Tuesday, April 10, 2012

Tuesday at the Table

Back in post-college days, my roommate and I had a routine - we'd take turns making quiche each week. Then we'd share with each other - basically providing ourselves with several days' tasty lunch. At the time, I thought we were pretty adept at the quiche-thing.

One day, years later, a friend made quiche for me and it was so rich and comforting, something you couldn't really say about the quiche I usually made. When I glanced at the recipe, it was obvious right off what the different was. When I made quiche, I was always trying to 'slim it down', using skim milk. This new recipe used, ahem, half-and-half. It made all the difference.

From that day forward I had a new notion about quiche. If you want it, make it as yummy as possible. And that's exactly what I did for my family on Easter. Do we have it often? No way. But for a special occasion treat, it certainly hits the spot.

Pam's Quiche
2 cups shredded Swiss cheese (8 oz., I like using Gruyere.)
6 slices bacon, cooked and crumbled
2 cups half-and-half
4 eggs, slightly beaten
1 Tb. cornstarch
1/2 tsp. salt
1/4 tsp. nutmeg
dash cayenne
2 Tb. melted butter
2 Tb. grated Parmesan cheese
1 unbaked pie shell

Toss Swiss and bacon and put in unbaked crust.
Combine half-and-half, eggs, cornstarch, and seasonings; our over bacon and cheese. Drizzle on melted butter and sprinkle with Parmesan. Bake at 375-degrees for 40 minutes or until center barely jiggles. Let stand 10 minutes before serving.

And speaking of special occasion treats, I acted a tad out of character and purchased some macarons for our Easter dessert.
From Honore Artisan Bakery in nearby Ballard, I knew from experience they'd be sweet, light, and colorful, a perfect end to our holiday brunch. (And if anyone has actually made macarons, I'd love to hear about it!)

13 comments:

  1. Those macarons are so pretty! Honestly, I don't think I've ever had one, but it seems like Annie's Eats has a few recipes that looked great. Sounds like you all had a wonderful Easter brunch!

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  2. Um- yum! I've never made macarons before, but they look so fun.

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  3. Love your take on quiche..."make it as yummy as possible". Lucky family! Hope you all had a wonderful time, especially with your surprise guest. :) We went to an Easter Mass which was especially illuminating for me and will expound on that later. As for the Macaroons, I have neither made them or have ever tried them! The ones you bought are so colorful - do they really taste so different?

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  4. My sister makes them now and then. She LOVES them and will try new recipes now and then. I've never even had one. Oh, I made this DELICIOUS strawberry cream dessert for Easter and I was like "Yeah, I'm going to post about this on Tuesday and link up with Debbie!" And then Chris cut into it before I got any pictures and it got runny and while delicious, wasn't so good for photographs. So, I thought of you, but...

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  5. Quiche is a favorite at our house! I made two similar to yours for Easter Brunch and they were a big hit!

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  6. I have never made quiche, but this sounds delicious! I had a macaron in Salt Lake City at a French Bakery. It was passion fruit. OH MY GOODNESS was it ever divine! I have not attempted making those either, but they are on my to do list.
    I will probably use a recipe from http://www.tarteletteblog.com/2009/02/recipe-index.html as she has a bunch of options.

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  7. We love quiche! It is one of my "go-to" recipes when the days are long and time to make dinner is short. I have not made macarons, but have been smitten with them since wandering past the window at Laduree in Paris. I would love to make them, some day.

    From our table this weekend...Tyler Florence's Au Gratin Potatoes is one of our favourite recipes. The smell is heavenly and they taste wonderfu.

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  8. Yum! Love veggie quiche and macaroons!

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  9. I love quiche and this is definitely going on my "to try" list! You always share such yummy recipes :-)

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  10. My mom's Quiche is pretty good :) Thanks for sharing such a yummy and familiar recipe! Glad it was a good treat on Easter

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  11. I have never had a macaron before, though I have thought of making them in order to try them. I don't think there is anywhere in town to buy them.

    Quiche, however, is a favorite of mine. When I was growing up, we had it a few Sundays a month for after church brunch. I still make it occasionally, though I usually prepare it in a large muffin tin so I have individual portions and can freeze some.

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  12. I'm doing quiche for dinner tonight. :) I almost never make it because I think my kids will turn their noses up at it, but really they like all of the ingredients, so why not together?? I'm going to sort of combine your recipe and another recipe I found, that has more veggies in it. Will let you know!

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