Caramelized Onion Quiche

I don't know how I wasted so many years not understanding what quiche was. It has only been in the last year or so that I tasted and fell in love with it. (and FYI, Tartine on Perrier St has the best quiche in the city if you're looking.)

I decided it was time to try making a quiche of my own and found a caramelized onion quiche recipe that looked easy enough.

Here's what you need:


1 frozen pie crust (next i'm going to work on making my own crusts, but for my first quiche i went the easy frozen way)
2 tablespoons olive oil
2-3 large red onions (I used 1 because that's all I had)
salt and pepper to taste
1 teaspoon balsamic vinegar
1/2 Cup milk
1/2 Cup heavy cream
3 large eggs (I used 4 small)
fresh rosemary
6 oz Gruyere cheese, grated (about 1 and 1/2 cups) -- when I swung over to Robert's to grab some gruyere, all they had was an applewood smoked version, so I used it. Couldn't have worked out better.

1. Prebake pie crust for about 15 minutes.
2. Cook onions and salt for about 10 minutes on medium heat. Reduce and cook for 40 minutes until well browned. Add vinegar and cook another 10 minutes.
3. Place pan on baking sheet. Sprinkle half the cheese, then the onions, and the remaining cheese over crust.
4. Whisk eggs, milk, and cream. Season to taste. Pour over the cheese and onions.
5. Bake until just set in the center. From 35 minutes up to an hour. Cool 10-15 minutes before slicing. 

Mint Chocolate Chip Ice Cream

Mint chocolate chip ice cream has been one of my favorite flavors since I was a child. With my mint plants growing in full force right now, I figured what better than to use fresh mint in my next ice cream recipe. This recipe is on par with the coffee ice cream I made in terms of its time commitment, but it is not difficult. Just follow the directions.

Ingredients:
3 cups fresh mint leaves (no stems), rinsed, drained, and packed
1 cup milk
2 cups heavy cream
2/3 cup sugar
pinch of salt
6 egg yolks
6oz chocolate chips

Combine mint leaves, milk, and 1 cup of the cream in a heavy sauce pan over medium heat. Allow to warm until just steaming (do not boil!), remove from heat, cover, and let steep for 30 minutes. Repeat and let steep 15 more minutes.


While mint is infusing, prepare remaining heavy cream over ice bath. Pour 1 cup cream into medium bowl placed over separate bowl with lots of ice in it. Place mesh strainer on top of bowls and set aside.


Once milk/cream mixture has steeped for its total 45 minutes, strain through mesh sieve into a new bowl, pressing on leaves with spatula to get the most liquid from them. Discard mint leaves. Return mixture to sauce pan adding sugar and salt. Heat until just steaming again, allowing sugar to dissolve. Remove from heat.

Whisk the egg yolks in medium bowl. Slowly pour milk/cream mixture into egg yolks, whisking constantly to warm eggs without cooking them. Scrape warm egg mixture back into saucepan.


Return sauce pan to medium heat, stirring constantly with a wooden spoon, scraping the bottom as you stir, until the mixture thickens and coats the back of your spoon. This can take 10 minutes.


Finally, pour custard through strainer over the cream ice bath to stop the cooking.

Chill mixture at least 4 hours in refrigerator and then freeze in ice cream maker according to manufacturer's instructions. Once the ice cream is formed, add the chocolate chips and freeze over night to harden.

I cannot tell you how excited I was about this ice cream. It sounded good and smelled delicious...and then I tasted it. In hindsight I realized that I had actually used spearmint as opposed to peppermint leaves. It definitely creates a different flavor. I wouldn't say that it's bad, just a little strange. I took the ice cream to work and people like it, so I think it is personal opinion.

I know one thing, though. I will be purchasing a peppermint plant and trying this recipe again.

Makes 1 quart
*this ice cream is a white mint chip unless you add a drop or so of food coloring to make it green

St. James Cheese Company

This saturday, like most weekends here in the big easy, was bursting with festivity. The monthly Freret Street Festival was going on as well as la Fête Française. I was interested in going to both, but after parking and then walking to Magazine and General Taylor for the French celebration I quickly lost my steam. It was a beautiful day, but quite hot and sunny. Food and beverage had to be purchased with tickets instead of straight up cash, which is annoying, and there was no shaded area to hang out. Of course, I burn rather easily, so we opted to eat lunch somewhere instead of going the festival route.
The final decision was St. James Cheese Company. This cute little joint is on Prytania and is a restaurant I had been meaning to check out for awhile. I lived in Wisconsin for 7 years. I love cheese.

I bounced back and forth between wanting a couple different sandwiches before finally deciding to try a special: Jalapeno Mac N Cheese (I have already forgotten the key cheese ingredient, like an amateur food blogger.)



The mac n cheese was delicious. Probably on par with my favorite mac n cheese of all time--Noodles & Company. It had a zap's potato chip crumble on the top and was creamy with a natural tasting spiciness. It was a nice size, though still a tad heavy for summer.



Cory got the Smokey Blue sandwich, with a smokey blue cheese (duh), roast beef, lettuce, tomato, and Worcestershire mayo on a multi grain bread. I sampled a few bites despite my fear of mayo and it was very flavorful.


Everyone was drinking wine and eating cheese; it was great. I also loved the little paintings of cheese that adorned the walls. Mm, just writing this post has made me hungry for another visit.

St. James Cheese Company
5004 Prytania St
New Orleans, LA

Banana Blossom Thai Café

I am definitely a fan of Thai food, enjoying it more than Chinese, Japanese, and Vietnamese. Having the opportunity to live in Chicago--land of cheap, abundant, and delicious Thai food--has spoiled me. New Orleans Thai is much in the lacking, so any time a new Thai restaurant opens up in the city, I am eager to try it.
Even if it means driving to the West Bank.

Banana Blossom was also introduced to me by Gay. We both immediately enjoyed the name and perused the menu online. The website had me thinking it was a semi fancy restaurant and the food all sounded very good, but its location in Gretna, LA kept me at bay. I waited until Gay tried the place first before I went.

So off Cory and I went this afternoon for a west bank adventure.

I have to say that the place was not what I expected. Located in a shopping center off Belle Chasse Highway, it was not exactly an upscale restaurant, but I still had high hopes. I started with a thai iced tea and ordered some crispy veggie egg-rolls. Strike one against the place was that they were "sold out" of the appetizer. For my entrée I opted for a standard chicken pad thai, though now I wish I had tried something different like a fried rice or curry dish.



My thai iced tea was good, but I've had better. And same goes to the pad thai. I think Bangkok Thai, Chill Out Café, and La Thai all have tastier pad thais. The one at Banana Blossom also had too much egg for my liking. Don't get me wrong, the food was not bad by any means, I just don't see myself going back there again. I was slightly disappointed. If I'm going to drive to the west bank, I'll be heading to pho tau bay.

Banana Blossom Thai Café
2112 Belle Chasse Hwy, suite 10
Gretna, LA 70056

Raspberry Sorbet

For my mother's birthday this year I combined a few of her favorite ingredients into a fabulous dessert: coffee cocoa cake with a homemade raspberry sorbet.

Sorbets are incredibly easy to make if you own an ice cream maker, though high in sugar. All natural fresh fruit is a plus if you can just ignore the pounds of sugar going into it!

Here's what you need:

2 cups water
1 1/2 cups granulated sugar
pinch of salt
4 cups frozen raspberries, thawed

Prepare a simple syrup with the water and sugar by combining both in a medium saucepan over medium-low heat. Cook mixture until sugar is fully dissolved.
Once the syrup is ready, add salt and raspberries. Blend mixture until smooth. The tricky part is straining out the seeds. It took me a lot longer because I was using such a tiny mesh strainer. You can use a spatula to help press the mixture through. Discard seeds.



Cover and chill in refrigerator for 4 hours or over night.
Pour into ice cream maker and follow manufacturers instructions. Mine only takes 15 or so minutes.
Freeze until firm, then enjoy!


(Makes 5 cups. A 1/2 cup serving contains 140 calories and 2 grams fiber.)

Raspberry and Dark Chocolate Muffins

I love raspberries and chocolate (like my mother.) I love making these dessert muffins, and they are perfect for Valentine's Day.

What you'll need:

2 C flour (or whole wheat)
1 1/2 t baking powder
1 C sugar
1 3/4 sticks unsalted butter
3/4 C plain yogurt
1/2 C water
2 eggs
3.5 oz dark chocolate, roughly chopped--the first time i made these i substituted regular chocolate chips and they worked fine
5 oz raspberries, fresh or frozen
2 T granulated sugar
powdered sugar for dusting



1. Combine the dry ingredients in a large bowl and make a well in the center.
2. Melt the butter and remove from heat. Stir in yogurt and water, then add eggs one at a time, stirring well.
3. Pour wet ingredients into dry well and combine.
4. Fold chocolate and raspberries into batter and pour into muffin tins. Sprinkle the tops with raw sugar and bake at 375 degrees for 30-40 minutes.





Remove from oven, let cool, and dust with powdered sugar.

Homemade Coffee Ice Cream

The first ice cream recipe I tried with my ice cream maker was a strawberry. It came out so creamy and delicious with tons of fresh strawberry chunks in it. Sadly, I did not take any photos of the entire process or even of the ice cream afterward.
The next recipe I decided to try was a coffee ice cream. It took a little more time and effort, but man was it worth it. Even Cory thought it was fabulous and he doesn't even like coffee.

Ingredients:

1 1/2 cups whole milk (I use 2% if that's all I have)
3/4 cup sugar
1 1/2 cups whole coffee beans--I chose a nice chocolate-y coffee bean
pinch of salt
1 1/2 cups heavy cream
5 large egg yolks
1/4 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/4 teaspoon ground coffee (press grinds through a fine mesh sieve)

1. Heat the milk, sugar, beans, salt, and 1/2 cup of cream in a saucepan until warm and steamy, but not boiling. Once warm, cover, remove from heat, and steep at room temperature for 1 hour.


2. Pour remaining cream into a medium metal bowl, set on ice over larger bowl. Set mesh sieve on top and set aside.
3. Reheat first mixture until hot and steamy. Whisk yolks together in a separate bowl. Slowly pour heated mixture into yolks, whisking constantly. Scrape warmed egg yolks back into saucepan.
4. Stir mixture constantly over medium heat scraping the bottom until mixture thickens and coats the back of your spatula, about 10 minutes.
5. Pour custard through strainer and stir into cream. Press on coffee beans to get all liquid through and discard the beans. This process took me quite some time.

6. Mix in vanilla and ground coffee and stir until cool.
7. Chill thoroughly (at least 4 hours) and then freeze according to ice cream maker instructions.

Makes 1 quart.

[My apologies for lack of photos of this amazing ice cream. This is probably one of the best coffee ice creams I've ever had.]

Red Wine Chocolate Cupcakes

Red Wine Chocolate cupcakes. Yeah, they are as good as they sound. I have made this recipe a few times and each time I marvel at how good they are.
These ones in particular were made for a co-worker's birthday.

For the cupcakes:

1/2 C cocoa powder
5 oz chocolate chips
1/2 C boiling water
2 sticks of butter, room temp
1 1/2 C sugar
4 eggs
1 1/4 C flour
1 1/2 t baking powder
1 t salt
3/4 C red wine

Mix the cocoa, chocolate chips, and boiling water in a medium bowl.

Cream the butter and sugar in a large bowl. Beat in the eggs one at a time.

Combine dry ingredients and mix with the butter/sugar/eggs. Add parts of the chocolate mixture
and wine to the bowl alternating between the two...

Until you get this nice creamy, chocolaty concoction.

Pour into muffin tins and bake at 350 degrees for about 20 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.

These cupcakes are tricky. The last couple times I have made them they plump up beautifully in the oven, but then sadly deflate in the center when pulled out. I'm sure it has something to do with the chemistry of the ingredients. Maybe the type of red wine you use?
Regardless, the flavor is not affected and you can cover up the concave center with frosting.

For the Frosting:

1/2 C butter
pinch of salt
4 oz cream cheese
2 1/2 - 3 C powdered sugar
1 T vanilla

Beat butter with salt, then add cream cheese. Mix in powdered sugar bits at a time until you get the consistency that you prefer.

Cowbell

I first heard word of Cowbell through my co-worker, Gay. The restaurant is in an old gas station where Oak Street meets River Road, so nice and close to me. It was also mentioned that something called an "adult grilled cheese" was on the menu, which right away sparked my curiosity. Let's not forget that this place is organic and locally sourced, from what I understand. I decided to finally check the place out for a Friday lunch.



Right away I fell in love with the decor. The inside is light and airy, tables made of distressed wood, flowers in glass bottles, and various sculptures including an awesome egret. Look how they post their specials with a little magnet.


Although I really wanted to try their naturally raised beef burger, I opted for a cheaper course since it was lunch and got that much anticipated Adult-style grilled cheese with a mug of the daily soup. Cory copied and got the same thing. We also split an order of fries as an "appetizer".


The grilled cheese consisted of goat cheese, grilled asparagus slices, tomatoes, and something sweet. Fig? The soup of the day was a delicious white bean and vegetable.
I was very happy with my meal. The service was a tad sub-par. Our fries came at the same time as the grilled cheese and it was hard to get a hold of any of the 3 different people that waited on us. Since Cory was on a lunch break for work ('twas my day off!) I think he felt the stress of the wait more than me. I'm not really holding the service against them just yet because I'm anxious to get back there and try more food! The burger and also their brunch.


Cowbell
8801 Oak St
NOLA 70118

Pineapple-Mint Sorbet

I got an ice cream/frozen yogurt/sorbet maker for Christmas this year (thanks mom!) My first concoction was a pineapple-mint sorbet to ring in the new year. And oh my god is this sorbet amazing. It tastes like pure pineapple bliss. I probably could have added more mint, but it is so good nonetheless, and quite easy to make.

Ingredients:

1/2 a fresh pineapple, peeled and cored (500 mL purée)
8 tablespoons sugar
1/4 cup water
1/4 cup champagne
1 Tablespoon chopped fresh mint

Prepare pineapple and place in blender with sugar. Puree until no chunks remain. Add water and champagne, pulse to combine. Add mint and pulse again. Chill the mixture thoroughly, at least 3 hours. I chilled it overnight.
Once chilled, pour into ice cream maker and follow manufacturer's instructions. Mine took 10 minutes to become sorbet. Freeze until firm, at least 4 hours.


I had a few people over for New Year's Eve and served my guests a glass of champagne with a scoop of the sorbet in it. So fancy and quite the crowd pleaser.