Deviled Ham Salad

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I discovered Lisa Fain via her Homesick Texan blog, and was immediately sucked in. Thereafter, she further delighted me with the publication of three books: Queso!, The Homesick Texan Cookbook, and The Homesick Texan’s Family Table, all of which I recommend. We seem to have similar ideas about food — we like it hearty, tasty, and with a bit of a kick. This recipe for deviled ham spread is based upon hers. The difference between her recipe and mine is that I prefer shallots to onions, like my red peppers roasted, and my jalapeños pickled, hence the difference in flavor here. I have been eating deviled ham since I was a child, so I consider myself a bit of an expert. I think this is the best recipe you’ll find. If, like me, you have some Easter, this is a way to put it to excellent use.

Deviled Ham Salad
Adapted from Lisa Fain

2 c. chopped ham
¼ c. diced Melissa’s Fire Roasted Red Peppers
¼ c. diced Melissa’s shallots
1 large dill pickle, diced
1 Melissa’s pickled jalapeño, seeded, stemmed, and diced
3 T. Duke’s mayonnaise
3 T. yellow mustard
1 t. pickle juice
Kosher salt
Freshly ground black pepper

Place all ingredients into the work bowl of your food processor, and process until blended, but not smooth (you’re going to want a bit of texture). Taste and adjust any seasoning, or add more mayonnaise and mustard if you’d like. Keeps in the refrigerator for a few days.

 

Madame Quiche’s Quiche au Fromage

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I believe that there is beauty in simplicity, or at least that’s what I used to tell my parents when I would get a less than stellar mark on my report card. Nonetheless, it is often true, and you will find no better example of that than in this simple and delicious quiche, a close representation of the ones sold by Madame Quiche every Saturday at the Louviers market in France. Her quiches are so delicious that many have tried to copy them. This recipe, from a 1999 issue of Gourmet magazine, is the one that I use. If you want to make it even simpler, use store-bought piecrust, roll it to fit a 10-inch pie pan, and blind bake it as described below. Once you’ve tried this one, you will kick all others to the curb.

 

Madame Quiche's Quiche au Fromage 

 

One recipe for basic pastry*

6 large eggs

2/3 c. heavy cream

1 c. whole milk (WHOLE! Absolutely nothing else will do, I mean it!)

Pinch of salt (1/8 – ¼ t.)

Few gratings of freshly ground black pepper

8 oz. Gruyère, Emmenthal, or other Swiss-type cheese

¼ t. freshly grated nutmeg

 Roll out the pastry to fit a 10½” pie plate. Crimp the edges, poke the bottom with a fork or the tip of a sharp knife, and place the pastry in the freezer for 30 minutes. Preheat the oven to 425°F. Line the pastry with aluminum foil and pastry weights and bake in the bottom third of the oven until the pastry is golden at the edges, about 15 minutes. Remove from the oven and remove the aluminum foil and pastry weights. Return the pastry to the oven to bake until the bottom is golden, an additional 5 minutes. Remove from the oven and reserve.

In a medium-sized bowl, whisk together the eggs, cream, and the milk until thoroughly blended. Season with salt and pepper, then add the cheese and stir until it is blended. Turn the mixture into the pre-baked pastry, and spread out the cheese evenly over the bottom. Sprinkle the top with nutmeg and bake in the center of the oven until the filling is golden and puffed, and is completely baked through, about 30-45 minutes. To test for doneness, shake the quiche - if it is solid without a pool of uncooked filling in the center, it is done. You may also stick a sharp knife blade into the center of the filling and if it comes out clean, the quiche is baked through. Remove the quiche from the oven and serve immediately.

 *If you want to make it easy on yourself, use store-bought pastry, roll it between two pieces of parchment paper to fit a 10-inch pie pan, and blind bake as mentioned above.

 

 

Pumpkin Spice Sugar Cookies

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Fall is officially here, and my lifestyle has completely changed. With the cool nights, I’m leaving the windows open, I’ve put away my pastel pillows in favor of those in the colors of fall, and the fire is set in my fireplace just waiting for me to strike a match. I have also changed my methods of cooking. The crockpot has become a permanent fixture on my counter, and the smell of warm spices can be caught floating on the air in my neighborhood. Soups, stews, breads, and pumpkin everything is the order of the day. In case you are unaware (if you’re a new reader) my favorite dessert is cookies. I was wondering how I could alter one of my favorites to reflect my love of fall, and came up with this recipe for Pumpkin Spice Sugar Cookies. One bite, and you’ll find that it’s hard to stop eating them. Seriously, I had to bag mine up and put them in the freezer, the temptation was so strong. The molasses helps to enhance the spices, but if you don’t want that taste to be as strong, cut back to 1 tablespoon.

Pumpkin Spice Sugar Cookies

¾ c. butter flavored Crisco
1 c. firmly packed brown sugar
1 large egg
2 T. molasses
2 c. flour
2 t. baking soda
1 T. pumpkin pie spice*
¼ t. salt
Granulated sugar for dipping

In the work bowl of your stand mixture, cream shortening and sugar until the mixture is light and fluffy. Stir in egg and molasses. Sift together flour, baking soda, pumpkin pie spice, and salt in a separate mixing bowl. Slowly add the flour mixture to the shortening mixture, and blend the dough until thoroughly combined. Wrap the dough in plastic and chill in the refrigerator for one hour or up to overnight.

Remove dough from fridge, preheat oven to 375°F. Cover baking sheets with parchment paper or a Silpat. Using a cookie scoop, scoop up the dough, roll into balls, and roll in the granulated sugar to coat. Bake for 12 to 14 minutes or until they are puffed and cracked on top. Allow to cool a minute or two on the cookie sheet before transferring them to a wire rack to cool completely. Makes 36.

 *DIY version can be found here.

 

Apple and Quince Crisp with Rum Raisins

I play favorites when it comes to fruits. Perhaps it's because I far prefer vegetables (weird, I know), but my fruit consumption, as a rule, is rather limited.  I tend to stick with what I know and like, peaches and blueberries at the top of my list. So when I received a bag of pineapple quince from Melissa's Produce I was a bit knocked off the track. Firstly, I had to identify them and, secondly, figure out how to use them to their best advantage.

For the uninformed (like me), a quince precedes the apple in culture, dates back to Biblical times, and may have been the actual fruit exchanged between Adam and Eve. A hard, yellowish, fragrant fruit, it comes from a tree that has its roots (if you'll pardon the pun) in the rose family.  Quinces are loaded with pectin and, as such, are exceptionally useful when making jam. The flavor is unique, being a combination of apples and pears, and it is eaten cooked wherein the white flesh becomes a blushing pink.

I searched for recipes and came upon this one. Because I was only serving a small crowd, I cut the recipe in half. Because I am more about the topping than the interior when it comes to fruit desserts, I did not cut the crisp part in half. (Grin) I also substituted brown sugar for white in the topping and added a pinch of cardamom.

A wonderful fall dessert, I like it served warm with a scoop of ice cream.  This dish is a bit labor intensive, but various components can be made a day ahead.  And, as it seems to improve with age, make it a day prior to serving and warm it in a low oven before doing so. 

Apple and Quince Crisp with Rum Raisins

Bon Appétit, November 2007

Rum Raisins:

1 1/2 cups raisins

1 cup dark rum

Crisp Topping:

3/4 cup (1 1/2 sticks) unsalted butter

2 cups all-purpose flour

1 cup sugar

1 teaspoon ground nutmeg

1/4 teaspoon salt

Filling:

4 cups water

3 1/2 cups sugar, divided

2 pounds quinces (about 5 medium), peeled, quartered, cored

4 large Gala apples, peeled, cut into 1-inch pieces

2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice

1 tablespoon all-purpose flour

1/4 teaspoon salt

Whipped cream or vanilla ice cream

For rum raisins:
Simmer raisins and rum in small saucepan 3 minutes. Remove from heat. Ignite with match; let flames burn out, about 4 to 5 minutes. Transfer 2 tablespoons liquid to small bowl for crisp topping.

For crisp topping:
Melt butter in small saucepan over medium-low heat. Simmer until butter is golden brown, about 6 minutes. Cool.

Mix flour, sugar, nutmeg, and salt in medium bowl. Add browned butter and 2 tablespoons reserved liquid from rum raisins; stir until moist clumps form. DO AHEAD: Raisins and topping can be made 1 day ahead. Cover each; chill.

For filling:
Combine 4 cups water and 3 cups sugar in large saucepan. Stir over medium heat until sugar dissolves. Add quinces; simmer until tender, 15 minutes. Remove from syrup; cool. Reserve syrup for another use. Cut quinces into 1-inch cubes. Transfer to large bowl. DO AHEAD: Can be made 1 day ahead. Cover and chill.

Position rack in center of oven and preheat to 350°F. Butter a 13x9x2-inch glass baking dish. Add apples, lemon juice, flour, salt, remaining 1/2 cup sugar, and rum raisin mixture to bowl with quinces; toss to blend. Transfer to baking dish. Crumble topping over.

Bake apple and quince crisp until golden and bubbling, about 55 minutes. Cool at least 30 minutes. Serve warm or at room temperature with softly whipped cream or ice cream. 

This post is linked to:

Full Plate Thursday

Foodie Friday

Shatteringly Good Mini Mustard Batons

It's been one of those days.  The air conditioner that conked out last week during 95-degree weather has now been fixed, hooray for that.  And though we still have a lot ahead of us, things have started to calm down into a manageable disarray.  The day is beautiful, a seasonable 82, with (also seasonable) high humidity, but a light breeze makes being outside very pleasant.  My son is working on rebuilding the brick patio now that the uprooted tree has been pulled up and carted off, and I was happily working away in the kitchen making chicken pot pies and chocolate cake for our dinner (and to send home with my son).  Then I heard a strange noise, and I knew that just couldn't be good.  The grass cutters were here, cutting the front lawn.  One of them hit a rock, and sent it flying into our front storm door, shattering it into a million pieces that rained down on the potted plants, porch swing, and brick surface of the front porch.  Ugh.

I poured myself a glass of iced tea, eyeing the bourbon warily, then decided a squeeze of lemon would do instead, enjoying it while paging through Dorie Greenspan's recent tome, Around My French Table.  A recipe on page 25 for Mustard Batons caught my eye.  Hers called for full sheets of rolled out puff pastry and a 1/2 cup of Dijon mustard.  I sized up the trimmed remains of the puff pastry I'd used to top the pot pies and decided to make my own mini version of her Batons.  As she writes in her book, they are terrific!  They also illustrate how it doesn't take a lot of ingredients to make something easy and delicious.  Just ask my husband and son.  I made four of these and by the time I got my camera, only two of them were left!

Dorie's recipe is below, but all I did was slather stone ground mustard onto a long strip of puff pastry, fold it in half, and made four equal, vertical slices.  I transferred them to a piece of foil while preheating my toaster oven, brushed them with an egg wash (1 lightly beaten egg to which 1 tablespoon of cool water has been added), and sprinkled poppy seeds on top.  Since mine were smaller, I baked them a minute or two less than she suggested, removing them when they'd turned golden brown.

I will definitely be making these again!  I love that they can be made ahead of time, and frozen until ready to bake.  I also think a sweet version would make great breakfast pastries sprinkled with a cinnamon and sugar mixture, or cinnamon, sugar, cocoa and chopped nuts, or even raspberry jam.  Imagine the possibilities!  Try these, you'll love 'em.  And while you're at it, treat yourself to Dorie's book.

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and  Everyday Sisters - Appetizers