Quiche isn't for wimps, it's for picnics

Fifteen or maybe a million years ago, this quiche formula was one of the first recipes I ever created that felt like "Oh my gosh I can actually cook!" It's from Mollie Katzen's classic Enchanted Broccoli Forest. Quick, healthy, and easy to make for a bunch of people, this quiche is the answer for picnics and brunches. Featured here is artichoke-dill filling, but I've also done tomato-basil (below) and mushroom-onion. But you really can be creative with whatever kind of filling you would like. I always opt for the Savory Crumb Crust, and it gets rave reviews. The crust influences the quiche to taste savoury and bready, rather than really eggy, which I like. And I can attest to the fact that real men do eat this particular quiche.

Meg's Delicious Whiskey Sours

Okay, so this is my first "live blogging" experience. You'll have to read between the lines in order to decipher exactly what that means.

Anyhow, Meg is my whiskey sour angel. And tonight, I've finally learned her secret recipe. So before it's too late, I'm recording for posterity.

Okay, so put the following in a cocktail shaker (amount per drink):

• 2 oz whiksey (Meg recommends Jack)
• 1tsp powdered sugar
• 3/4 oz lemon juice
• 1-2 tsp egg white (or more if you like a frothier, richer texture)

Shake vigorously for a few seconds. Then add ice cubes and shake again. Pour into tumblers and be the hero of your party.

Special thanks to Alisha for reading over my shoulder and saving me from typo embarrassment.

Panang Tofu Curry

After many months of silence, I'm posting two in one night. From the same magazine. Shameful.

It comes under their 50 Easy Ways to Eat Green article, which I was a little meh about, but I do love tofu, and I double-love coconut milk.

Usually my Thai curries cheat - as in, I buy the red curry paste and work from there. This one builds your own base of shallots, ginger, garlic, peanut butter, spices and chili paste. I had to double the chili paste, and I also cut the amount of tofu in half, because I like things saucy. I also can't imagine eating two packages of tofu in one week, so there you go.

Yay, Panang Tofu Curry! It looks a little yellow, but it's yellowy goodness thanks to carrots and peppers. Next time I'll add some broccoli, I think. Get a little accent colour in there.

Soup, glorious soup

Thanks to my dear friend Claire, I'm totally hooked on my Bon Appetit subscription. And I was particularly excited about their superspecial feature on kale this month (Feb 09). Only, I got to the market, ready to buy everything for Kale and White Bean Stew--no kale. None. Enter, spinach.

Now that I've subbed out the main ingredent, that leave me free to sub out whatever I want, I figure. Market was out of fresh thyme and chives: enter, dried tarragon, basil and fines herbes. I misread the Sherry wine vinegar to read straight-up Sherry.



But, pas de problème! C'est delicieuse anyways! Yum spinach and white beans.

One last thing: this calls for a full cup of shallots. I find those wee delicious little buggers to be killer on the eyes, so lately I've been using my swim goggles. One of these days, I'll splurge on a set of onion goggles from Gourmet Warehouse. In the meantime, I'm lookin' fine.

Noodles, anyone?

Try this: http://noodlr.net.

Fig and Walnut Tapenade With Goat Cheese

Every time I make this appetizer, people rave about it. It's deceptively simple to make, though. I've tried mixing up the herb and nut combinations for fun. As the recipe suggests, pinenuts are nice replacement for the walnuts. And if you don't have thyme, rosemary is pretty yummy.

Enjoy! It's a great holiday appetizer!

My First Ever Whole Fish

Vince and Cristina initiated me into a completely new culinary realm this weekend. The cooking of a whole fish. The experience was pretty funny (the pictures below will tell that story).

Unfortunately, I can't really share any wisdom on how to do it because all I really did was observe. Although I did learn from Cristina that when you're choosing a fish, you should try to find one with very red gills and no clouding in the eyes.

Preparation seemed to involve a careful cleaning, some oil, spice, and onion both inside and on the fish, and finally baking at 400.

The end result was really delicious, but pretty laborious to eat. There seemed to be a lot more inedible carcass than meat.