Leek, Mushroom and Cheese Quiche

Quiche isn't just for the summer, it's fabulous with salad vegetables, home made coleslaw and chunky slices of crusty bread.

I used a mixture of Cheddar and Leicester cheese, I used to live in Leicestershire and so it follows that a piece of Leicester cheese can often be found in my fridge.

The blueprint for the filling is using 2 whole eggs and 300ml of dairy which should be double cream or creme fraiche.  Add to this the extras of your choice and voila you have a delicious quiche.

The pastry recipe is one I came across ages ago from chef Tom Kerridge, it's so easy to make and roll out that once you make this you'll use this as your turn to recipe.

225g plain flour, plus extra for dusting
140g cold butter, diced
1 tsp icing sugar
1 egg yolk
3tbsp cold water
For the filling:
1 leek, washed, sliced and chopped
100g mushrooms,sliced
75g Cheddar cheese, grated
75g Leicester Cheese, grated
2 eggs
300ml double cream
freshly ground pepper

You will need: 23cm loose base fluted tin 2.5cm deep

1. Whiz the flour, icing sugar, a pinch of salt and the butter in a food processor. and rub in until it resembles breadcrumbs. Add the egg yolk and 3 tbsp cold water, whiz to form a firm dough. Wrap in cling film and rest for 20 minutes in the fridge.
If you have a Thermomix: add everything to the jug and set to 20 secs/speed 5. Check everything is combined.
2. Preheat the oven to 200ºC. Roll out the pastry and line the tart tin. Cover with baking parchment and fill with baking beans. Cook for 20 minutes, then remove the paper and beans. Brush the pastry base with beaten egg and cook for 5-10 minutes more until the tart case is pale.
3. Turn the oven down to 160ºC.
4. Add a knob of butter to a frying pan, add the washed leeks and gently cook until tender. Remove from the pan and leave to cool.
5. Into a clean pan add a knob of butter, add the sliced mushrooms and cook until softened and tender. Remove from the pan.
6. Place a layer of leeks on the pastry base, followed by the grated cheese and sliced mushrooms. Season.
7. Mix the eggs with the double cream and pour over the filling.
8. Place the quiche into the oven and cook for 40 minutes until just set.
9. Remove from the oven and cool on a wire rack.

You may also like:
Cheese, Onion and Potato Quiche
Cheese and Onion Quiche
Leek and Gruyere Quiche

Cherry Tomato, Cheese and Red Onion Marmalade Quiche

We've had a welcome taste of summer here in the West Midlands and quiche with a bowl of salad is always a hit with us on warmer days.

The April edition of BBC Goodfood Magazine has a recipe for BLT tart and in true food blogger style I adapted the recipe, just slightly. Unlike the original recipe I made my own shortcrust - maybe I'll give myself a gold star!

When I opened the bag of rocket to grab a few leaves for garnishing the quiche, it was a bit of a surprise to see giant rocket, it was really disappointing on taste and texture, I'll be sure to look for smaller leaves next time.

A layer of red onion marmalade is spread over the base of the pastry and makes for a very tasty quiche.

You will need:
Rectangle baking tin 36x12x3cm, baking beans, baking paper

Pastry:
170g plain flour
85g lard, chopped
85g butter, chopped
2-3 tbsp chilled water

1. Add the flour to a bowl and rub the lard and butter into the flour until it resembles breadcrumbs. Add the water until a dough can be formed.  Remove the dough from the bowl and wrap in clingfilm. Place in the fridge for 30 minutes to rest.
2. Preheat the oven to 190ºC.
3. Roll out the pastry and line the tin, trim the excess pastry.  Dock with a fork all over the pastry.
4. Take a large piece of crumpled baking paper, place on top of the pastry, fill with baking beans and place on a large tray, place in the oven to cook for 20 minutes.
5. Remove the tin from the oven and carefully remove the baking paper (don't forget the baking beans will be very hot). I mostly laboriously spoon them out into a dish until I can safely pick up the baking paper along with the last remaining baking beans.
6. Brush the base and sides of the pastry case with beaten egg.
7. Return the tin to the oven for 5 minutes or until golden.

For the filling:
150g whipping cream
100g grated mature cheddar
2 eggs
1 egg yolk
2 tablespoons of red onion marmalade
10 cherry tomatoes, halved
rocket

1. Reset the oven temperature to 180ºC.
2. Add the eggs and egg yolk to a bowl and whisk together, add the whipping cream, grated cheese, black pepper and a pinch of salt.
3. Spread the red onion marmalade over the base of the cooked pastry case.  Pour the mixture into the case, top with the cherry tomato halves.  Bake for 30-40 minutes.
4. Garnish with rocket.

Cheese, Onion and Potato Quiche with a Wild Rice Salad - Recipe

This fabulous quiche recipe is by Tom Kerridge

One of my favourite websites is BBC Good Food, I love reading the constructive comments from those who have made the recipes.  The recipe is by Tom Kerridge and apparently he makes this for his pub restaurant. Everyone said that there was too much mixture for one quiche and they had lot's left over. One commenter said how she adapted the recipe to give enough filling with none left over. I followed her suggestion and it has worked out brilliantly.  To make the full quantity you will need a deep quiche tin approximately 5cm deep.

It's a fabulous quiche, the pastry is easy to make and gloriously crisp to eat.  There is a layer of cooked new potatoes, spring onions and Montgomery Cheddar cheese cooked in a creamy custard layer.

No soggy bottom here!

I used the bottom heat setting to bake my pastry which gives a lovely crisp pastry base - the custard layer is also cooked very gently on a low setting using bottom heat to give a luxurious velvety custard.

Hubby said this is the best quiche he has ever eaten and people on the BBC Good Food website have said it's their favourite too.

Adapted recipe

225g plain flour, plus extra for dusting
140g cold butter, diced
1 tsp icing sugar
1 egg yolk
For the filling:
250g new potatoes, no need to peel, cooked and sliced
1 bunch spring onions, sliced
125g Montgomery cheddar, diced
2 eggs
300ml double cream

You will need:  23cm loose base fluted tin 2.5cm deep

1. Sift the flour and a pinch of salt into a large bowl. Add the butter and rub in until it resembles breadcrumbs. Stir in the icing sugar, egg yolk and 3 tbsp cold water, to form a firm dough. Wrap well in cling film and rest for 20 minutes in the fridge.
2. Preheat the oven to 200ºC.  Roll out the pastry and line the tart tin. Cover with baking parchment and fill with baking beans. Cook for 20 minutes, then remove the paper and beans. Brush the pastry base with beaten egg and cook for 5-10 minutes more until the tart case is pale.
3. Turn the oven down to 160ºC. Place a layer of cooked potatoes on the base of the tart, scatter over the spring onions and cheddar. Whisk together the eggs and cream, season. Pour into the tart case and cook for 40-45 mins or until just set. Remove from the oven and cool on a wire rack.
Original recipe

I served a Wild Rice Salad with the quiche........the glass bowl is by Arcoroc they are amazing and great multitaskers. I purchased a set of different sizes from Divertimenti, they are light weight, nest inside each other, don't scratch, freezer, dishwasher and microwave safe and it's free postage too. Cons are they are quite shallow so absolutely no good for some whisking tasks and they aren't oven proof(but this isn't an issue with me).

225g wild rice
850ml water
1 red and 1 yellow pepper, sliced into strips
cucumber sliced lengthways
1 orange, peeled, pith removed and segmented
A handful of cherry tomatoes quartered
1 red onion finely sliced
handful of chopped parsley
Dressing:
1 clove of garlic, crushed
1-2 tablespoons balsamic vinegar
2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
seasoning to taste

1. Pour the water into a large pan, bring to a boil.  Stir, cover and simmer for 40 minutes until tender.  Drain and cool. Or use a microwave rice steamer and cook for approximately 30 minutes.
2. Add the dressing ingredients to a basin and whisk together.  Pour onto the cooled rice.
3. Mix the peppers, orange, tomatoes, red onion and parsley into the rice mixture.
4. Store in the fridge until needed.

Mince Beef and Stilton Mini Pies - Recipe

I'm originally from Stilton Cheese country and these mini pies are a reminder of the shires.

When I made my cottage pie I used just half the meat mixture and with the remainder I made these mini pies. Bought shortcrust was used to make the pies on this occasion - and why not! I made one cottage pie and eight mini pies from just 500g of 10% fat Aberdeen Angus mince beef.

Packed full of flavour

To make 8 mini pies all you need is a 12 cup muffin tin - I used a loose base 12 cup individual mini sandwich tin from Lakeland - removing the pies is much easier than using a normal muffin tin.

1. 500g pack of shortcrust pastry.
2. Spray the tray with oil.
3. Roll out the pastry and with the plain side of a 11cm cutter stamp out 8 circles to line the tins. Fill the pastry cases to the top with the cooked mince beef mixture and press down with a spoon.  Top with a cube of Stilton cheese.
4. Roll out the remaining pastry and with the plain side of a 8cm cutter stamp out 8 lids. Beat an egg and brush the underside of the pastry lid with egg and press down on to the edges of the pastry bases. Pinch the edges of the pastry together. Brush the lids with beaten egg and make a large hole in the lids for the steam to escape. Place the tray in the fridge and leave to chill for 30 minutes.  Preheat the oven to 180ºC. Cook for 40 minutes until golden.

Stuffed Mushrooms with Leeks, Dolcelatte and Walnuts: Recipe

All photographs taken with the Nikon D3200                           

'Life's too short to stuff a mushroom' - does anyone still use this expression? In 1975 Shirley Conran, published the book Superwoman, aimed at busy women and gave advice about life using the phrase 'Life is too short to stuff a mushroom'........This recipe is definitely well worth the time spent making something tasty and inexpensive from just a few fridge and store cupboard ingredients.

Served with a simple risotto.

I placed a small amount of risotto on the plate for the photograph because it very quickly goes stodgy and doesn't like to be left hanging around, otherwise you may well end up eating it for pudding. After taking photographs, which as usual were taken speedily during cooking and serving, I topped the risotto with the remaining walnuts, Dolcelatte and thyme leaves, to give texture and interest.  I made a tried and trusted risotto recipe, used half the recommended quantities of ingredients and simply left out the bacon, leeks, Parmesan and chives.

The original recipe for the Stuffed Mushrooms with Leeks, Dolcelatte and Walnuts is from the Waitrose Kitchen Magazine - February 2013.

Adapted Recipe

Serves: 2

5 large flat mushrooms (chop one and leave the others whole)
1 tbsp olive oil
1 tbsp garlic oil
1 leek finely chopped
a few thyme leaves
25g Dolcelatte Cheese
25g walnuts chopped

1. Preheat the oven to 200ºC. Mix the olive oil and garlic oil together and brush one tablespoon over the whole mushrooms. season with black pepper.  Place on a roasting tin top-side down and cook for 10 minutes.
2. Heat the remaining tablespoon of oil in a frying pan and fry the leek, thyme and chopped mushrooms for approximately 5 minutes until softened.
3. Divide the mixture between the four upturned baked mushrooms, top with cubes of  Dolcelatte cheese and chopped walnuts, season.
4. Bake for 10 minutes or until the cheese melts.

Stilton, Leek and Walnut Quiche

I was brought up in Stilton Cheese and pork pie country, there never seemed to be a day when either Stilton Cheese or pork pies didn't get a mention.  The 'grown ups' ate their Stilton Cheese with  Lincolnshire celery, and pork pies were eaten with home made piccalilli.  None of these appealed to me, and I would sooner have eaten mud, than eat these strange foods. It wasn't until I became a 'grown up' I began eating and appreciating Stilton Cheese.  I'm never going to be a pork pie fan, but I love the hot water pastry they are made from.  I ask hubby to let me eat the pastry from his pork pie but for some reason he always tells me it is an unreasonable request.......

Stilton Cheese, leeks and walnuts are a match made in heaven.  This quiche was really good other than one or two niggles.  There isn't much of a custard layer and the amount of walnuts used in the original recipe needed to be halved, perhaps it should be called Walnut, Leek and Stilton Quiche.

British Cheese Week is 22-30 September 2012.

Adapted recipe taken from British Baking in 2012 - BakingMad.com

You will need:  23cm loose bottom tart tin lightly greased.

Pastry:  250g plain flour, 60g cubed chilled butter, 60g lard cubed, 3 tbsp cold water.

Filling:  40g butter, 2 leeks washed and chopped, 1 tbsp chopped Thyme leaves, 3 large eggs lightly beaten, 100ml Creme Fraiche, 100ml milk, ¼ tsp grated nutmeg, 3 tbsp finely grated Parmesan, 30g lightly toasted and finely chopped walnuts, 125g crumbled Stilton, ground black pepper.


1.  Put flour, butter and lard into a bowl, rub in until it looks like breadcrumbs add 3 tablespoons cold water, bind to make a dough.
2.  Shape into a round disc, wrap in clingwrap and pop in the fridge for 30 minutes.
3.  Remove pastry from fridge.
4.  Preheat the oven to 200°C. Place a large baking tray in the oven to preheat.
5.  Roll the pastry and line the tart tin.  Prick the base and put in the fridge for 30 minutes.  Line the pastry case with crumpled baking parchment, fill with baking beans.  Place the tin on the preheated baking tray and put in the oven for 15 minutes.  Remove the parchment paper and baking beans.
6.  Brush the base of the tart with some of the beaten egg from the filling and return to the oven for another 10 minutes.
7.  Set the oven temperature to 180°C .
8.  Take a large frying pan and melt the butter.  Add the leeks and cook until softened.  Stir in the thyme, grind over black pepper, cool.
9.  Add the creme fraiche to the beaten eggs and milk.  Add the Parmesan and nutmeg, season with black pepper.
10. Spread the leeks over the base of the cooked tart, sprinkle over half of the walnuts.  Scatter over the  crumbled Stilton cheese.  Pour the egg mixture over.  Sprinkle over the remaining walnuts.
11. Bake 35-40 minutes until the filling is set and golden brown.

Roasted Tomato, Basil and Parmesan Quiche

We have had a lovely outing to Liverpool to see a beautiful new born baby girl and her proud mummy and daddy.

I enjoy wandering around Liverpool and didn't need any persuading to revisit Delifonseca in Stanley Street for lunch.  There is a wonderful deli downstairs and upstairs they serve freshly made food. It is close to The Cavern and if you are nearby and need lunch/dinner which is made to a high standard, you can't go wrong, they also have a restaurant at Dockside, Liverpool. When I go out for lunch, I mostly choose the vegetarian option, and Delifonseca served me a fabulous quiche.  I hadn't made a quiche for some time and found this delicious recipe on the BBC GoodFood website.

   To go along side the quiche I made this crunchy rice salad.

LEEK AND GRUYERE QUICHE

The summer has reached the West Midlands at last! We can now have barbecues without having to run for cover and cook under the parasol, we can even eat quiche!

My tomato plants are at last happy and producing good red cherry tomatoes. Even some of the plants that have been on a back burner have burst into life and are trying their very best to put on a show for me.

If you are in the mood for quiche and have some leeks lurking in the fridge then this is a great recipe to use them up. A delicious quiche but try not to cook it to within an inch of its life because it will carry on cooking whilst cooling.

Oh dear look what happened to my pastry! This was after resting the pastry before rolling out, and then after popping the lined tin to rest in the fridge for half an hour or so. It didn't matter though and if I had removed the quiche from the tin you would never have known! Taking a belt and braces approach, by either pressing the uncooked pastry just above the rim of the tin or letting the pastry overhang the tin and when it's cooked just trim the pastry neatly from around the edges of the tin. I've never managed to trim the cooked pastry from around the tin neatly to this day!


One of my favourite Gary Rhodes recipes, although I think it is fair to say, I haven't come across many of his recipes on food blogs.

GARY RHODES - TIME TO EAT
ISBN 9780718153144
Page 180 - Serves 4 people

You will need:

a large piece of butter, 1 tablespoon olive oil, 1 sliced large onion, 1 large leek finely shredded and washed, 2 eggs, 1 egg yolk, 150ml double cream or milk, 100g Gruyere cheese grated, salt, a pinch of cayenne pepper, 175g fresh or frozen ready-made shortcrust pastry (although I made my own).

1. Preheat the oven to 200°C/400°F/Gas 6 and butter a loose 20cm loose-bottomed tart tin.
2. Heat the butter and olive oil together in a large frying pan. Once sizzling, fry the sliced onion for 5 to 6 minutes before adding the leek. Continue to fry for a further minute or two, then spread them on to a tray to cool.
3. Break the eggs into a bowl and beat them together with the extra egg yolk, and then add the cream or milk. Stir in the grated cheese and onion and leek and season with the salt and a pinch of cayenne pepper.
4. Roll our the pastry on a lightly floured surface and line the tart tin. Line the pastry case with greaseproof paper and fill with baking beans or dried rice and refrigerate for 20 minutes.
5. Bake blind for 15 to 20 minutes, and then allow to cool. Remove the greaseproof paper and baking beans and cut away the excess pastry. Lower the oven temperature to 160°C/325°F/Gas 3.
6. Pour the filling mixture into the pastry case and bake in the oven for about 30 minutes until just set. Remove the quiche from the oven and leave to rest for 20 minutes before serving just warm.

CHIPOLATA AND SHALLOT HOTPOT

My husband reminded me last night, British Sausage Week is from Monday 3rd November to Sunday,9th November.

Fortunately, quite a few of the butchers shops here are members of The Guild Q Butchers, they enter lots of competitions and seem to do really well. For instance, my local butcher is a gold medal winner for his pork sausage, year after year.

Whilst in Beckenham visiting family, we went to Villagers Sausages where every sausage imaginable can be bought. They have a very interesting website with press related articles, history and also lots of recipes, not forgetting that you can also order online.

The recipe I chose for British Sausage Week comes from the very talented cookery writer Annie Bell.

You will see from the photograph that my sausages are shall we say 'very well done'. I am a very fussy sausage eater, they have to be top quality and this is how I enjoy eating mine.

If you don't like your sausages as well cooked as mine, then by all means just show them the pan and brown the sausages lightly.

Only a small amount of red wine is used in this recipe, and unless you have got a bottle of red already opened, this can sometimes be a problem to the home cook. Maybe you have already come across Gourmet Classic seasoned cooking wines, these can be bought both in red and white. They have a screw top and can be kept in the store cupboard for up to three months after opening. I've seen these in both Waitrose and Sainsbury's.


GORGEOUS SUPPERS - ANNIE BELL

ISBN 9781856268189 - Page 129

Serves: 4 people

3 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil, 600g chipolatas, 300g peeled shallots, 1 tablespoon plain flour, 200ml red wine, 300ml chicken stock, 1 bay leaf, black pepper, 500g peeled and thinly sliced medium main crop potatoes.

1. Preheat the oven to 200°C/Fan180°C/Gas 6. Heat 1 tablespoon of oil in a large frying pan and brown the sausages on both sides, doing this in two batches so as not to overcrowd the pan (I chose to grill mine).
2. Heat 1 tablespoon of oil in a 30 x 20cm roasting dish over a medium heat, add the shallots and fry until slightly golden. Sprinkle over the flour and stir, then pour over the red wine and chicken stock. Add the sausages, bay leaf and a little seasoning, then bring to the boil.
3. Toss the potato slices in a bowl with 1 tablespoon of oil (I microwaved my sliced potatoes to start the cooking process first) and lay them on top of the sausages. Season and bake for 40 minutes until the potatoes are lovely and crisp.

Delicious!

MINI CHERRY TOMATO AND BASIL PESTO GALETTES

Whilst admiring Scott's Strawberry and Champagne Jam on his site I noticed that he is hosting Weekend Herb Blogging. and my canapes made with basil pesto fit the theme superbly and so here is my entry for the above.
We had a 'bit of a do' this last weekend and I made a few canapes. These in particular were very popular. They were easy to make and big on taste.
Making pesto is a doddle - I used basil from my garden and there wasn't a cellophane wrapped package of basil or a jar of pesto in sight.
The book I took this recipe from is my personal favourite - the recipes are all 'do-able', the food styling and photography is amazing. Every photograph, on every page, jumps out at you and says make me.
If you are about to have a 'bit of a do' look out for this book - you'll be glad you did!

CANAPES

Eric Treuille & Victoria Blashford-Snell

ISBN 1405305134 - Page 44

Makes: 20

15g basil leaves, 2 tbsp pine nuts, 1 tbsp olive oil, 4 tbsp Parmesan cheese, grated, 200g puff pastry, 20 cherry tomatoes, each cut into 3 slices, salt, black pepper, 20 basil sprigs to garnish.

You will need a 5cm fluted pastry cutter.



FOR THE PESTO:
Place the basil, pine nuts, oil and Parmesan in a food processor or blender and pulse to a thick paste.

1. Preheat the oven to 200ºC(400ºF)Gas 6.
2. Roll out pastry on a floured surface to 2.5mm thick. Stamp out 20 rounds with the pastry cutter. Place the pastry rounds onto a floured baking sheet.
3. Spread ½ tsp pesto onto each pastry round and top with 3 cherry tomato slices. Sprinkle with salt and pepper.
4. Bake until crisp and golden, about 10 minutes.
5. Garnish each galette with ½ tsp pesto and a basil sprig. Serve warm.

Pesto can be made up to 3 days in advance. Put into a container, place a layer of clingfilm on top of the pesto and refrigerate.
Bake galettes up to 1 day in advance.
Reheat in a preheated oven 200ºC(400ºF)Gas 6 for 3 minutes. Garnish and serve warm.

CAN I HAVE ANOTHER ONE PLEASE?

ASPARAGUS TARTS

I have seen lots of food blogs showcasing asparagus and thought if I wasn't careful I would miss the moment, and for lovers of asparagus there is even an Asparagus Festival in the Vale of Evesham.

Nigel Slater in The Kitchen Diaries shares with us the way he likes to eat his spears, with butter not melted, but soft enough to sink a finger in. He eats his spears at home the way he was taught by an asparagus farmer in Evesham. You boil them in deep, salted water till they will bend and are a dull, muted green - 'that way, they have more of a flavour to 'em'. You eat them with nothing but a china plate of brown bread cut as thin as you dare, buttered as if you were plastering a wall.

With the asparagus spears that were left after making the pie, I ate the rest of them the Nigel Slater way!!

My preference is to roast asparagus, none of the flavour is lost into the water that way. Nigel Slater in his book Appetite gives an easy way to roast asparagus - just wrap them in foil with a spoonful of water and a slice of butter tucked inside.

The following recipe is by Antony Worrall Thompson and the tarts were eaten greedily and with much appreciation. The asparagus in the photograph was grown in the Heart of England.

BBC GOODFOOD MAGAZINE -
ANTONY'S WEEKEND COOKBOOK

ISBN 0563493801 - PAGE 126
SERVES: 4

500g ready-made puff pastry, thawed if frozen. A little plain flour, for dusting. Unsalted butter, for greasing. 3-4 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil. 1 large onion, thinly sliced. 16 asparagus spears, trimmed. 1 egg, beaten. 2 tablespoons freshly grated Parmesan cheese. Salt and freshly ground black pepper. Tomato salad, to serve.

1. Roll out the pastry on a lightly floured board to 0.5 cm thickness. Cut the pastry into four even-sized rectangles, each about 20 x 10 cm and trim down the edges. Arrange on a large greased baking sheet, prick all over with a fork and chill for at least 30 minutes.
2. Preheat the oven to 200°C/400°F/Gas 6. Heat two tablespoons of the olive oil in a frying pan and cook the onion for 3-4 minutes until softened but not coloured, stirring from time to time. Remove from the heat and set aside to cool.
3. Blanch the asparagus in a pan of boiling water for 1 minute. Drain and refresh quickly under cold running water. Set aside to cool completely.
4. Spread the softened onion over the pastry bases, leaving a 1 cm border around the edges. Arrange the asparagus spears on top to cover the onion completely and brush lightly with the remaining olive oil.
5. Brush the pastry borders with the beaten egg and sprinkle with the Parmesan cheese over the whole tart. Season to taste and bake for 15-20 minutes or until the pastry is puffed up and golden brown. Remove the tarts from the oven, transfer to warmed plates and serve hot or warm with the tomato salad, if you like.