Bite-Size Quiche

I made these for a church potluck today and they were absolutely scrumptious! Full of fresh, wholesome ingredients and so yummy too. They're also, thankfully, very much in season at the moment in my area. Mushroom season is just coming to a close, so make them while they're still seasonal.

Enjoy! Tell me what you think...

Makes 36 mini quiche, or 1 whole quiche.

 You Will Need:
For the filling -

• 3 slices lean bacon, cooked and crumbled (for a vegetarian alternative, use red onion and add more salt to the egg mixture)
• 2 large mushroom, chopped into tiny pieces
• 2 handfuls baby spinach, finely chopped
• 1 cups heavy cream
• 3 eggs
• 1 tsp pepper, freshly ground
• 2 tsp salt
• 1 cup shredded cheese (Monterrey jack, cheddar or Swiss are the best)
• 4-8 tbsp olive oil (for greasing the pan, don't use canola or vegetable because those oils are highly toxic)

For the crust -

• 2 cup flour
• 8 tbsp butter, cold, cubed
• 2 egg
• 1 tsp salt

In a medium mixing bowl combine flour, salt, butter, and egg for the crust. Mix with your hands, squishing it until everything is fully incorporated.

Take your mini muffin pan, and thoroughly grease with olive oil. Preheat your oven to 375 degrees F. Mush your crust into each mini muffin section.

In each bit of crust, add bacon, mushroom and spinach. Pour egg mixture in over it. Top with shredded cheese. Bake for 15 minutes, until the cheese is melted and they're all puffed up. If you're making a normal quiche, bake for 35-40 minutes.

Cool for about 10 minutes then serve. :) If you're making these ahead of time, refrigerate, then warm in the oven for about 5 minutes just before serving for best taste. They taste fine cold, but phenomenal warm.

Leftover Beef Stew, Reinvented --> Beef Pot Pie

 Leftovers at my house are a big problem. Often times, I will make too much of a certain recipe, and the remains will sit in the fridge uneaten (no matter how delicious the dish was) for several weeks, until it molds, and then is thrown away. A total, total waste of food. But my family has this peculiar quirk - if a dish has been eaten, it cannot be eaten again for at least a week. No matter how scrumptious it is.

Because of this ridiculous quirk, I've had to work hard at cooking in smaller portions. But sometimes, I just have extra no matter how hard I try. In which case, I have to reinvent the recipe less it become a moldy mess in my refrigerator.

So, when I found myself with some leftover beef stew today, I realized I had an awesome opportunity to make some pot pie.

You should totally try some. This was majorly delicious.

You Will Need:

For the Filling:

• Salt
• 2 to 4 cups leftover beef stew (depends on how deep your pie will be)
• 1/4 onion, chopped
  
• 1/2 a leek, chopped
• Any other vegetables (peas, green beans, spinach, corn, etc.) you have on hand
• 2-4 tbsp flour

For the Crust:

• 1 1/2 sticks butter, cold
• 1 egg
• 1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
• 2-3 tbsp dried herbs (basil, thyme, oregano, or any combination of)
• 1 tsp ground pepper
• 1 tsp salt

To Cook:

For the crust:

In a large mixing bowl, combine flour, butter, egg, herbs, pepper, and water. Mix with a pastry blender, knives, or use room-temperature butter. Continue to mix until dough becomes doughy and sticks together. Shape into a ball and refrigerate for at least 20 minutes.

Take out dough, and roll out onto a flour surface. Divide into two equal parts.  Roll each part into a decently shaped pie circle.

For the Filling:

In a large bowl, combine beef stew, onion, leek, and vegetables. Mix until stew sauce coats everything. Add in flour, 1 tablespoon at a time, until sauce is desired thickness. Salt to taste. Refrigerate until ready to use. 

For the Pie:

Preheat oven to 375. Grease and flour your pie/casserole dish (I used a light olive oil), and line with the first circle of pie crust. Put down a cloth bag full of dried beans in the crust to hold it in place, and bake for about 10 minutes, or until set.

Remove beans. Fill pie crust with filling, top with your second crust circle. Brush with olive oil, cut in some pretty designs, and just generally prettify it. Bake for ___, or until crust is golden.

In an effort to work with this month's theme of beauty, I decided to spice up our plain ol' dining room table with some stuff lying around. So one tablecloth, a few folded cloth napkins, some potted thyme... and voila.

I got this: