Herb and Asparagus Salad with Deep Dish Individual Ham Sausage Quiche Flans

Every month Megan of My Baking Adventures chooses a "challenge" recipe for the intrepid cooks in the Tyler Florence Fridays group. Luckily this challenge is optional, or I'd have been kicked off the island long ago, seeing as I have yet to attempt any of the challenge dishes. They always sound so good, but I've not been organized enough to easily work specified recipes into my cooking "plans." The baking assignments (from TWD and now SMS) have been more than enough structure for me!

When I saw that the TFF April challenge recipes would be Tyler's Deep Dish Ham Quiche (and Asparagus Salad, too) the prospects didn't seem good. My husband has an almost knee-jerk tendency to reject pork products - especially ham - and is deeply suspicious of the fat and cholesterol in eggs. ("What about the bacon?" you ask. He does indeed eat food cooked with lardons of bacon, but there a little bit of bacon delivers a huge flavor impact so he's willing to make an exception. Well that, and the Benton's bacon we use is pretty amazing...) A ham quiche, especially a deep dish one calling for 12 eggs (not to mention a quart of cream!) wasn't likely to meet with a warm reception at our dining room table. And as luck would have it April didn't present us with any entertaining opportunities where quiche would be appropriate.

But then my husband got called out of town for a 10 day business trip, which opened the window for all sorts of cooking of food that normally wouldn't "fly", including the challenge recipe! You see, I love quiche, and on previous occasions I've been known to make it when he was out of town.

Seeing as I've never one to follow the recipe exactly, I'd say my biggest challenge with the April Challenge is to see whether what I made can still be called the the TFF selection! All I can say is "Thanks for the salad," because the rest is a pretty long stretch from Tyler's original!


n.o.e.'s notes:

Herb and Asparagus salad

Let's start with the salad, because I made that first, and completed it while there was still some natural light for photos!

- I made a tiny single-portion serving, using 2 oz thin baby asparagus

- Because it was such a small fraction of the original recipe, I didn't actually weigh or measure anything, but tried to estimate the proportions as best I could. In my opinion, this was pretty close to the way the recipe was written.

- I used a couple sprigs of flat leaf parsley and a sprig of chocolate mint from my herb garden - yay for Spring! I really really really don't like dill, so I left it out. I was trying to think of what herb I could substitute but I finally decided to just go with the parsley and mint.

- Instead of drizzling lemon juice and olive oil separately, I used a lemon olive oil.

- My parmesan was from Australia! The entire salad didn't take more than 5 minutes to make, and that's including blanching the asparagus!

"Quiche"

Although I love LOVE quiche, I just wasn't up for making a Tyler's rich recipe. I knew that I could lighten it up and still get the kind of custard-y goodness that I'd enjoy. So that's what I did. The first step? Eliminate the crust.

- Second step = incorporate cubes of gruyere. Swiss-type cheese is essential for quiche, imo. So, my stir ins were:
1/2 Vidalia onion, sliced and carmelized
1.5 oz cubed gruyere
2 oz habenero chicken sausage (left over from previous pasta dish. I really wanted to use bacon or prosciutto but I didn't want the sausage to go to waste)

- My custard was:
1 duck egg + leftover egg yolk and white from all the cooking I've been doing - probably equal to one whole chicken egg
2.5 oz cream
5.5 oz nonfat milk (lactose free Smart Balance)


- I made my "quiche" into individual flans in 8-oz ramekins. I got the bright idea to seal the bottom of each ramekin with crumb-covered tomato slices:
3 thin tomato slices
2 T seasoned dried bread crumbs (I make these from leftover bread and keep them handy in the freezer)
1 T grated parmesan cheese

I placed the 3 ramekins into a larger baking pan lined with double layer of paper towels and filled halfway with hot water.

Then covered the whole thing loosely with foil and baked at 375 degrees for around 40 minutes.
At that point they were set and nicely golden on top. And the natural light was all gone...

- The flans/quiches unmolded easily, but then kind of collapsed. It's hard to be deep without the dish, or the crust, I guess! I was surprised to see that the tomato ended up in the middle - the custard had seeped beneath and around the slices.

the verdict:

I loved this meal!

I liked the little flans with and without the salad on top. They had lots of flavor and I didn't miss the crust (no, really, it's true). The gruyere was delicious addition, and the caramelized onions gave a rustic sweet note. The sausage I used was a little assertive, so I'd use bacon or some kind of ham next time, or omit the meat altogether.

The salad was fantastic with and without the "quiche." I wouldn't hesitate to serve it on its own. Easy and delicious.

As an aside, I used to be a confirmed asparagus-hater, and I've only recently discovered (decided?) that I can not just tolerate, but actually like, asparagus. This is an about-face of epic proportions. I give the credit to J.D.E. (who asked me to buy some back in March), to Mark Bittman (who taught me how to cook it - I'll post that recipe eventually!) and to some particularly tender pencil-thin asparagus.

I'm excited to have such a fantastic way to enjoy asparagus! This was a great dish/two dishes.
Thanks, Tyler and thanks, Megan for choosing it as our challenge.

French Green Lentils with Sausages

OK, I know that we're well into Spring. And food bloggers everywhere are posting wonderful seasonal dishes, featuring things like fresh green peas, strawberries, and asparagus. But here at The Dogs Eat the Crumbs Headquarters, we operate a little differently. Namely with a severe posting backlog. Say, a 50+ post backlog. There are a bunch of things that I've cooked that I either need to post out of season or hold until the appropriate season comes back around. I'm doing my share of carrying over posts (one for summer squash has been in the "drafts" collection since, well, last summer, and I have some Christmas posts that may have to wait until the next time the holidays roll around). But I've got a recipe or two for dried beans/lentils that are are likely to sneak their way into this blog in the very near future. Pantry staples are seasonless, right? Plus, the recipes are just too yummy to wait!

From the minute I saw this recipe for Sausages with French Green Lentils on the Saveur website, I knew I would have to make the dish. Although the French make this recipe with a traditional French pork sausage (read: "hard to find"), Saveur assures us that sweet Italian sausage is a fine substitute. I ordered some fresh sweet pork sausage from the farm box, and picked up some green lentils at Whole Foods. Finally I had the ingredients in place!

This was a difficult dish to photograph, especially since we were hungry and ready to eat it!

n.o.e.'s notes:

- I increased the recipe because I had 1 lb of lentils and the recipe calls for 12 oz.

- The Farm Box sausage turned out to be a very mildly seasoned sausage.

the verdict:

The subtle and perfectly balanced flavors of this dish surpassed my very high expectations, and won highest ratings from my husband. Although we typically love our food good and spicy, the mild nature of this sausage paired perfectly with the sublime seasoning of the lentils.

I loved this so much that when we were done eating I had the strongest feeling that I needed to call someone or email, or, heck even shout from the rooftop to say: "People, you HAVE to make this dish!" The lentils are cooked and seasoned perfectly. They do pair well with the sausage, but could easily stand on their own. Oh, and the leftovers were delicious - and they freeze well.

So, here's the deal. If you like lentils at all, do yourself a favor and try this dish. If you've ever wondered about lentils, this is the recipe to start with. If sausages are not your thing, you can (and should) still make the lentils. If you like things a bit spicier, you could pair the lentils with other sausages or meat. Hmm, what else? If you don't think you'll make lentils until cold weather returns, bookmark this recipe and make it later! You will thank me.

Fettuccine with Sausage, Garlic, and Mushrooms

A couple of years ago when I was browsing the Costco book tables - honestly those stacks of books can be a veritable treasure-trove - I picked up the Williams Sonoma cookbook Meats & Poultry in the series "The Best of the Kitchen Library." Every single recipe that I've tried from the book has been absolutely great (so good that I have now aquired several more titles in the same W-S series, also at Costco). So when I chose the Fettucine with Sausage, Garlic, and Mushrooms I figured it would be at least a decent plate of pasta. And I'm happy to report that WS came through again! [recipe at the end of this post]

n.o.e.'s notes:

- I ran out of white wine so I splashed in a bit of red too.

- I sliced up some Aidell's Chicken Andouille for the sausage

- When cooking the garlic, I added a shake of red pepper flakes.

- The pasta was a garlic and parsley flavored fettucine, made by Al Dente. I love this brand of pasta; the flavors are good and it cooks very quickly (2-3 minutes). [update: I've found this pasta at Whole Foods and also at our local Publix supermarket. The company's website is here]

the verdict:

This pasta recipe is excellent! My husband liked it so much that he went back for seconds when his first serving was only half gone! The garlic and the mushroom liquid combine for a fantastic earthy flavor. I think it could be just as good with chicken stock and a touch of vinegar as with the wine. We enjoyed the little kick from the spicy sausage and the red pepper.

I love that this pasta recipe is neither tomato-based nor dairy-based - makes for a nice variety.

I can also report that the leftovers were great from the freezer!


I'm submitting this to Presto Pasta Nights , a wonderful roundup of noodle-based dishes. This week's hostess is Pam of Sidewalk Shoes , so stop over there on Friday to check out all the delicious pasta dishes!

the recipe:

Fettucine with Sausage, Garlic, and Mushrooms

3/4 lb cooked low-fat smoked chicken sausages
1 T olive oil
2 lg cloves garlic, minced
1 lb white or cremini mushrooms, brushed clean and thinly sliced
1 cup dry white wine
1/4 cup minced fresh flat-leaf parsley
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
1 lb dried fettucine

1. Slice the sausages into rounds about 1/4 inch thick.

2. In a large nonstick frying pan over medium heat, heat the olive oil. When it is hot, add the sausage slices. Cook, stirring often, until lightly browned, about 3-4 minutes.

3. Add the garlic and mushrooms and stir until the mushrooms have softened and released some of their liquid, about 3 minutes.

4. Add the wine, bring to a boil over medium heat, and cook until the mushrooms are tender, about 3 minutes longer. Stir in the parsley and season to taste with salt and pepper.

5. While the sauce is cooking, bring a pot of salted water to a boil. Add the fettucine, stir well, and cook until al dente, 8-10 minutes, or according to the package directions.

6. Drain the fettucine and place in a warmed shallow serving bowl. Pour the sauce over the top and toss briefly to combine. Serve at once (stopping just long enough to photograph, of course!)

serves 6

Shortcut Turkey and Andouille Jambalaya

One of my current resolutions is to cook from the freezer and pantry. I've managed to accumulate all sorts of great food, so this shouldn't be such a painful task. Another goal of mine is to concentrate on recipes from my ever-growing cookbook collection. It's so easy to dial up a wonderful recipe on the internet that it's become somewhat of a crutch for me.

I had some Aidell's chicken andouille sausage in the freezer, and decided to look for a Cajun-inspired dish. Mark Bittman's How to Cook Everything has a Jambalaya recipe, and one of the variations is Chicken and Sausage Jambalaya, also called "brown jambalaya." Sold!

n.o.e.'s notes:

Bittman's basic shrimp jambalaya recipe (red jambalaya) is found here. To make a brown jambalaya with chicken (turkey in my case) and sausage, you omit the ham, tomatoes, and shrimp, and add chicken and sausage and also increase the amount of stock. I made a few further changes to fit my ingredients, which also made the dish quicker to prepare:

- The recipe contemplates using uncooked sausage and chicken. My andouille was fully cooked and I also had cooked turkey pieces in the freezer.

- As written, the recipe serves 8. I decided to cut it in half. I used 6 oz. of the sausage (1/2 pack), which I cut into slices. The heaping cup of turkey scraps were bite-sized.

- I first cooked 1 cup each of onions and red bell peppers in olive oil with salt and pepper. My burner's medium-high was hotter than Mark Bittman's, though, because my veggies nearly burned in under 10 minutes of cooking.

- Next, I stirred in the 1 cup of rice, 1 T. garlic, 1/2 tsp cayenne, 1 tsp thyme, sausage and turkey over medium high heat for just a minute or two. Note that the linked recipe calls for par-boiled rice, but the book does not. I used uncooked white rice - medium grain. According to the book, you could use the same quantity of cooked brown rice, and I will try that some time.

- Then I poured in 3 c of chicken stock. At this point, the pot is supposed to simmer uncovered on medium for around 30 minutes. Although I turned my burner a bit lower than medium, it still cooked pretty fast. The stock was mostly absorbed in around 15 mintues. I covered it and let it rest for about 15 minutes. I took that opportunity to make up a big salad.

the verdict:

We loved this quick, easy and tasty dish. It made a perfect weeknight dinner. Sticking to the recipe and using uncooked andouille and chicken would be even better, as the sausage would flavor the vegetables and the chicken would absorb the flavors as it cooked. I think chicken thighs would be perfect in this recipe.

I used the recommended amount of cayenne pepper, and for us the jambalaya had a nice kick, but it wasn't too spicy as to be distracting. If you are sensitive to spicy food, however, I'd say to reduce the cayenne.

I would serve this to company in a heartbeat; the best part is that it could be made ahead.

My bayou-born husband gave this recipe his stamp of approval!