound portobello mushroom caps, diced
1/4 pound shiitake mushrooms, stems removed and discarded, cut into quarters
1/2 medium yellow onion, thinly sliced
1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon black pepper
1 frozen 9-inch pie crust, thawed
1/2 cup heavy cream
2 eggs
1 tablespoon chopped fresh thyme
4 ounces gruyère cheese, shredded (about 1.5 cups)
2 teaspoons chopped fresh thyme

Preheat oven to 400°F. In a large bowl, toss cut mushrooms with onion, olive oil, salt and pepper, then place on a rimmed baking sheet in a single layer. Roast for about 15 minutes, or until cooked and firm. Remove from oven and set aside. Prick pie shell all over with a fork. Prebake shell for 10 to 15 minutes, until lightly browned. Reduce oven temperature to 350°F. Whisk together heavy cream and eggs with thyme, salt and pepper. In a large bowl, combine roasted mushrooms, onion, gruyere and thyme. Spread this mixture in the bottom of the pie shell in an even layer. Pour cream-egg mixture over the mushroom mixture, ensuring that all of the mushroom mixture is covered. Bake for 45 to 55 minutes, or until a knife inserted into the center of the quiche comes out clean. Serve warm or at room temperature.

Fresh Mushroom Appetizer

This recipe is from my Aunt Kaye. We made it tonight and it was really good! Perfect for extra fresh mushrooms!

Fresh Mushroom Appetizer

-fresh mushrooms, sliced (I used white)

-olive oil

-fresh lemon juice

-salt and pepper

-fresh Italian parsley

Slice mushrooms. Mix equal parts good virgin olive oil, fresh lemon juice, salt pepper, minced parsley, toss! Serve on a plate with a fresh baguette!

Mushroom and Bacon Tart

We had this for supper tonight… it was surprisingly good!

Mushroom and Bacon Tart

3 slices bacon, diced

2 garlic cloves, minced

1 medium onion, thinly sliced

1 tablespoon unsalted butter

3 cups (10 oz) thinly sliced white mushrooms

2 tablespoons heavy cream

1 teaspoon Dijon mustard

1 pie crust

2 plum tomatoes, sliced ¼ inch thick

3 oz (3/4 cup) cheddar cheese, grated (I used Emmental since you can't really find cheddar in France)

1 large egg, lightly beaten, for egg wash

Cook bacon in a skillet over medium heat until crisp, about 8 minutes. Transfer bacon to a bowl with a slotted spoon. Add garlic and onion to skillet and cook until onions are translucent, about 5 minutes. Add to bowl. Melt ½ tablespoon butter in skillet and add half of the mushrooms, cook until golden on edges and softened. Transfer to bowl. Repeat with remaining half butter and mushrooms. During last 30 seconds of cooking, add cream and Dijon mustard. Add to bowl. Place pie crust in pie dish and pour in the bacon/onion/mushroom mixture. Tuck in tomatoes into mixture and top with cheese. Fold sides of crust over and brush with beaten egg. Cook at 375 for 55 minutes or until crust is golden brown and filling is bubbling. Serve warm or at room temperature.

Plum Apple Pie

I am making this pie right now with plums and apples from this morning's market. Here's the recipe...

Plum Apple Pie

-2 pie crusts (one for top, one for bottom)

-1 pound plums, stones removed, sliced

-3 large apples, chopped

-1 tablespoon lemon juice

-3/4 cup granulated sugar, plus more to dust top of pie

-3 tablespoons all purpose flour

-3/4 teaspoon cinnamon

-1 teaspoon water

-1 teaspoon milk

-1 egg yolk

Roll out pie crust into pie dish. Trim edges and brush border with water.

Mix sliced plums and chopped apples with the lemon juice in a large bowl. In a small bowl, combine the sugar, flour, and cinnamon. Pour the sugar mixture over the fruit mixture and then mix well until coated evenly. Pour fruit into pie crust. Place second pie crust on top. Trim edges and press the border to the first pie crust. In a small bowl, mix the milk and egg yolk. Brush the egg wash over the top pie crust. Cut slits in top pie crust to allow air to escape. Sprinkle granulated sugar on top of pie crust. Bake at 400 for 10 minutes, then reduce temperature to 350 for an additional 30 minutes or until crust is golden brown and filling is soft and bubbly.

Mmmm!

Guacamole

We love to make homemade guacamole! We prefer the mild version, so we don't add any hot peppers.

Guacamole

2-3 ripe avocados

1 garlic clove

juice of 1/2 lime

1/4 cup chopped onion

1/3 cup chopped tomato

salt and pepper

Remove pit from avocados and scoop out centers. Mash in a bowl. Add garlic, salt, pepper, and lime juice. Stir in diced tomato and onion. Serve with tortilla chips.

***Avocados will turn brown quickly... the best way to preserve guacamole is to lay saran wrap directly on the guacamole and then cover the entire dish again and place in fridge. The lime juice should also help.