Celebrity Cook-along: Pillsbury Doughboy

Joining Lynn @ Happier than a Pig in Mud for her Celebrity Cook-Along.

This time we're cooking with the Pillsbury Doughboy!

The Griller was out doing errands the other day when I called him up to get me a tube of Pillsbury Crescent rolls. He's a good guy, picked them up for me and I threw the tube in the frig. It's a blue tube, it said Pillsbury, I assumed it was fine. I'm thinking chocolate croissants with this tube of flaky, greasy goodness, no matter I can't pronounce some of the ingredients, they make excellent chocolate croissants.

These will not make good chocolate croissants. He got the wrong blue tube. I don't like garlic with my chocolate. They did however, make fantastic Ranchero Crescent Rounds. Little Southwestern Black Bean and Cheese Quiches. Except these had an Asian flair because we love Sriracha.

and since they weren't round, I managed to deal with that, too...

They came out so good! Topped with a little fire-roasted salsa, I intended them for an afternoon snack, my kids are starving after school, milk and cookies would never do. Instead they had them for breakfast, they couldn't wait. My kids are not breakfast cereal kids for breakfast, you have to be inventive.

The changes I made were by accident, I never read the complete directions, no shock there! I only used one can, they weren't the rounds and I filled to the top instead of a tablespoon of filling. Instead of slicing them into the rounds (I didn't read that part!) I unrolled it and used a glass. It worked out fine, except I had leftover scraps, which I baked plain. They were good plain. In a standard six muffin pan, it made nice sized little quiches. Would definitely make these again! They would also be very nice for a brunch.

Rancheros Crescent Rounds
Source: Pillsbury.com - recipe by Amy Murphy Bake-Off® Contest 44, 2010
Adapted by There's Always Thyme to Cook
Printable Recipe

2 cans (8 oz each) Pillsbury® Place ’N Bake® refrigerated crescent rounds (16 rounds) or 2 cans (8 oz each) Pillsbury® refrigerated crescent dinner rolls
1 egg
2 tablespoons sour cream
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/8 teaspoon black pepper
1/4 teaspoon chili powder
1/4 teaspoon red pepper sauce (I used a teaspoon of Sriracha Sauce)
1/2 cup shredded sharp Cheddar cheese (2 oz)
1/3 cup canned black beans, drained, rinsed
1/4 cup salsa

Heat oven to 375°F. If using crescent rounds, remove from package, separate into 16 rounds. If using crescent rolls, remove from package, but do not unroll. Using serrated knife, cut each roll into 8 rounds; carefully separate rounds. Place rounds on ungreased large cookie sheet. Press down center and pinch edge of each round to make indentation (about 3/4 inch deep and 2 inches in diameter).

In small bowl, beat egg, sour cream, salt, pepper, chili powder, pepper sauce and 1/4 cup of the cheese with fork or wire whisk until well blended.

Place 1 teaspoon of the beans in each crescent bowl. Spoon 1 teaspoon egg mixture into each bowl (do not fill to top). Sprinkle each with about 1 teaspoon of the remaining cheese.

Bake 14 to 18 minutes or until bowls are golden brown and filling is set. Top each with 1/2 teaspoon of the salsa.

Joining

  The Little Red House for Mosaic Monday! 

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Flashback Friday: Quiche

My favorite quiche, Broccoli, Mushroom and Cheddar!

I love quiche, and it's a nice change of pace for dinner sometimes. And very easy to put together! Use whatever you have in the frig. but my favorite combination is broccoli, mushrooms and cheddar, although anything goes! We had it with a big salad! Romaine, arugula, baby spinach, yellow peppers, carrots, baby plum tomatoes and beets with a classic vinaigrette!

It's definitely a repeat since I've posted the recipes before, but it's so good, I'll post it again for Flashback Friday and join Suzy at Kitchen Bouquet for another visit to a really great recipe! Check out Suzy's Flashback Friday for more "new visits to old favorites!"

Basic Vinaigrette
Printable Recipe

1/2 cup extra virgin olive oil
4 -5 tablespoons or more, good vinegar -- wine, sherry, rice, balsamic, fruit, etc.
salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste
1 heaping teaspoon Dijon mustard
1 large shallot, peeled and finely chopped

Put all ingredients in a glass jar with a lid. Tighten lid and shake until combined and emulsified!

Broccoli, Mushroom and Cheddar Quiche

adapted by There's Always Thyme to Cook

Printable Recipe

NOTE - I've used 1% milk, with no cream, and it comes out just as good with a lot less fat!

1 (9-inch) unbaked pie shell (I use deep dish)

Custard Filling:

3 eggs

1/4 teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/2 teaspoon freshly ground white pepper

1 cup heavy cream

1/2 cup milk

1 1/2 cups broccoli, florets, chopped small

1-1/2 cups sharp cheddar cheese (shredded)

8 ounces mushrooms, white button, sliced

1 shallot, chopped fine

olive oil and a little butter

Preheat oven to 375°. Line pie shell with parchment paper or aluminum foil and fill it with uncooked beans, rice, aluminum or ceramic pie weights. Bake until golden brown and dry. Carefully remove foil and weights. Transfer to a wire rack to cool while making filling.

 

Heat oil in a large nonstick skillet over high heat. Add shallots, and cook, stirring, until translucent but not brown, about 1 minute. Add mushrooms, and season with salt and pepper. Add broccoli and cook, stirring frequently, until mushrooms first release their liquid and then liquid evaporates and mushrooms are dark golden brown and the broccoli is tender.

 

Transfer quiche pan to a baking sheet. Sprinkle half the cheese evenly over the bottom of the crust. In a medium bowl, whisk together milk, cream, eggs. Season with nutmeg, salt, and pepper. Mix in the mushrooms, shallots, broccoli and remaining cheese. Pour into the pie shell. Transfer to oven, and bake until just set in the center, about 30 to 35 minutes. Cool on a wire rack for about 10 minutes before slicing.

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Soup Weather!

We had more snow on Sunday! A dusting, maybe a little more, but enough to cover, combined with the wind, it's been freezing cold and we needed soup here! This is the perfect chill chaser...

I can't follow directions exactly, never could. Just ask my first grade teacher, my second, my third, the list goes on. And I know this because it says so, in red, on all those old report cards my mother saved. But not a problem when it comes to cooking, it's usually fixable. I cooked the rice separately, but the mushrooms and leeks, in my case this time, shallots, sauteed all together. This time instead of the porcini powder, I used dried porcini's and reconstituted them in warm water, then used the mushroom broth in the soup as well as the chopped porcini's! Served with a quiche and a salad, easy dinner for a cold, snowy night!

Mushroom and Wild Rice Soup
Source: Martha Stewart Living - September 2003
Printable Recipe

1/2 teaspoon coarse salt, plus more for seasoning
1/2 cup wild rice
3 teaspoons olive oil
1 1/4 pounds assorted mushrooms, such as button, cremini, shiitake (stems removed), and chanterelle, sliced into bite-size pieces
Freshly ground pepper
1 tablespoon unsalted butter
3 leeks (white and pale-green parts only), quartered lengthwise and thinly sliced
1 tablespoon Porcini Powder
1/2 cup sherry or Madeira
3 tablespoons soy sauce
6 cups chicken stock
2 tablespoons heavy cream
1 tablespoon finely chopped fresh, flat-leaf parsley

In a small saucepan, bring 1 cup water to a boil.  Add salt and wild rice. Cover; reduce heat to medium-low. Cook until tender, 45 to 50 minutes. Drain; set aside.

In a large saucepan, heat half the oil over medium-high heat. Add half the mushrooms; season with salt and pepper. Cook until browned and tender, about 7 minutes; transfer to a bowl. Repeat with remaining oil and mushrooms.

Reduce heat to medium-low. Melt butter; add leeks. Cook, stirring, until softened, about 5 minutes. Stir in mushroom powder; cook 1 minute. Add sherry and soy sauce; cook 1 minute more.

Add stock to pot; bring to a boil over medium-high heat. Add mushrooms; return turn to a boil. Reduce heat to medium; cook 20 minutes. Stir in wild rice, cream, and parsley; adjust seasoning, and serve.

PORCINI POWDER (1/3 cup)
1 ounce dried porcini mushrooms

In a spice mill or coffee grinder, pulse porcini to a fine powder. Store in an airtight container at room temperature. You can use this in soups, stews, sprinkled on steak, in sauces, risotto. Adds a nice depth of flavor.

I made a quiche for dinner, it's easy, and you can throw whatever you have in the frig in and end up with a really good combination. This one had slices of tomato, cheddar cheese, broccoli, mushrooms and shallots. It was filled! and now my refrigerator isn't! Good way to use up whatever you have.

Mrs. Anderson whoever she is came up with the best idea since sliced bread. The pie shield. Comes in two sizes and it's so much easier than crimping tin foil around the crust. My edges always cracked off when I did the tin foil thing. Works great! You can see on the slice, I still have my edge!

 The basic recipe I use for quiche is here.

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Mosaic Monday: Quiche

Welcome to another Mosaic Monday hosted by Mary at The Little Red House! Check out Mary's blog, there are loads of participants with all different kinds of really cool mosaics joining in on Mosaic Monday every week!

This is a basic quiche recipe I've been making for years. It's been adapted along the way to whatever I have on hand. Whole milk, low fat, heavy cream, it's a basic custard so use whatever you have. You can add any fillings you like, any cheeses you like. Very adaptable. Spinach and Artichoke with Mozzarella is really good. The recipe usually makes enough for a deep dish crust OR two regular pie crusts. Tonight I used 2% milk, shredded cheddar and shredded mozzarella. It's basically a "leftovers" quiche! Sounds nicer than a "dump" quiche though. But that's basically it. Dump whatever you have and mix it up, pour it in and bake. It is a lot more elegant than I make it out to be, it's great at a brunch, or luncheon, or anything.






It's also good crustless, just pour into a baking dish and bake until it's set in the center.









Broccoli, Cheddar and Mushroom Quiche
Printable Recipe

1 (9-inch) unbaked pie shell

Custard Filling:
3 eggs
1/4 teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon freshly ground white pepper
1 cup heavy cream
1/2 cup milk

1 1/2 cups broccoli, florets, chopped small
1-1/2 cups sharp cheddar cheese (shredded)
8 ounces mushrooms, white button, sliced
1 shallot, chopped fine
olive oil and a little butter

Preheat oven to 375°. Line pie shell with parchment paper or aluminum foil and fill it with uncooked beans, rice, aluminum or ceramic pie weights. Bake until golden brown and dry. Carefully remove foil and weights. Transfer to a wire rack to cool while making filling.

Heat oil in a large nonstick skillet over high heat. Add shallots, and cook, stirring, until translucent but not brown, about 1 minute. Add mushrooms, and season with salt and pepper. Add broccoli and cook, stirring frequently, until mushrooms first release their liquid and then liquid evaporates and mushrooms are dark golden brown and the broccoli is tender.

Transfer quiche pan to a baking sheet. Sprinkle half the cheese evenly over the bottom of the crust. In a medium bowl, whisk together milk, cream, eggs. Season with nutmeg, salt, and pepper. Mix in the mushrooms, shallots, broccoli and remaining cheese. Pour into the pie shell. Transfer to oven, and bake until just set in the center, about 30 to 35 minutes. Cool on a wire rack for about 10 minutes before slicing.





They really do mean WAIT TEN MINUTES before slicing. I had one messy, messy slice. but it tasted so good. I never said I had patience to wait. and you must have noticed by now how well I am at following directions!





You can make a quiche ahead of time, just reheat it. It freezes and reheats really nicely!

If you need to bake your own pie shell, here a few good recipes... Martha Stewart Flaky Tart Dough and Pate Brisee, Martha Stewart's Basic Pie Dough.

I like to take the easy way out and just buy one!

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Stop by Cuisine Kathleen and show Kathleen your whites. Or just check out everyone else who's joining in with their white tables, dishes, flowers, whatever! Always a fun event over at Kathleen's. Check it out! Her event starts tomorrow on June 23 but many have already started posting their whites! I'll be there tomorrow to show her my pearly whites!

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