Bonjour la France: Ham and Gruyere Quiche

I still haven't had time to sit down and come up with more brilliant weekend ideas, but I've discovered that, as usual, Disney has my back.  Earlier in the pandemic they began posting ideas for "Adventures at Home" which is pretty much what our weekends are about anyway.   Some of them, like their South Africa adventure, were really similar to weekends we'd already done, but others were brand new and exciting.  

So we started off on our tour around the world with something very familiar to me - a trip to France!

At some point during the summer, I made crepes and Thatkid was completely enthralled with the idea.  He stood beside me and took notes with the ingredients and technique.  So I put him in charge of making crepes for all of us for breakfast.  We wrapped them around fresh berries, because we always have berries in the house in the summer.

One of the activities Disney suggested was a game called "Qui est le Personnage" which is where you guess the French name for Disney characters. Some were pretty easy.

And some were....not so easy

And one the kids knew from their "Summer of Opera"

Since Thatkid made breakfast, I put Thatbaby in charge of lunch.  We made individual quiches, filled with ham and gruyere.

After lunch, we went for a tour of the Musee D'Orsay.

Disney also provided us with a recipe for macarons.  So of course we had to make them.  Their recipe didn't have any flavor associated with it, so we added some vanilla.

Macarons are a long process.  While we waited for them to dry, bake, and cool, we did a little bit of French art.  The boys discovered Art for Kids Hub through Camp Kinda and it's become a staple in our house.  He's so good at breaking things down to their speed and making it accessible to them.  So obviously we had to draw along with his Eiffel Tower video.

Both boys threw in for dinner, making chicken en papillote.

We also listened to French music (the soundtrack from one of my favorite movies - Les Parapluies de Cherbourg and a healthy dose of Edith Piaf) and watched some French inspired movies (Ratatouille, Can Can, and some Asterix).  It was a very mellow day but with a lasting effect - Thatkid is asking for an Eiffel Tower lego set for his upcoming birthday, and Thatbaby may be addicted to Orangina.

Ham and Gruyere Quiche

1 pie dough

1/4 cup ham, chopped

1/4 cup baby spinach, chopped

1/2 cup gruyere, grated

6 eggs

1/4 cup cream

1/2 tsp salt

1. Preheat oven to 375.  Roll the dough into a 12-inch circle and place in a pie dish.  Press the dough into the pie dish and crimp the edges.
2.  Sprinkle the ham, spinach, and gruyere evenly over the pie dough.
3. Whisk the eggs, cream, and salt together in a large bowl. Pour over the filling.
4. Bake for 30-45 minutes, until the center is set.

Crave Wednesday: Egg Salad Sandwich

Time for a Christmas recap!  Before we hit a full month after the fact.  As usual, we made the trek up to the inlaws.  It was a long car trip.  But the kids found ways to occupy themselves.

Because Christmas fell on a weekend, we decided to head up the Friday before, which actually meant far less traffic than we usually encounter.  We also decided to stay in a hotel.  Which was a godsend.  Funny to think there's more room in a single room for 4 people and a dog than a whole house!

It was also nice because there was a place downstairs where we could grab breakfast in the morning.

On Christmas Eve, we spent the day with Magski and her family in their new place.  We all remarked at how incredible it was that despite only seeing each other a few times a year, Thatkid and Ace fall right into old patterns as soon as they see each other. 

 

The new place has a tire swing in the backyard.  And Ace couldn't wait to show it off.  And Thatkid couldn't wait to join him.  They were pretty good sports about having their younger siblings horn in.

Then it was time to say goodbye and head back to change into our church clothes for Christmas mass.

This is what happens when you ask 2 boys to smile nicely for a family picture.

After church, it was over to Grandma's house for Christmas dinner.  Then back to the hotel to get ready for bed.  While I put Thatbaby to sleep, Thatboy and Thatkid read The Night Before Christmas.

We weren't sure if Santa was going to make it to the hotel, so there was lots of joy and excitement to find presents with his tell-tale wrapping on them in the morning.  "SANTA WAS HERE!" 

In addition to bringing the "Christmas blankets" Thatkid had asked him for, Santa left another special treat - Christmas cookie breakfast cereal!

Once it wasn't an obscenely early time, we headed over to TBIL's house for more Christmas festivities.  Or more sitting around for hours until breakfast was ready (hence filling my kids' bellies up with cereal before we arrived.) and then more sitting around until it was finally time to open presents.  The kids kept themselves entertained during the waiting period.

Presents, presents, everywhere for all my boys.  As for me, I got a special gift from my little guys.  My very own ugly Christmas sweater (sweatshirt).

 We waited so long to open presents, that as soon as we were done we had to get dressed and head over to TSIL's sister's house to spend Christmas with the rest of her family.  Her sisters both have little girls, so my boys were definitely outnumbered.  But they enjoyed playing with the girls, watching them do ballet performances, and everyone joined in the "talent show" of singing their favorite Christmas carols.

The day after Christmas was the kind of day I've come to expect from Thatboy's family.  It was supposed to be our day together, the last day we were there before heading home.  We had made plans to meet an hour away, and even though we called when we were on our way, they waited until we had arrived to cancel on us.  So we drove an hour back to their homes, only to find out that TSIL had taken her kids to see a movie she had seen earlier in the week, and TBIL wanted to stay home and play with his new Christmas presents.  So instead of spending time with them, we spent the day with TMIL watching "Secret Life of Pets."  And the next day we were on the road.


We got home very late that night, without enough time to go shopping, and I worked the next day.  Which meant the next night's dinner was going to have to be something that could be thrown together with things we already had in the fridge.  Things like - eggs.  Because everyone always has eggs right?  Rather than the ever-popular breakfast for dinner, egg salad found its way onto the table.  Sandwiched between some hearty slices of sourdough bread.

I think egg salad is one of those classic childhood dishes.  Or maybe just a classic dish from my childhood.  It's one of the first things I ever learned how to make, since it's really just mashing up hard boiled eggs.  But there are so many variations as to what you put in with the egg.  Personally, I go very light on the mayo, and heavy on the mustard.  This version doesn't skimp on the mayo, but it gets cut with reduced fat sour cream.  Which I love.  It adds an extra tang to an already unbeatable dish.  If you've ever had hollandaise sauce, you'll know how lemon brightens up egg, and this is no exception.  Not enough to make it taste lemony, just enough to give it some zing.

Egg Salad Sandwich (From Cooking Light)

1/4 cup mayo

3 Tbsp sliced green onions

3 Tbsp reduced fat sour cream

2 tsp whole grain Dijon mustard

1/4 tsp grated lemon rind

8 hardboiled eggs

8 slices of bread, toasted

4 Boston lettuce leaves

1. Combine mayo, onions, sour cream, mustard, and lemon rind in a medium bowl.
2. Cut 2 of the eggs in half legnthwise and remove the yolks.  Chopp the egg whites and add to the bowl.  
3. Chop the remaining eggs and add to the bowl, stirring gently to combine.
4. Top 4 of the toast slices with a lettuce leaf and 1/2 cup of the egg salad.
5. Top with remaining 4 toast slices.

A Homemade Life: Italian Grotto Eggs

To keep up with our fruit picking week, Thatkid and I headed out for more.  This time we went green.  Watermelons!

When I went looking for strawberry fields I found Kenny's Strawberry Farms.  Which sounded very promising.  The only problem was that Kenny's strawberry season ended July 4, which is when their watermelon season began!  Watermelon?  I've never heard of watermelon picking, but at the rate we consume watermelon it sure sounded like a good idea!

Like the strawberry fields, watermelon picking involves rows which you wander down to pick your fruit.  It reminded me a lot of going to a pumpkin patch.  And so I invoked the same rule.  We can only bring home what you can carry. 

Thatkid picked watermelon after watermelon.  "Woah there, how many watermelons are we taking home?"  I asked him.  

"As many as I want" was his response.

I drew the line at 2, one for each of us.

Thatkid and I have been enjoying his part time preschooling this summer, with all sorts of activities like this.  However, it is so difficult to get him ready in the mornings.  We have a rule that in order to do anything he'd like to do (like watch television or play with his toys) he has to have breakfast, brush his teeth, and get dressed first.  Which means once he's up I need to be up and ready to get him ready.  His choice of breakfast is interesting.  On the weekends, when Thatboy is in charge, he always wants cold cereal.  On the weekdays, with me, it's usually something more elaborate - like oatmeal, or peanut butter toast, or "white eggs." 

We're weird about eggs in this house.  Thatkid only likes egg whites.  I like my eggs dry and brown.  You really can't take us anywhere.  These eggs didn't go over well for either of us.  Of course, I made the mistake of putting pepper on Thatkid's eggs, which means even if he was willing to taste them, I had already ruined them.  As for me, they were a little too soft and runny - it's a consistency thing.  But I know that most other people would love them, since Thatkid and I are, like I said weird about eggs.  Soft, fluffy, and creamy, these eggs are exactly how most people seem to prefer them.  And I do love cheese with my eggs.

Italian Grotto Eggs (From A Homemade Life)

1 Tbsp butter

5 eggs

1/4 tsp salt

1 Tbsp heavy cream

3 Tbsp goat cheese

1. Melt the butter in a medium nonstick skillet over medium-high heat.  Crack the eggs into a small bowl, and beat them lightly with a fork.
2. Add the salt and cream and beat to blend.
3. Pour the eggs into the hot pan and swirl.  Reduce the heat to low and stir gently until they are loosely set in large, pillowy curds.  
4. Remove from heat and scatter cheese over the eggs. Give them one more gentle stir to melt and distribute the cheese.

Little Parrot Turns 3: Greek Quiche

It warms my heart that Thatbaby is still friends with his daycare friends.  His core group is completely separated now.  They all go to different schools.  And yet, there is still such joy when we get together.  And in October we get together a lot, because of all the birthdays.

Little Parrot's birthday party was held at a park near our old place.  A park Thatbaby was all too familiar with.  But it's been long enough since we've been there that now he's able to maneuver more of the equipment by himself.  Or with a friend

Thatbaby's favorite part of any birthday party is the cake.  And he wasn't disappointed at Little Parrot's birthday.  They played, they ate, and he fell right asleep on the way home.

This isn't cake, but it's close - we've taken to calling quiche "egg pie" in our house, and pie is cake-like, right?  Okay, I know, I'm not kidding anyone.  A savory egg pie is probably as far from cake as one can get.  But for some reason, having a pie crust makes me feel like this meal is dinner and dessert.  It's a takeoff of my favorite Greek omelet - with spinach and feta.  I like to include Swiss cheese in my omelet to serve as a counterbalance to the salty feta, so Swiss cheese got thrown in here too.

Greek Quiche

1 pie dough

4 eggs

3/4 cup milk

1 Tbsp chopped fresh parsley  

1 tsp minced garlic 

 1/2 tsp salt    

1/2 tsp ground black pepper

1/8 tsp ground nutmeg  

1 bunch fresh spinach  

8 oz sliced mushrooms  

1/2 onion, sliced 

1/4 cup crumbled feta cheese  

1/2 cup shredded Swiss cheese

1. Preheat oven to 400.  Press pie crust into a 9-inch pie dish.
2. Whisk the eggs, milk, parsley, garlic, salt, pepper, and nutmeg in a bowl.
3. Combine spinach, mushrooms, onion, and feta in a separate bowl.
4. Spread spinach mushroom mixture in the prepared pie dish.
5. Top with half of the Swiss cheese.
6. Pour the egg mixture over the filling.
7. Top with remaining cheese and bake for 45 to 50 minutes

Breakfast and a Boat: French Fry and Bacon Breakfast Casserole

Where I grew up in Western Pennsylvania, summers meant lots of time spent on the lake.  Fishing, boating, tubing.  It was a great place to spend those long, hot, summer days.

This past week has been a strange one here.  The humidity has been intense - unusual for Southern California.  Combined with the thunderstorms, it felt a little like Hawaii.  And with the heat, it felt like those summers I grew up with. 

So over the weekend, we decided to head to the lake.  Or "a lake" to be more precise, because there are several in San Diego County.  But on Saturday I picked up a magazine that spoke of Dixon Lake and the historic stories of old San Diegoans heading to camp there in the summer.  So we went to check it out.

 

The lake itself is picturesque, and in many way reminded me of the lakes I grew up with. With the exception of those mountains!  The lake sits in a basin, surrounded by mountains and trees.  You can't swim in the water, but you can boat.  And so boat we did.

 

We rented a peddle boat for the four of us.  It was Thatbaby's first time on one of these and he had a blast.  He was so quiet, sitting there and taking it all in.  But everytime we asked if he was having a good time he would nod his head very seriously.

Thatboy remarked to TMIL that she probably didn't think she'd be "camping" while they were here.  For him, being on the lake reminded him of his summers camping with his family.  With that in mind, I wanted to indulge him in a "camping" type breakfast.  Camping is in quotes here because I always tease Thatboy that his family, who proclaimed themselves to be avid campers, never actually camped.  They camped in lodges or campers, always with a working stove and oven.  So while my camping experiences involved cooking over an open flame, they ate the same foods they would have at home.  This is that kind of breakfast.  Filling, a great use of last night's leftovers, and there's something about breakfast casseroles that make you think about sleeping in a tent.  Maybe that's just me.  Since we know Thatboy has very little tent experience!

Bacon and Potato Breakfast Casserole

4 slices thick bacon, chopped
1 onion, diced
1 yellow bell pepper, diced
4 cloves garlic, minced
8  eggs
1 cup milk
2 cups shredded cheddar cheese
3 cups french fries

1. Heat the oven to 350. Spray a baking dish with baking spray.
2. Heat a large skillet over medium heat.  Add the bacon and cook until crisp.
3. Add the onion, yellow bell pepper, garlic, and salt to taste, and cook for 5 minutes. Turn off the heat and let cool slightly.
4. In a separate bowl, beat the eggs.
5. Whisk in the milk. 
6. Whisk in some salt and pepper. 
7. Stir in the cheese, french fries, bacon and vegetables.   Pour the whole mixture into the prepared baking dish. Bake for 40 minutes.

Family Ties: Cheese Souffle

While UDubb was working on bringing my new niece into the world, the rest of the family was gathered together to visit with First.  He had brought his new girlfriend out to California to meet all of us - and there are quite a few of us. 

I love family get-togethers, they make me so happy and it's exciting for me that Thatbaby gets to grow up with all these wonderful men.  Yes, men.  Look at that picture - do you see the shortage of women we're working with in my family?  Maybe why I'm so excited about Baby B.  We need some more estrogen in this joint!

Being with the family also reminded me that I still haven't shared with you my souffle story.  The souffle I wanted to make when Mustang came for dinner, but didn't.  The souffle I made for my boys the next day.  And oh, the story of this souffle.

There is something to be said about a recipe.  It can make or break you.  And my souffle process has shown that the right recipe can lift you up.  And the wrong recipe will leave you flat, deflated.  I had been working on my souffles for a while, trying different recipes and different techniques.  Most of them ended up looking like this:

So I did what I always do when faced with a difficult dish.  I turned to Alton Brown.  Really, this is where I should have started.  Because when I start with an Alton Brown recipe, I usually don't even realize the dish is supposed to be difficult.  It's no surprise that the results were measurable:

My beautiful, high rising, golden souffle.  Airy and light.  Tasting like macaroni and cheese - so creamy, so cheesy.  It was an incredible success.  Lovely to eat on a summer night.  Equally as impressive for a fancy brunch.

Cheese Souffle (from Alton Brown)

Butter, room temperature, for greasing the souffle
2 Tbsp grated Parmesan 

3 Tbsp butter
3 Tbsp flour
1 tsp dry mustard
1/2 tsp garlic powder
1/8 tsp kosher salt
1 1/3 cups milk, hot
4 large egg yolks
6 ounces sharp Cheddar
5 egg whites plus 1 tablespoon water

1/2 teaspoon cream of tartar

1. Use room temperature butter to grease an 8-inch souffle mold. 
2. Add the grated Parmesan and roll around the mold to cover the sides. Cover with plastic wrap and place into the freezer for 5 minutes.
3. Preheat oven to 375. In a small saucepan, heat the butter. Allow all of the water to cook out.
4. In a separate bowl combine the flour, dry mustard, garlic powder, and kosher salt. 
5. Whisk this mixture into the melted butter. Cook for 2 minutes. 
6. Whisk in the hot milk and turn the heat to high. Once the mixture reaches a boil, remove from the heat.
7. In a separate bowl, beat the egg yolks to a creamy consistency. 
8. Temper the yolks into the milk mixture, constantly whisking. 
9. Remove from the heat and add the cheese. Whisk until incorporated. 
10. In a separate bowl, using a hand mixer, whip the egg whites and cream of tartar until glossy and firm. 
11. Add 1/4 of the mixture to the base. Continue to add the whites by thirds, folding very gently.
12. Pour the mixture into the souffle. Fill the souffle to 1/2-inch from the top. Place on an aluminum pie pan. Bake in the oven for 35 minutes.