Roasted Red Pepper and Fennel Quiche with Goat Cheese

Well, it's about time.

I've had so many requests for more recipes, more blog posts, it seems I can no longer neglect this little corner of the world wide web. My posts won't be frequent and they won't be regular, but at least I can offer a little something every once and a while. :)

I concocted this recipe the other day when I was searching for a tasty quiche recipe for a breakfast date with a friend. It ended up making enough for two, so I sent one off with my husband for his weekly work Saturday brunch potluck. If you don't want two, it is easy to half the recipe.

And it's a wonderful meatless Lenten recipe, something I'm always searching for more of.

Enjoy. :)

Roasted Red Pepper and Fennel Quiche with Goat Cheese

2 pie crusts

2 large red peppers

1 head of Fennel, green part removed

1 large yellow onion

8 oz. goat cheese

A dozen eggs

1 c. milk

2 t. thyme (I used dried, but it would be great with fresh)

Preheat oven to 500 degrees F. Place your red peppers on a baking sheet, whole and entire. Roast for 30 minutes, turning about every 10 minutes. Keep them in the oven until their skins are completely blackened. Once black, remove from oven and immediately wrap in foil. Leave inside for at least 30 minutes. Once cool, remove stem and seeds, and carefully peel off skin. Cut into thin strips.

Reduce oven heat to 350 degrees F.

Chop onion and fennel. Heat a teaspoon of olive oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Cook onion and fennel for about 10 minutes, until softened. Place in bottom of pie crust along with roasted red peppers, split evenly between two pies. Sprinkle 4 oz. of cheese in each crust. 

In a small bowl, crack 6 eggs. Whisk eggs. Mix in a 1/2 cup of milk and 1 teaspoon of thyme. Pour into pie crust on top of vegetables and cheese. Repeat with second crust.

Place in oven for one hour, or until inserted knife comes out clean. 

Allow to cool for at least a half hour. Delicious hot or cold! 

Sunday Sightings: The Omelet

How to Hard-Boil an Egg

This may seem at first glance an unnecessary piece of instruction, but stick with me. This is vital information and there is much to learn about boiling an egg of which many people are, sadly, unaware. I, for one, have come a long way since my first over-cooked, busting-out-the-shell egg. It seems as easy as spreading peanut butter on a piece of bread, but it is actually a lot more technical than one might think...but still easy!!

First things first. Place your egg inside the pot and fill it with cold water until it just covers the egg. This important detail will help ensure your egg does not cook too long. Also, if you place your eggs in already hot water, there is the danger of them cracking upon impact with the warmed water.

Heat the burner to medium high. If this produces a very rapid boil, turn it down a tad. Eggs boiling too vigorously will hit the bottom and sides, splitting open too soon.

Set the timer for 20 minutes. This produces a fairly solid yolk. If you like it on the softer side, perhaps 15 minutes but no less than 10.

As soon as the timer goes off, empty the hot water into the sink. Immediately fill the pot back up with cold water. This stops the egg from cooking any further. Dump again. Refill with a bit of water, enough to cover a third of the egg or so.

When you get ready to peel your egg, tap gently on the counter, or any other hard surface (a hard head will

do), until it has tons of tiny cracks. Start from the pointy end where there is a gap between the shell and egg inside. Your peel should come off easily. Very fresh eggs are a bit tougher, but a little patient coaxing should do the trick.

Enjoy with a sprinkle of salt and pepper.