Sweetie Pie: Cook

Everything is better with a flaky crust, so instead of making a fritatta for dinner I decided to make quiche. I just popped some pie crust I had made weeks ago out of the freezer to defrost and was feeling smug about how easy this would be thanks to my thinking ahead. It was a dreary afternoon outside, so I set up my little helper with play dough, plastic knives and a rolling pin and we got to work.
Everything went beautifully. My pie dough rolled out without cracking and breaking and I made a really pretty wavy border around the edge. I put it in the refrigerator for a few minutes to let it chill and relax, and then slid it into a hot oven. The recipe calls for a partially baked crust, so I checked on it about 5 minutes later.

Disaster. What happened to that beautiful crust? It shrunk at least 25% and puffed up like a balloon in the middle, and the pretty border crumpled and fell in. I was distraught. I can't use this! What am I going to do now?

This is what happens when you don't use your head, when you get cocky about your baking prowess, when you don't read ALL the directions carefully before you begin.

I decided to start over and do it right this time. I laid out Mastering the Art of French Cooking where I could read it in detail as I worked. I pulled out my last hunk of pie dough, and tried again. I knew that I could count on Julia Child to guide me through if I worked carefully. Looks like I did pretty much everything wrong the first time. I should have used a springform pan so that the quiche can stand alone when done. I should have set the oven at 400 degrees. I should have filled it with weights (or beans) so that it wouldn't puff up in the middle and sink down around the edges. I should have baked it for 8 to 9 minutes, removed the weights and baked it for another 2 minutes.

I think I broke a sweat working on it but I did just what the book said, slid it into the oven and turned my attention to the filling. This is the easy part. I love leeks; they are so pretty and have that particular mild flavor. You have to wash them carefully because they tend to have grit in between the layers.
The easiest way to do this is to chop them first, then dunk them in cold water, swish 'em and pull them out, leaving the dirt behind like this:

I cooked these until they were tender and assembled the eggs, seasonings and cheese. Making sure to read each direction carefully, I mixed up the filling, poured it in and crossed my fingers. Unbaked quiche isn't much to look at and makes you wonder if it's going to be any good.

It was left to bake at 375 for about 30 minutes while I cleaned up pie dough and play dough. I left the whole thing in the pan with the sides still on just to make sure I didn't have another disaster. It puffed and browned just like it should!
I held my breath and carefully took off the spring-form pan and slid it onto a plate......

Ta -Da!! Notice how the sides are standing tall! At this point I didn't even care how it tasted anymore. This was me versus pie dough, and I WON.

Leek and Swiss Quiche recipe by Julia Child

1 partially baked pie crust; I used One Pie Dough to Rule them All

1 or 2 sliced leeks

1/2 cup water

1 tsp salt

3 Tb butter and/or olive oil

Cook the leeks in water and fat with salt until they are tender.

3 eggs

1 cup cream - I used half and half

pinch of nutmeg

pinch of pepper

1/2 cup grated swiss cheese

Beat the eggs, cream, half the cheese and seasonings in a mixing bowl. Gradually stir in the leeks. Pour into pastry shell and sprinkle remaining cheese over it. Bake in 375 degree oven for 30 minutes or until puffed and brown. Julia Child says it will stay puffed for about 10 minutes in the turned off hot oven with the door ajar. As it cools, it sinks down. Quiche is great left over, but it will not puff again.

The crust made this a really delicious dish. You can see in the picture how flaky it is. The filling is just right too. The leeks and swiss harmonize without being overpowering. It's creamy, mild and savory in the middle and rich and crusty on the outside. I will make this again because I love eggs for dinner, and I'll be an old pro at partially baked crust.

It was a normal trip to our local Earth Fare on a typical weekday morning. We had stopped to pick up milk and something for lunch on the way home. The three year old usually requests macaroni and cheese, pizza with cheese, or just plain cheese, but we always stroll through the produce section and look at the veggies anyway. It's not difficult to convince him we should get some fruit, but what happened on this day surprises me still.

My beautiful 3 year old boy looked at the broccoli and asked if we could buy some and have it for lunch! I told him I thought that was a great idea and we picked a nice bunch of broccolini together. We went right home and got to work. He climbed up on a bar stool and supervised the cleaning and chopping. He tasted it raw, and I kept thinking there's no way he's actually going to eat this. If he says he wants broccoli, I'm not going to argue with him though. Also, I'd been wanting to try this recipe from Rachel Allen's cooking show for Broccoli Soup so I persevered.

By the time we finished cooking and blending, we were pretty hungry. This soup is green. I served it with cheddar fish crackers but cheese toast would be even better.

My boy looked at that green soup and he used his spoon and he ATE it. I was so proud. It just goes to show what shopping and cooking with your kids can do. He may have had a heap of crackers in it and he might not have asked for second servings, but who's counting?

Broccoli Soup

2 tablespoons butter

1 onion, chopped

2 potatoes, peeled and chopped

3 1/2 cups stock

1 head broccoli or 1 bunch broccolini

salt and pepper

Cook the butter, onion and potatoes in a covered saucepan on low heat for 10 minutes. Meanwhile, clean and chop the broccoli and keep the stem and florets separate. Next, season the pot with salt and pepper to taste and add the broccoli stems and stock. I used chicken stock from a box, but vegetable stock would be good also. I do not recommend using water because you really need the depth of flavor from the stock. Let this come to a boil for 5 minutes, then add the broccoli florets and cook for one more minute with the lid off. Remove from heat and add cream or milk to taste. You can leave this out if you have dairy issues. Blend to desired smoothness with an immersion blender or in a blender.