The Quickest Quiche

Yesterday, I had a revelation: I could make quiche crust out of Saltines!  A quick internet search revealed that I wasn't, in fact, the pioneer I had thought myself to be.  But no matter, I'm still claiming this as an invention of my own culinary mind, cooked up in isolation on this beautiful Spring weekend that I've shared exclusively with Dan, who is currently recovering from surgery he had this past week. (He's feeling better every day and recovering splendidly, by the way!)

Lily brought me a bag of beautiful fiddlehead ferns from the Union Square Greenmarket, but you could swap them out for any green vegetable - spinach, asparagus, kale, fresh herbs, broccoli - on and on.  Just make it green, because it's the middle of May and we're surrounded by it!

Easy Fiddlehead Quiche with Saltines Crust
makes 8 servings

35 Saltine crackers, crumbled
4 tablespoons butter, melted

2 oz. Pecorino Romano, shaved
1 cup fiddleheads, blanched
6 eggs, well beaten
salt and pepper

Grease a 9-inch pie pan and preheat the oven to 350 deg. F.  Combine the Saltine crumbs and melted butter and press evenly into the bottom and sides of the pie plate.  Pre-bake the crust for 5 minutes.

Remove the crust from the oven and start building the rest of the quiche: arrange a layer of Pecorino shavings, then the fiddleheads, then pour in the eggs, seasoned with salt (not much - the cheese is salty) and pepper.

Bake for 30 minutes, until the egg is set.  Remove and let cool.  Serve warm or at room temp.

Spring is Here!

Green garlic from the farmer's market heralds the spring

Asparagus salad (and Dan makes dinner!)

Last weekend, I walked into the apartment after a long day of working brunch to find that Dan was preparing a fantabulous dinner of grilled lamb chops with a minted cucumber-yogurt coulis! Wow! The food was delicious. And for once, I got to take the backseat. (Unfortunately, we were both so excited that I forgot to take a picture to show off.)

My only contribution was a simple salad of more of that lovely spring asparagus.


Warm Asparagus Vinaigrette
(serves 3-4 as a side)

- 1 bunch asparagus, blanched and cut on the bias into 1-inch pieces
- 1/2 red onion, sliced thin
- 1/2 cup mint leaves, torn or chiffonaded

- 2 garlic cloves, smashed and chopped
- 2 teaspoons dijon mustard
- 1/3 cup red wine vinegar
- 1 cup olive oil
- salt and white pepper to taste

To prepare, simply toss the first three ingredients together, and make the vinaigrette with the remaining ingredients, whisking in the olive oil last. Season with the salt and white pepper and enjoy while the asparagus is still warm from blanching.

Spring is here!

And this means the asparagus has sprung!

Walking home from work yesterday, I spotted a sweet deal at my local green grocer: huge bunches of beautiful pencil asparagus for just $1 each! (Oh Astoria, how I love thee.) At the same time, my stomach was calling for tacos. Now, you might scoff at the idea of tacos with asparagus, but at that moment a lightbulb of craving went off in my brain (or my gut?), and a slightly crazy idea was born. The resulting repast? Shredded chicken tacos with crunchy asparagus and guacamole. Easy and very rich in vitamin S! (that's for Spring, silly.)
Pulled Chicken Tacos with Asparagus and Guacamole
(serves 3-4)

Ingredients:
- 2 lbs. boneless skinless chicken breasts
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- 2 teaspoons salt
- 1 teaspoon cumin
- 1 tablespoon paprika
- 1 bunch pencil asparagus (about 1 pound)

- 3 ripe avocados, halved and pitted
- 1 medium red onion, chopped small
- 1 jalapeno pepper, deseeded and minced
- 2 plum tomatoes, cored and diced
- juice of 2 lemons- 1/2 cup cilantro leaves
- salt to taste

To serve:
- corn tortillas (I used blue corn - very aesthetically pleasing)
- sour cream
- Mexican beer with lime

Procedure:
1. Preheat oven to 350 deg. F. Rinse and pat dry the chicken breasts and place in a medium baking dish. Coat with olive oil and sprinkle evenly with salt, cumin, and paprika. Bake for 45-60 minutes, until the inside is not pink, or an instant-read thermometer reads 165 degrees.

2. Meanwhile, salt a large pot of water and bring to a boil. Rinse asparagus and cut off the toughest part of the stem, at the very bottom. Chop the remaining asparagus stalks into half-inch segments and drop into boiling water for a minute only (you want the asparagus bright green, not yellow-brown and overcooked). Drain quickly and shock with cold water immediately to stop the cooking. Set aside.

3. Now go ahead and make your guacamole: Scoop the avocado out into a large bowl and break up roughly with a wooden spoon. Add the onion, jalapeno, tomato, lemon juice, cilantro, and season to taste with salt. Mix well and set aside.

4. When chicken is fully cooked, remove from baking dish and allow to cool completely. Then, using your fingers, shred the chicken into small, taco-appropriate pieces.

5. Finally, in a hot, dry skillet, warm your tortillas - about 1 minute per side - and keep warm by wrapping in a clean kitchen towel until ready to serve.

6. To serve, pile some chicken, guacamole, crunchy asparagus, and sour cream on a warm tortilla, roll up, and enjoy with your favorite Mexican beer!