Spinach Quiche

I'd say that a good 50% of my meal planning involves a thought process along the following lines:

"Dang it. That big bag of spinach I bought is about to go bad. What can I make with that, and this (insert random ingredient) that doesn't require a trip to the grocery store for anything else?"

Then I peruse my recipe binder and see if I get lucky. Today I did, and there's no wasted spinach here.

Spinach Quiche

From the Salt Lake Tribune

1 package frozen 9" pie shells (enough for 2 single crusts), or 2 homemade unbaked pie shells

6 eggs

15 oz. ricotta cheese

1 cup heavy cream (I used fat free half and half)

3/4 tsp salt

1/4 tsp pepper

3 green onions chopped

8 oz. mushrooms, sliced (True confession: I used a pound of sausage instead. The Bruce gets a little uptight if dinner is meatless.)

1 package (10 oz) spinach leaves

1 cup grated cheese (any kind you like)

Preheat oven to 375.

In a medium bowl, whisk together eggs, ricotta, cream, grated cheese, salt, and pepper. When smooth, set aside.

In a large pot saute onions and mushrooms or sausage. (If you are taking the vegetarian route, add about 1 T of oil to the pan before adding the mushrooms and onions.) Saute mushrooms for 2 minutes, or sausage until completely browned. Add spinach and cover the pan for 2 minutes. Stir until leaves are barely wilted.

Add the cheese mixture to the mushroom/sausage mixture. Stir over medium heat until cheese melts, then divide the mixture equally between the two pastry shells. Bake for 25-35 minutes, until top is slightly rounded and is turning golden. Let stand several minutes before serving.

I assembled my quiche this morning and kept it in the fridge until dinner tonight. It turned out great but did require more like an hour in the oven since it started out cold. If you want this quiche for breakfast I think assembling it the night before would definitely be the way to go.

Penne with Sausage and Peas

We had this for dinner last night, and I have to say that I thought it was delicious just because it was so simple tasting. I also made several substitutions and changes to the original recipe, and it seems to be one that is easy to vary based on the ingredients you have on hand.

Penne with Sausage and Peas
12 ounces whole wheat penne pasta
2 T olive oil
12 ounces fully cooked roasted garlic chicken sausage, sliced on the diagonal
2 cloves garlic, chopped
1 pound tomatoes, seeded and chopped
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup chicken broth
1 cup frozen peas
2 T freshly grated Parmesan cheese

Cook pasta according to package directions, except add the frozen peas during the last 2 or 3 minutes of cooking. Drain.

Heat 1 T of the oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Add the sausage and cook 3 minutes, turning a few times, until browned. Remove to plate.


Heat remaining 1 T oil in the same skillet. Add the garlic and cook 30 seconds. Stir in tomatoes and salt and cook 2 minutes. (I used a pint of my home-bottled tomatoes and reduced the chicken broth by half. I also put in a couple of teaspoons of Italian herb blend.) Stir in chicken broth, sausage, and noodles/peas and heat through. Top with parmesan.

Know what else would be delicious? If you put a little splash of heavy cream in this at the end. Oh, and quintupled the cheese.

Sausage Subs

This was dinner tonight: It came together quickly and everyone seemed to enjoy them.

Sausage Subs
Cooking spray
1 1/2 cups vertically sliced onion
1 garlic clove
6 ounces chicken and sun-dried tomato sausage, thinly sliced (The pre-cooked "long" sausage by the hot dogs, not the uncooked "breakfast meat"-type sausage. I actually substituted turkey sausage.)
1/2 cup spaghetti sauce
sliced cheese
4 sub rolls or 8 hard rolls

Heat a large skillet coated with cooking spray over medium heat. Add onion, saute for 4 minutes. Add sausage and garlic and continue to saute until sausage is browned and onions are soft, about 3-5 additional minutes. Pour spaghetti sauce over and heat through. Serve on rolls with the sliced cheese.