Some statements for the defence: we're vegetarian, so we don't eat red meat (or white meat, or fish for that matter). This little extravaganza is in comparison to the standard omnivore's entire weekly animal fat and meat intake.
Also, this is a made-up recipe. Use this as a general guideline; it certainly is not a precise set of instructions.
Asparagus and Brie Quiche
- Heat a little oil in a skillet, and add a sliced green chilli, or a dried red chilli broken in thirds. (Chilli flakes, powder or cayenne pepper are alternatives, or omit entirely).
- Optionally add ground cumin and whole celery seeds.
- Add and sauté chopped onion.
- When glassy, add cooked asparagus, sliced in 1 to 1.5 inch lengths. (In a pinch tinned asparagus will do).
- Add Colman's Hot English Mustard powder (I use about 1/3 tsp), salt and black pepper to taste.
- When the onions start to take on color and the asparagus is heated through, add chunks of Brie and keep on gentle heat until it melts and is mixed in. (Purists can go home now.)
- Transfer to an ovenproof dish - I use Corningware.
- Cut hard goat cheese in 1/2 inch cubes, and place at random in the mixture (or dot the mixture with soft goat cheese, less pungent but richer).
- Beat whole eggs with milk or half-and-half. The ratio is about 2 parts milk to one part eggs (by volume). The amount will depend on how much you are making. The liquid should come up perhaps an inch above the surface of the veg mixture.
- Sprinkle chilli flakes over the top (optional) and bake in a preheated oven (350 F) until the "custard" is cooked. (I start checking after 40 minutes, but it usually takes around an hour.)
Best served with a green salad and warm rustic bread.
Comments (10)
Ooh, this sounds very good. I'm always a sucker for trying out a new recipe.
I'll have to pass this along to my mother, she is also a vegetarian and this sounds like something she would like.
Thanks for sharing! :)
Posted by Jin | January 27, 2005 4:32 PM
Posted on January 27, 2005 16:32
This sounds yummy.
Just a note... somebody has taken my name and blogspot address (the day after i took mine down!), so the link you have here leads to somebody else's work, not mine. Just thought you'd like to know...
Posted by anan | January 28, 2005 2:08 AM
Posted on January 28, 2005 02:08
Anan, yes I know. I've been checking there five times a day. I guess keeping you on the blog roll is in part a refusal to believe, and in part like a candle in the window, waiting for you to come home.
Posted by Sivani | January 28, 2005 6:51 AM
Posted on January 28, 2005 06:51
Jinny, I hope she likes it. Once you get the basic principles right you can go wild with the ingredients.
The basic principles: the "filling" (not the custard) should be cooked before it goes into the oven; the oven will only really cook the custard.
There should be enough egg in the custard to allow it to set. Too much milk and it will be watery, and perhaps remain liquid.
Cheese in the filling also helps to tie the thing together (apart from being delicious in its own right.) A light dusting of flour mixed into the filling also serves as a binding.
Posted by Sivani | January 28, 2005 6:57 AM
Posted on January 28, 2005 06:57
Sivani - thanks again for the gmail invite!
Posted by Jin | January 28, 2005 8:09 AM
Posted on January 28, 2005 08:09
Tucked away and saved for the frist spring asparagus. I think I remember spring.
Posted by jo | January 28, 2005 1:26 PM
Posted on January 28, 2005 13:26
Wow--enough picante in the pudding? though picante is pleasing...
In response to the query about the context--had originally written about things less personal--it's changing I guess...
Posted by A.P. | January 29, 2005 8:27 PM
Posted on January 29, 2005 20:27
Jin - you're welcome. Soon you will have too many invites of your own to know what to do with them :-)
Jo - blanched brocolli, crumbled feta, bruised fennel and Thai basil makes another, entirely different but equally scrumptious version. Here we haven't seen any snow (well, they tell us once there have been a few flakes mixed in with the rain, but nothing that stuck). We wouldn't mind an inch of yours - but not more than that. Just enough to get the kiddykins excited.
AP - you would be hard-pressed to find anything cooked in our house that doesn't contain some chillis. On the other hand, you would rarely find something really hot here. I guess repeated exposure to capsaicin has mandated that for us a properly seasoned dish needs a touch of the pepper.
Posted by Sivani | January 30, 2005 8:59 AM
Posted on January 30, 2005 08:59
This sounds so good. But K will never eat it ---beige food he'd call it. Perhaps you will have to travel here and I will whip it up for us?
Posted by blackbird | January 30, 2005 12:56 PM
Posted on January 30, 2005 12:56
Blackbird - sprinkle some grated cheddar on the top and stick it under the broiler for a few minutes at the end. Then it will technically be orangey-brown food :-)
Posted by Sivani | January 31, 2005 10:02 AM
Posted on January 31, 2005 10:02