Asparagus, Mushroom and Red Pepper Quiche

I'm always curious about recipes that are printed on brand packaging. How long does it take for a recipe from conception to approval and why is a particular recipe chosen to be featured? It would be fun to be a fly on the wall watching the whole thing happen. I had some Tenderflake deep dish pie shells and noticed an intesting quiche recipe and couldn't resist trying it.





1 Tenderflake All Vegetable Shortening Deep Dish Pie Shell **
1 Tbsp (15ml) vegetable oil
1/2 onion, diced
1 cup sliced red pepper
1 lb (450 g) fresh asparagus, trimmed and cut in 1" (2.5cm) pieces
1 1/4 cups (300 ml) sliced mushrooms
1 1/2 cups (375 ml) shredded Cheddar cheese
3 eggs
1 cup (250 ml) milk
2 Tbsp (30 ml) chopped fresh basil
1/2 tsp (2.5 ml) salt

Thaw pastry shell at room temperature for 15 minutes. Place on baking sheet
Preheat oven to 425 F (220 C)



Heat oil in large frying pan over medium-high heat. Saute onion, asparagus, peppers and mushrooms ntil tender-crisp, stirring often, about 5 minutes



Sprinkle half of cheese in pie shell. Spoon vegetables on top. Cover with remaining cheese.







Beat remaining ingredients together to blend. Pour over vegetable mixture.







Bake on lower rack of preheated oven 10 minutes, then reduce temperature to 350 F (180 C) and bake 30-35 minutes longer or until filling is set. Cool 10 minutes, then slice and serve warm.



**You can chose any premade pie shell (deep dish) or make your own.

This is an extremely friendly recipe to make with what I would call a no fail outcome. Combine with a salad and it's a dream lunch or dinner. Really delicious.

Lox and Bagel Cheese Strata

The past week has had some blogger fun incorporated into daily life. That's not to say that blogging isn't part of daily life but when life meets the internet in real time some special memories are shared with new friends and old. Val from More Than Burnt Toast had a planned trip from Kelowna, British Columbia to Ontario to visit family and in the plan was a stop over to Toronto for a dinner get together with bloggers and some catching up on the fine foodie sites of Toronto. Collectively you'll see blog posts about our time together but I'd like to extend a special thanks to Peter from Kalofagas and Paula of The Dragon's Kitchen who selflessly schlepped our visitor under the threat of heat stroke to make sure she saw as much as they could pack into a day of food fare.

Before Val came to Toronto we talked about sharing a breakfast/brunch recipe for her ongoing Invite a Blogger to Your Table event.



Val made a wonderful suggestion - why not do it together while she visits Toronto. We decided on my second pick from Norene Gilletz's Norene's Healthy Kitchen

The recipe calls for 8 cups of whole wheat bagels - what a great way to showcase Dempster's Thin only 100 calorie bagels!!! This recipe takes bagels and cheese to a whole different level; it only takes a good product, a little imagination and of course ahem ... a good cookbook.





5-6 whole-wheat or sesame bagels, cut in bite-sized pieces (about 8 cups)
8 oz (250 g) lox (smoked), cut in bite sized pieces
8 oz low-fat Swiss and/or havarti cheese (about 2 cups grated)
2 green onions, chopped
2-3 Tbsp minced fresh dillweed
6 large eggs (or 4 eggs plus 4 egg whites)
1 cup light sour cream or plain yogurt
2 cups milk (skim or 1%)
1/2 tsp salt (optional)
1/4 tsp freshly ground black pepper

1. Spray the bottom and sides of a 9x13 inch baking dish with cooking spray. Spread the bagel pieces evenly in the dish. Top with lox and sprinkle with the grated cheese, green onions, and dillweed.

2. In a medium bowl, combine the eggs, sour cream, milk and seasonings; blend well (you can use a blender, whisk, or large food processor) Pour evently over the bagel-cheese mixture. Cover and refrigerate for at least 1 hour. (If desired, you can prepare the recipe up to this point and refrigerate for 24 hours)

3. Preheat the oven to 350 F. Bake uncovered, for about 1 hour or until the mixture is puffed and golden. Remove from the oven and let it stand for 10 minutes for easier cutting.

Paired with a brunch mimosa and fresh fruit - oh yum!! There are some who pack in the whole experience at one time. Val had been looking for a good perogie recipe and noticed THIS ONE on our blog. Sheepishly she asked "do you have any perogies left? So perogies and strata it was for Madame More Than Burnt Toast. Seeing is believing on Val's post

.

I know, I know - not a great shot but trust me - a great breakfast!!!

No Sugar Raspberry Jam

I recently learned about Rideau Pines Farms & Market, located just outside of Ottawa. It is a Pick Your Own or We Pick fresh fruit and vegetable farm. The farm is owned by the Vandenberg family. John Vangenberg is the former head of the Horticultural Department at the Kemptville campus of the University of Guelph.

My friend and I spent a good part of the day, picking berries and veggies a couple of weeks ago.

During our trip, we were greeted by Aslan, who is more than willing to humour those of us who really want to get a dog (but have a husband who won't allow it).



Raspberries are my favourite berry to pick -- no kneeling, not too many bugs and easy to do a "one for me, one for the basket" (that's allowed, right?).



They also had Red Currants



and Black Currants, ready for picking.



After eating about 1/4 of the raspberries I picked, I figured I better preserve the rest.



I followed the Bernardin no-sugar pectin recipe, except I followed Craving Greens' advice of using honey to sweeten, rather than Splenda.

No Sugar Raspberry Jam

5 cup-sized jars
4 cups crushed raspberries
1 cup unsweetened apple or grape juice
1 package of No Sugar Needed Pectin
3/4 cup of honey or agave nectar, or 1 1/2 cup of all natural cane sugar (or omit altogether)
1/2 tsp butter (to reduce foaming)

In medium-sized saucepan, combine the crushed fruit and fruit juice.



Stir in butter (I excluded this and just skimmed the foam off) and the pectin until dissolved. Over high heat, bring mixture to a full boil, stirring frequently. If using, add the sweetener. Stirring constantly, return mixture to a full boil. Boil hard for 3 minutes.



Remove from heat and skim off foam, if necessary. Fill and process jars leaving 1/4 inch of headspace. Remove bubbles, wipe jar rim and place hot disc on clean rim. Screw band down until resistance is met.

Boil in canner for 10 minutes. Wait 5 minutes and remove jars without tilting. You should hear the lids pop as they seal. Cool upright for 24 hours and refrigerate any that has not sealed, for immediate use.



The jam smells and tastes delicious!  I only added about 1/2 cup of honey.  Next time, I'll probably be a bit more generous with the honey.  But, I think I'll be sticking to the no-sugar pectin for the most part, because a one to one ratio of sugar to fruit just seems like too much sugar.

This dish is being shared with the Simple and In Season July Blog Event.