Bacon & Cheese Stuffed Eggs

These are lovely appetizers.  They are rich.  Divas love rich!  They are a gorgeous breakfast.  Bring these to your next garden party and they will disappear quickly.  

Bacon & Cheese Stuffed Eggs

Hard boiled eggs

Mayonnaise

Dijon Mustard

Real bacon bits

Shredded cheddar cheese

Mash the egg yolks with everything else. 
Stuff into the empty spot in the whites.  Duh.

Make it a Meal:  These are already a great breakfast on their own. 

Wine:   Champagne

Perfect Quiche

My quiche always came out rubbery until I came across this recipe.  The diva that gave me this ran her own restaurant.  I was adding too many eggs and not enough cream.  This quiche is wonderful. 

4 eggs

2 cups half and half

1 cup shredded cheese ( cheddar, Swiss, or your favorite blend)

1- 1 1/2  cups of crumbled crispy bacon, cooked sausage, ham, broccoli (par cooked or frozen defrosted and drained) or whatever you like for filling ( mix them together)

¾ tsp salt

¼ tsp pepper

9” unbaked pie crust (Use a frozen deep dish and let it defrost while assembling ingredients).

Sprinkle meat or vegetable filling in bottom of pie crust. 

Sprinkle cheese on top of filling.

In a pretty bowl slightly beat eggs, add in the half and half, salt and pepper 

Add other seasonings if you like.

Pour mixture into  pie crust.

Place in oven at 425 for 15 minutes. 

Reduce heat to 300 degrees and bake for an additional 30 minutes or until knife inserted ½ way to center comes out clean.  

Let rest for 10 minutes before slicing.

Baked Mini-Crab Cakes

The biggest problem with this recipe is that I only made one batch.  They disappeared faster than my kitten when the vacuum starts up.  So I'm told.  I'm not really sure where the vacuum is.  All right, truth is faster than I disappear when the vacuum starts up.

I didn't make the ones in the picture.  I don't have time for such pretty food.  I put a garlic aioli in my friend's mini-wine glass and served the cakes around it.  For that dipping sauce I just whisked together some light mayonnaise, a minced garlic clove, some lemon juice, and a splash of hot sauce.

You don't really need to chill the recipe for 30 minutes, but I like to make things ahead.  I did up to this step and brought it to my Fourth of July luxury BBQ (at Bob & Diana's, Coleen) and baked it there.  

Baked Mini-Crab Cakes

olive oil for sautéing

1/2 onion, diced

1/2 mild banana chili pepper, diced

1 Tbsp. capers

a few dashes Worcestershire sauce

a few pinches Old Bay

1 can crab

1/4 cup bread crumbs

1/4 cup light mayonnaise

1 small spoonful Dijon mustard

some nice chives from the kitchen garden, chopped

1 egg

Sauté onion, pepper, capers, Worcestershire, and Old Bay until onions are soft.  

Remove from heat and let cool.

In a pretty bowl, toss the crab with the breadcrumbs, mayonnaise, mustard, chives, and egg.

Add the cooled onion mixture to the crab mixture.

Cover and chill.

Scoop into greased mini-muffin tins.

Bake for 15 minutes until they start looking golden brown.

Make it a meal:  Serve ahead of you friend's marinated grilled chicken and pasta salad with side salad of cucumbers and tomatoes.

Wine:  Chardonny all the way.

Mini Frittatas

Frittatas are quiches without the crust.  You can make them as healthy or as decadent as you want.   Here’s one of my favorite combinations.  It is quite rich, but that is precisely the way a diva likes everything in her life!  Make a batch and eat them all week. 

      8 ounces turkey Jimmy Dean-like sausage

8 ounces mushrooms, sliced and a few cloves of garlic, chopped

1/4 cup onions, sliced

1/4 cup shredded cheddar cheese

1 teaspoon freshly ground pepper

5 eggs

3 egg whites

1 cup 1% milk

Grease a muffin tin.

Sauté the mushrooms, garlic, and onions in a bit of olive oil.

       Brown up the sausage, then add to the mushroom mixture, then add the cheese.

In another bowl, whisk eggs, egg whites and milk.

Divide the egg mixture evenly among the prepared muffin cups.

Plop a heaping tablespoon of the sausage mixture into each cup.

Bake at 325 degrees until the tops are just beginning to brown, 25 minutes.

Make it a meal:  Serve with coffee and tomato juice to enjoy while reading your morning horoscope.

Wine:  Mimosas!

Faux Fried Pickles

I love fried pickles, but here in Northern New England, few restaurants offer them. I never made them at home, because I don’t like deep frying things—too messy and smelly. These come out delicious. One thing I do to make things easier is to divide the breadcrumb mixture into two baggies. The pickles get coated more evenly and my fingers don't get so sticky.

This recipe is healthy, even: fiber, whole wheat, vegetables. Pickles are vegetables, right? So then I serve them with full-fat ranch dressing. That’s okay. I'll diet until tomorrow.

Faux-Fried Pickles

1/4 cup Fiber One Original bran cereal
3 tbsp. whole wheat breadcrumbs
2 dashes garlic powder
2 dashes of Cajun or Creole seasoning
1 dash black pepper
1 dash cayenne pepper
40 hamburger dill pickle chips, drained
1 egg beaten with a bit of milk

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Spray a large baking sheet with nonstick spray and set aside.
Place cereal, breadcrumbs, and spices in a sealable plastic bag; remove air, and seal.
Using a meat mallet (or empty wine bottle), crush mixture through the bag to a breadcrumb-like consistency.
Place pickle chips in a bowl, and pat dry with paper towels.
Cover with egg mixture and toss to coat.
Transfer the egg-coated pickles to the bag of crumbs.
Seal and shake to evenly coat pickle chips with crumbs.
Place pickle chips on the baking sheet in an even layer.
Bake in the oven until coating is crispy, about 25 minutes.
Dip them in Ranch or garlic aioli.

Make it a meal: Serve ahead of Spicy Beef (see recipe).

Wine: I'm afraid no wine goes well with pickles. Better to have an amber beer.

Crab & Cheese Strata

This recipe is simply divine. I served this at a December 24th Open Haus. Friends and family stop by for a Bloody Mary and a bite to eat as they finish their holiday chores. This dish did not last long.

Crab & Cheese Strata

2 cups good bread, cubed

1 can crab meat

2 cups Swiss cheese, shredded

1/2 cup Cheddar cheese, shredded

1 tbsp. capers

2 slices onion, chopped

3 eggs, beaten

3/4 cup milk

2 dashes dry sherry

1/2 tbsp. Dijon mustard

1 dash Worcestershire sauce

Grease a baking dish.
Toss together the bread cubes, crab meat, Swiss cheese, Cheddar cheese, capers, and onions in the baking dish.
Whisk eggs, milk, sherry, mustard, and Worcestershire sauce in a bowl.
Pour evenly over bread mixture.
Cover tightly and refrigerate at least 2 hours to 24 hours.
Bake strata uncovered at 350 degrees about 45 minutes.
Let stand 10 minutes before serving.

Divine Deviled Eggs with Salmon & Capers

These are a delight. And if there is anyone still out there on the Atkins diet, these are for you. I had three for lunch and will have two for breakfast. I love how the salmon makes these a little bit pink.

Divine Deviled Eggs with Salmon & Capers

5 eggs, hard boiled

a bit of leftover salmon, smashed

2 scoops mayonnaise

1 scoop Dijon mustard

1 squeeze lemon

1-2 pinches dill

a bit of pepper and salt

3 dashes of hot sauce

Paprika and capers for garnish

Cut the boiled eggs in half and remove the yolk.
Mix the yolk with all the other ingredients except the garnish.
Fill the mixture back into the eggs and garnish.

Make it a meal: Serve ahead of Asparagus Lemon Chicken (see recipe)

Wine: Champagne

Goat Cheese and Smoked Ham Strata

The beauty of this is that it can be made ahead of time. I modified this from an Epicurious recipe. Theirs called for artichoke hearts which might be nice, but I thought had too strong a flavor for a morning dish.

I serve it at our December 24th Open Haus when people stop by for a Bloody Mary at their leisure as they finish up errands.

Goat Cheese and Smoked Ham Strata

1 cup whole milk

2 glugs olive oil

4 cups 1-inch cubes sourdough bread

3/4 cup cream

3 large eggs

2 cloves garlic, chopped

1/2 teaspoons salt

dash black pepper

6 oz. soft fresh goat cheese crumbled

a few dashes of sage, thyme, oregano, basil, marjoram

6 oz. smoked ham, chopped or Prosciutto

1 cup grated cheese (I like Gruyere)

1/2 cups grated Parmesan

Butter glass baking dish.
Whisk milk and oil in large bowl; stir in bread.
Let stand until liquid is absorbed, about 10 minutes.
Whisk cream, eggs, garlic, salt and pepper in another large bowl to blend.
Add goat cheese.
Add herbs.
Place half of bread mixture in prepared dish.
Top with half of ham, herbs, and cheeses.
Pour half of cream mixture over.
Repeat layering with remaining bread, ham, herbs, cheeses, and cream mixture.
At this point, strata can be made 1 day ahead.
Bake at 350 degrees uncovered until firm in center (about 1 hour).

Make it a meal: Serve with Potato Casserole

Wine: Champagne, but a Bloody Mary works nicely, too.

Individual Strata Cups

I made this one cold morning for the current man in my life and myself. It was easy and would be quite simple to increase the number of servings. Prep consists of tearing up bread and plopping in ingredients. It is not a hearty meal, but just the right size.

Individual Strata Cups

4 slices of bread

cooked, cubed ham

shredded cheese

1-2 eggs

a bit of milk or water

a dollop of Dijon mustard

salt & pepper

Tear pieces of bread to fit the bottom of ramekin.
Plop in ham and cheese.
Cover with another piece of bread.
Beat egg with milk or water, mustard, salt and pepper, and pour over ramekins.
Make sure the top bread is soaked with the egg mixture.
Bake at 350 degrees for 20-25 minutes.

Options: use egg substitute in place of eggs, omit ham and fill with asparagus and goat cheese

Make it a meal: Serve with orange juice.

Wine: Champagne and berry liquor cocktail garnished with a cherry

Goat Cheese Omelet

The key to a good omelet is letting the egg cook enough before you flip it over. I rarely do this, and thus enjoy goat cheese scrambled eggs. Then a friend, an amazing cook--not like me--gave me a fabulous non-stick pan. I put enough olive oil in for once. It was amazing. I made my first, gorgeous omelet. (photo by woodleywonderworks)

Goat Cheese Omelet

2 egg whites

salt and pepper

goat cheese

Heat olive oil in a gorgeous, non-stick pan.
Whisk egg whites, salt and pepper.
Pour into the pan and WAIT until egg is almost cooked through.
Add the goat cheese and flip the half the egg over.

Options: Serve with salsa on the side or put a few pieces of spinach in with the goat cheese.

Make it a meal: Serve with toast.

Wine: Champagne

Vegetable Quiche Cups

My mother gave me this recipe when she was doing the South Beach diet. She would have one for breakfast. I would have two. These little guys are pop in your mouth fun. They are great for a breakfast on the run. Play around with the cheese and vegetables you use for wonderous variety.
(photo by Viewoftheworld)


Vegetable Quiche Cups

1 package frozen spinach

2 eggs

2 cups shredded cheese

1/2 green pepper, diced

1/2 onion, diced

Mix all the ingredients and put into a cupcake tin.
You can line the tin with cupcake paper, but I just spray them with Pam.
Cook at 350 degrees for about an hour.

Wine: Champagne

Breakfast Frittata

This breakfast or brunch frittata is simply a quiche without the crust. This is so easy. All my diva relatives and friends make this. The options are endless. See below for my favorite combinations of fillers. (photos by ricoeurian and The Marmot)

Breakfast Frittata

6 eggs (Omega 3 eggs are nice, but so are locally laid)

1/2 cup of milk or half and half

salt and pepper

chosen fillers (see below)

Oil a pie plate.
In a pretty bowl mix the fillers (keep looking below)
In a separate bowl, beat the eggs, milk, salt and pepper.
Pour into the pie plate.
Add the fillers.
Place plate on a cookie sheet and bake for 30 minutes at 375 degrees until middle is bouncy.

Fillers:
Tex Mex--frozen hash browns, salsa, scallions, cheddar cheese
Greek--spinach, black olives, feta cheese
French--ham, apples, Swiss cheese
asparagus, Gouda
tomatoes, mushrooms, chives, mozzarella cheese
shrimp, scallops, cheddar cheese
bacon, tomato, cheddar
sausage, onion, peppers, cheddar

Wine: Champagne

Turkey & Cheese Casserole

This is a super brunch dish as well as being a great way to use leftover turkey. The first time I made it, the man in my life had two servings. Bring it for a hearty breakfast on your next ski weekend. It's perfect for those family gatherings. Beware: This recipe makes a lot.

Brunch Turkey

3 cups cubed turkey

8 oz. shredded cheese ( I use Jarlsberg Lite, but anything works. Try cheddar or Havarti with dill.)

3 cups cubed French or Italian bread

1 tbs. flour

1 tbs. Dijon mustard

3 tbs. melted butter

4 large eggs, beaten

2 ½ cups milk

pinch salt

pinch pepper


Place bread, turkey, and cheese in a large bowl.
In another bowl, mix the flour, mustard, melted butter, eggs, milk, salt, and pepper.
Pour the milk mixture over cubed bread, turkey and cheese.
Stir.
Let stand a few minutes while the oven heats to 350 degrees.
Pour into a buttered 2-quart baking dish. Bake for about 50 to 60 minutes, or until puffed and browned and gorgeous.
A knife inserted in center should come out with very little liquid on it.