Why Blanch Broccoli?

I had someone point out to me that I'm mainly a baking blog. That is true - 75% of my cookbook collection deals with baking and most of the recipes blogged are desserts. However, I do cook often. I usually make the same dishes, which I blogged a long time ago, like chicken strips, chicken or beef curry, garlicky pasta, chicken a la king, thai-inspired beef, lasagna, and wonton soup. Hmmm I also make beef fajitas often, but I apparently I haven't blogged about them yet.

Anyway, my point is that although I can't make any promises, I'm going to try and blog more about my cooking as well as my baking. After all, baking doesn't necessarily mean desserts! Take this quiche for example. Made in a pie crust but no sugar or butter involved! My parents love quiche. I don't because I'm not an egg fan, but even I enjoyed this broccoli quiche. Quiche is a very versatile dinner. You can use broccoli, mushrooms, asparagus, cauliflower, carrots, sausage, bacon, ham, whatever you have in the fridge.



Fresh or frozen veggies are recommended. You can probably get away with canned mushrooms or asparagus (peas and carrots maybe??) but if you can splurge a little, go for the fresh. If you are using frozen broccoli, thawing is all you need. However, you need to blanch fresh broccoli. Why? It makes them maintain their green color as well as cooks them slightly before baking in the oven. The oven cooks the broccoli, but it alone won't make the broccoli as soft as they should be.

To blanch broccoli, bring water to a boil. Place broccoli florets in the water and cook for 3-5 minutes - don't overcook! Drain and immediately run under cold water to stop the cooking process. Let broccoli drain for a few minutes before using or pat dry with a towel.

Broccoli and Mushroom Quiche



1 unbaked 9-inch pie crust
1 cup milk
4 eggs, slightly beaten
1/8 tsp black pepper
1 cup fresh broccoli, blanched or frozen broccoli, thawed
1 garlic clove, minced
1 Tbsp chopped onion
1/2 cup sliced mushrooms
1 1/2 cups shredded Cheddar cheese

1. Preheat oven to 350F. Using a little bit of oil or butter, saute garlic, onions, and mushrooms for a few minutes. Turn off heat. Blanch broccoli if needed.

2. In a medium bowl, whisk together milk, eggs, and pepper. In the pie crust, layer broccoli, mushroom mix, and cheese. Pour egg mixture on top and distribute evenly if needed.

3. Bake 40-50 minutes (I needed 60) or until knife inserted in center comes out clean. Cool 5 minutes before cutting into wedges. Refrigerate any remaining quiche.

Makes 8 wedges

Source: Pillsbury Breakfasts and Lunches, 1989 p. 64

Tuesdays With Dorie - Chipster-Topped Brownies

This week's pick was Chipster-Topped Brownie, brownies with a chocolate chip cookie layer on top. I have tried many chocolate chip cookie recipes and failed at pretty much all of them, and this recipe was no different. My chocolate chips sunk into the brownie layer, so really it's just a brownie with a cookie layer on top. This is what they are supposed to look like. Also, I think I overbaked them slightly, so I suggest covering with foil to keep the top from being too brown. One thing I didn't like about the recipe is you had to wash dishes after making the brownie layer. Unless someone asks me, I probably won't make these again.





Thanks to Beth from Supplicious for picking this week's recipe! You can find the recipe on pages 94-95 of Baking: From My Home To Yours or on Beth's blog.

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Anybody else ever experience a baking rut? It seems like everything I have been making lately is messed up in some way. My wonton soup didn't cook properly, chocolate chip cookies failed like usual, my carrot cake didn't rise, the cookie layer didn't work with these brownies, and yesterday, my hamburgers fell apart. My hamburgers never fall apart. Is it possible for the baker's mood to be transfered into food? I feel like everything lately is falling apart, like those burgers.

And The Winner Is...

Thanks to those who entered my first giveaway contest! I used a random number generator and it chose:




Comment #20 is Tammigirl! She said, "My favorite is grilled salmon with a little lemon butter sauce. I like to eat fettucine alfredo with it." Congrats, Tammigirl! Go treat yourself with some grilled salmon. Just let me know how it was after you go.

Tuesdays With Dorie - Fresh Mango Bread

Man, it's been awhile since I've done one of these. This week's TwD was Dorie's Fresh Mango Bread. Mango is a favorite of mine, so I was really excited to bake this bread. However, I was slightly disappointed. I felt that there was slightly too much ginger in it. My mom said there was too much lime. My dad said it was just right. All I know this bread kinda stuck around longer than usual. I would make this bread again if I have leftover mangoes, but I would probably use the leftovers for mango sorbet rather than bread.



Thanks Kelly from Baking with the Boys for this week's pick! You can find the recipe on page 45 of Baking: From My Home To Yours or on Kelly's blog.

Don't forget to enter my giveaway! In case it wasn't very clear, you need to leave a comment for each step completed. For example, if you are following me on Twitter, comment and say I am following you on Twitter. I am following you in a feed. I subscribed to your email, etc. Each time your comment, you have another entry in the giveaway. Make sense? I hope so!

Win A Gift Card!

It's your lucky day! Because I live in an area away from anything cool (except for Kennywood), one wonderful reader can win a Bonefish Grill gift card! Seriously, I checked the store locator and none are within 100 miles of me. Boo! Here a snippet from the press releases:

In a downward economy, Trans-Pacific trips to Asia aren’t in the cards, but that doesn’t mean you shouldn’t be able to enjoy the area’s flavorful foods right outside your door. Local Bonefish Grill chefs make it easy to indulge in authentic Asian-inspired cuisine such as Huge Wild Gulf Shrimp Pad-Thai and Asian-style Tempura Lobster without breaking your bank, and are available to teach your readers how to make the most of their nights in with a festive Asian kick!

You have many ways of entering. Please make one comment for each entry. That means if you complete steps 1, 2, and 3, you would comment for #1 and post. Then comment for #2 and post. Comment for #3 and post, etc. This is so I can use the random number generator to pick the winning comment.

edit - In case it wasn't very clear, you need to leave a comment for each step completed. For example, if you are following me on Twitter, comment and say I am following you on Twitter. I am following you in a feed. I subscribed to your email, etc. Each time your comment, you have another entry in the giveaway. Make sense? I hope so!

1. Post a comment below, telling me your favorite seafood dish.

2. Follow me on Twitter and tweet this giveaway. Let me know in the comments what your username is (if it's not obvious).

3. Join my Facebook fan page. Let me know who you are if it isn't obvious.

4. Follow my Networked Blogs page. Let me know who you are if it isn't obvious.

5. Subscribe to receive emails. It is the first paragraph in the right column, right below the Food Buzz ad.

6. Click on my FoodBuzz ad in the right column and be my friend. Here is my profile page.

7. Add me to whatever feed you use. You can also use Google Friend Connect. If that link doesn't work, go in the right column, above where the blog links start, it says stalkers. Let me know who you are.

8. Blog about this and link back to me.

Make sure you leave an email in your comments. The contest will end Saturday, May 23 at midnight EST. The winner will be announced shortly after that. This is my first giveaway, so let me know if I left out any details.

Review - Mix My Granola

A big thanks to Raoul and his Mix My Granola team for letting me try their granola and for being patient as I get this review up! This past few weeks have been extremely busy with me finishing up school and going on vacation. I am still unpacking a little from moving back home, but at least now I only have one kitchen instead of two. I hated trying to figure out what ingredients and supplies I needed when visiting home for the weekend or a break.



Anyway, Mix My Granola is a terrfic concept because you get to pick what goes in your granola. No more picking out stuff you don't eat! There are some pre-mixes available if you simply can't decide or in a hurry to buy granola. First, you pick your granola base. I chose the organic granola, but you can also pick french vanilla granola, organic muesli, and low-fat granola. Some come with mix-ins already. The organic granola is just granola. Then the fun begins.


Your choices are dried cranberries, dried apples, dried strawberries, dried raspberries, banana chips, dried apricots, dried blueberries, dried mangos, dried melon slices, dried pineapple, dried cherries, dates, dried papaya, dried plums, raisins, goji berries, dried blackberries, almonds, peanuts, cashews, pecans, brazil nuts, pistachios, soy beans, walnuts, sesame seeds, pepitas, amaranth seeds, flax seeds, sunflower seeds, macadamia nuts, hazelnuts, hemp seeds, chia seeds, yogurt pretzels, sesame sticks, wasabi bears, gummy bears, jelly beans, rice crispies, oatbran flakes, honey smacks, coco shreds, choco espresso beans, peanut butter bites, candy corn, pomegranate cordials, chocolate raisins, tiramisu caramels, crystalized ginger, peanut MnMs, fruit loops, mini morsels, and cocoa crisp bites. Phew! Please don't tell me they don't have anything you like!



How the mix-ins work: you pick as many as you like as many times as you want. You pay per ounce of each ingredient you want. Shipping is a flat rate of $4.99, no matter how many containers you order. What's nice is you can name your mix for future reference and a personalized gift.



I decided to get dried apricots, dried papaya, sunflower seeds, pomegranate cordials, chocolate raisins, sesame seeds, and wasabi peas. The granola makes an excellent snack for vacation.

I definitely recommend Mix My Granola to all granola lovers. My favorite part is customizing your ingredients. How many sites let you do that?

Fly Away

"Angel carry me, oh so far away.
May my body never touch the ground.
And If I promise you that I'll be back someday,
will you set me free so I can fly away?"
- Fly Away by Sugarland

In case you haven't heard, I'm graduating tomorrow. Eek! Thanks to everyone who gave me well wishes and congrats so far. My professors and friends keep asking me what my plans are after graduation. Truth be told, find a job in video production. I don't have anything lined up, but I still have time. Right? RIGHT?

I won't be blogging probably for the next week or so because my graduation present is a trip with my dad to Nashville and Memphis. I know I'm crazy, but graduation is tomorrow, and we are leaving Sunday. Originally, we were going to leave Monday, but Kate Voegele is playing in Pittsburgh next Saturday, so I bumped our trip up a day so we would come home Friday instead of Saturday. I will be taking my laptop and using wireless internet at the hotels, so if there is time I will answer messages and comments.

To my TwDers - I will hopefully be back with the mango bread. I'm really upset I'm missing the tiramisu cake. Not sure if I'll have time to make the lemon tart because I'll be unpacking and settling back home. I sure do love lemon though.

I will leave you all with a video. The first half, imagine my dad saying "Murray, roll over. Roll over, Murray." At about 00:15, he goes "Carla is coming home Saturday." Sorry the lighting is so dark.