Veggie Quiche

My mom came to visit this weekend, and I decided that I wanted to try out a new recipe for her.  What to cook?  I needed something easy.  I decided upon a quiche recipe that looked really tasty and that was fairly easy to prepare.  

I have had a long love of quiche, but I've never made it myself.  I have on many occasions bought mini quiche at the store for parties and showers, and they were always savory and delicious.

I switched up the recipe by removing the bacon (obviously) and adding even more tasty veggies.  I think the sun-dried tomatoes really packed a punch!  I also "skinnied" this recipe by using lower fat milk and cheese.  I was a little bit worried that it wouldn't come out firm, but it turned out perfectly.  So perfectly, in fact, that mom and I both went back for seconds.

This dish is perfect for brunch, lunch, or dinner.

adapted from Sugar & Spice by Celeste

Here's What You Need:

1 frozen pie crust (or make your own, but I went the easy route)

3 eggs, beaten

1 1/2 cups skim milk

1 tbsp extra virgin olive oil

1 medium onion, minced

8 oz mushrooms, sliced

3 cups baby spinach, stems removed

1/2 cup sun-dried tomatoes, chopped

1 1/2 cups part-skin mozzarella cheese, shredded

1 tbsp flour

salt and pepper, to taste

Here's What You Do:

Preheat oven to 325F.

In large saute pan, heat the oil over medium-high heat.  Saute onions and mushrooms for 5-7 minutes, or until onions begin to caramelize.  Add spinach and continue cooking until spinach is wilted.  

In a large bowl, mix eggs, milk, onion, mushrooms, spinach, sun-dried tomatoes, salt and pepper.  Slowly mix in cheese, and then stir in flour.  

Pour into the pie crust and bake for 60-65 minutes, or until set (check with toothpick).  Let it sit for about 20 minutes to cool.

Enjoy the awesomeness.

Vegetarian Mexican "Lasagna"

Anyone who knows me knows that I love Mexican food.  I do mean love.  I make it a point to fix at least one Mexican dish per week.  There is just something about the spicy flavors!  

This was a new dish for me, and it turned out amazingly.  Probably one of the best Mexican dishes I've ever prepared, and I've made a LOT.   I got the idea from a true Mexican "lasagna" made with noodles, but I think noodles takes the Mexican out of it.  It is pretty easy to prepare, and it makes enough for a large family (or enough for me to eat off of all week)!

adapted greatly from Annie's Eats

Here's What You Need:

10 small corn tortillas, cut into fourths

1 can black beans

1/2 can yellow corn

2 large tomatoes, diced

1/2 cup diced onion

1/2 cup chopped bell pepper

3 jalapeno peppers, diced

4oz enchilada sauce

1 tsp cumin

1 tsp garlic powder

1 tsp dried oregano

2 cups Mexican blend (or Cheddar) cheese

Here's What You Do:

In a bowl, mixed the diced tomato and diced jalapeno peppers.  Mix in half of the enchilada sauce.

In a second bowl, mix the black beans, corn, onion, bell pepper, cumin, garlic powder, and oregano.  Add remaining enchilada sauce.

Preheat oven to 400F.  Lightly coat baking dish with cooking spray and then spread 1/3 of tomato mixture on bottom of dish.  Top with a layer of the cut tortillas.

Top with 1/3 of veggie mixture, and then top with 1/4 of cheese.

Continue to repeat with two more layers of everything.

Top the dish with the remaining cheese.

Bake for 30 minutes.

Top it with sour cream and guacamole!

Cauliflower Pizza Crust

Don't worry, you read the title correctly.  This is a recipe for CAULIFLOWER pizza crust.  I had your same gut reaction too - Who would possibly come up with such a thing, and how could it taste any good?  I love pizza, and I was unsure that anything other than wheat-flour-doughy yumminess could compare.

Well, I was wrong.

Now, don't get me wrong, this won't replace my undying love for Papa John's pizza.  However, I feel like this is a great alternative for a night when I want pizza but I don't want anything too heavy or too unhealthy.  

Before you shake your head and click over to the next recipe, think about this: a serving of this pizza will give you two full servings of veggies (or more depending on how much you put on top).  It is lower in carbs than a regular pizza, and it is gluten-free for those of you who can't digest the gluten well.  You can't argue with those positives, can you?

I don't promise that this tastes exactly like regular pizza crust.  It definitely doesn't taste like cauliflower though.  I described it to my neighbor as tasting kind of like cheesy bread.  I promise, if you tried it without knowing what it was, the thought of veggies in your crust would never cross your mind.  What a perfect way to trick veggie-hating children (or husbands!).

adapted from eat.drink.smile

Here's What You Need:

for crust

1 cup cooked, riced cauliflower (see below for the how-to)

1 cup part skim-low moisture mozzarella cheese

1 egg, beaten

1 tsp dried oregano

1 tsp garlic salt

1 tsp red pepper flakes

extra virgin olive oil

for toppings

1 cup part skim-low moisture mozzarella cheese

favorite pizza sauce

any veggies of your choosing (I used onions, peppers, and sun-dried tomatoes)

Here's What You Do: 

Ricing the cauliflower

Obviously, giant chunks of cauliflower are not going to make a good crust.  You have to prepare the cauliflower to make the dough.

Take one large, fresh head of cauliflower, remove stems and leaves, and cut into florets.  Put the florets into a food processor and puree until it looks like rice.  (Mine actually looks more like cous-cous).

Take one cup of the "riced" cauliflower and put into a microwavable bowl.  Microwave on  high for two minutes.  Your cauliflower is now ready.  My head of cauliflower produced about 3 1/2 cups, so you can make multiple pizzas!

Making the pizza

Heat oven to 450F.  Lightly spray pizza pan or baking sheet.

Take your cup of hot riced cauliflower and mix in a bowl with one cup of the cheese and the egg.  Add oregano, garlic salt, and red pepper flakes.  Transfer to your pizza pan, and with your hands, spread out the mixture.  Mine made about a 10" pizza.

Lightly baste the top with extra virgin olive oil to help it brown.  Place in the oven for 15 minutes.

Once you take it out, top with your sauce, cheese, and toppings.  Stick back in the oven for 3 minutes, or until cheese is melted.  Make sure to cook your veggies ahead of time, if  needed, since you are only getting it hot enough to melt the cheese.

Voila!  You have a yummy pizza!  Let it cool for five minutes before eating.  Keep in mind that this makes a thin crust, so you may do better eating with a fork than picking it up with your hands.

Makes 2 servings.

Baked Eggplant

This baked eggplant is extremely easy to make and is more healthy than traditional fried Eggplant Parmesan.

Here's What You Need:

1 eggplant, sliced into 1/2 each pieces

2 eggs, beaten

1 cup breadcrumbs

1 cup Parmesan cheese, shredded (I used a Parmesan - Fontina mix).

Here's What You Do:

Dip each eggplant slice into the egg, then dip into breadcrumb mixture.  

Lay on baking sheet and bake at 350 degrees for 10 minutes.  Flip eggplants and bake another 8 minutes.

Remove and top with shredded cheese.  Put back in the oven and bake for another 5 minutes, or until the cheese is melted.

Serve with your favorite noodles and marinara sauce.

Summer Vegetable Bake

Adapated from Budget Bytes

I love, love, LOVE zucchini, so I am eager to try any dish that includes it.  This dish is really simple and inexpensive.  Just throw a bunch of sliced veggies in a pan, top it with cheese and seasoning, and voila!

Here's What You Need:

1 baking potato

1 zucchini

1 squash

1 tomato

1 cup shredded mozzarella cheese

salt

pepper

garlic powder

parsley

Here's What You Do:

Spray an 8x8 dish with cooking spray, and preheat your oven to 400F.

Slice your veggies very thinly (I stress this because you want to make sure your potatoes cook all the way through).

Alternate your veggies in the dish.  Sprinkle with salt, pepper, garlic powder, and parsley.

Cover with foil and bake for 30 minutes.

Remove, top with shredded cheese, and bake another 15 minutes.

Stuffed Tomatoes

Turn a plain old tomato into something amazing!

Here's What You Need:

2 large tomatoes

1 cup feta

1 cup cooked spinach

2 tbs chopped sundried tomato

1/4 cup panko

1 tsp oregano

Here's What You Do:

Cut the top off of the tomatoes and dig out the insides.  Eat insides. :)

Mix all of the other ingredients together in a bowl and then stuff into the tomatoes.

Bake at 350F for 20 minutes.

Cheesy Veggie Pot Pie

One of the things that I do miss now that I'm a vegetarian is a good, creamy pot pie.  I came up with this recipe a few years ago to satisfy my craving.  Through experimentation, I added in a bit of cheese at one point, which, in my opinion, makes this extra tasty.  Feel free to try it sans cheese though.

Here's What You Need:

2 cups frozen mixed veggies (carrots, corn, green beans, lima beans)

1 russet potato, peeled and cut into small cubes

1 can cream of mushroom soup (I use the low fat kind)

1/2 cup sharp cheddar cheese

1 cup Bisquick

1/4 cup milk

Here's What You Do:

Cook your mixed veggies prior to adding them to the dish.

Mix your veggies, potato, cream of mushroom soup, and cheese in a bowl.  Pour into baking dish.

In separate bowl, mix Bisquick and milk.  Stir until it makes a thick paste.  Dollop on top of veggie and soup mixture and spread it out so that it totally covers the veggie and soup mixture.

Bake at 350F for 30 minutes, or until crust begins to turn brown.  Test with a fork to ensure that crust is cooked all the way through.

Kickin' Vegetable Mac and Cheese

Who doesn't love macaroni and cheese?  I think if you say you don't, you are a LIAR!  I recently found a recipe through Pinterest for a Summer Vegetable Macaroni and Cheese , and I decided to put my own spin on it.  I totally changed up how to make the cheese sauce and based the technique on how the hubby and I have been making mac and cheese for awhile now.  I thought that adding a little bit of spice, so I changed up the cheeses too, adding a chipotle flavor.  

Here's What You Need:

1 box of macaroni noodles

1 cup fresh squash

1 cup fresh zucchini

2 Roma tomatoes

1 cup fresh broccoli

1/2 cup grated carrot

2 cups milk 

1 cup chipotle cheddar cheese

2 cups extra sharp cheddar cheese

3 tbs all purpose flour

3 tbs unsalted butter

1 tsp onion powder

1/2 tsp salt

1/4 tsp dried mustard

1/4 tsp ground nutmeg

1/4 tsp cayanne pepper

1/2 cup breadcrumbs

 extra virgin olive oil

Here's What You Do:

Boil the macaroni noodles according the instructions on the box.

While the noodles are boiling, take the cut squash, zucchini, broccoli, and carrots, and saute them in some olive oil for 4-5 minutes, until tender.  Stir into the drained macaroni.

In a small saucepan, melt the butter.  Slowly whisk in the flour until smooth.  Slowly add the milk, followed by the onion powder, salt, dried mustard, nutmeg, and cayanne pepper.  Let it come to a boil over medium heat, then remove from the heat.

Stir in the chipotle cheddar and 1 1/2 cups of the extra sharp cheddar.  Pour melted cheese mix into the macaroni and vegetables and stir.

Pour macaroni mixture into lightly greased baking dish.  Top with sliced Roma tomatoes.  Sprinkle with breadcrumbs and remaining shredded cheese.

Bake at 350F for 15-20 minutes, or until top is slightly browned.