Goat Cheese, Leek and Spinach Quiche

Cooler days are here. Quiche, soup, and pie please.

My mom graciously made me lunch last Saturday and it included this yummy goat cheese and veggie quiche. I seriously love goat cheese. The flavor is prominent in this quiche, so be wary if it isn't your favorite (either use less or swap it for another soft cheese). She used a store bought crust, which didn't make it home from the store without a few bumps and crumbles.

There isn't much to say about this quiche, other than it's delicious, easy to whip up, and makes you smile on a chilly day. It's just as good the next day too!

Bite-Sized Baked Brie

cheese + bread = my kind of popsicle

Sure, I preach that we should all eat whole foods and read labels. Usually, it's no more than a handful of ingredients for me, all of which I can pronounce or identify the source. Forget all that. At least for the next five minutes.

Flaky, buttery puff pastry is amazing. Just about as amazing as the list of crap that's in manufactured dough. Should I make my own pastry dough? Probably. Will I initiate a battle with cold butter while I'm finishing graduate school and a thesis? (no comment needed)

These bite-sized buttery pockets of cheese and jam are another one of my favorites from Joy the Baker. They're messy (even for Joy) and oh-so delicious.

What you need: frozen puff pastry, Brie, an egg, and jam. The popsicle sticks are optional but highly recommended. Seriously. Everyone loved the popsicle sticks.

Any flavor of jam will do (homemade and/or local is ideal, of course). If you're completely indecisive like myself, mix it up. I used raspberry (very sweet), blackberry (sweet but tart), fig (neutral), and the last of my apple butter from the fall (my favorite). 

Cheese Crackers

Things I don't like: spiders, getting out of a hot shower, spicy food.

Things I like: sunshine, vegetable gardens, cheesy snacks.

Maybe it seems crazy to make your own crackers, but how wonderful to be able to count the ingredients in this recipe on one hand. You can't do that on a Goldfish box. These crackers are great to make with kids on a rainy day or lazy Sunday afternoon. They are also great for you, if a multi-step recipe often ends in disaster.

The crackers puff up nicely, so don't be shy about rolling the dough thin. I didn't have any problems with the crackers burning. Have fun with cookie cutters, or simply cut the dough into squares with a pizza cutter. Or even spell out a cheerful message to your best friend when they're feeling blue (cheese has healing powers). 

Baked Mac n' Cheese

Fontina.

Gruyère.

Extra-sharp white cheddar.

Parmigiano-Reggiano.

Still reading? I thought so.

Who doesn’t love a good mac n’ cheese? I don't need a story to convince you to make this. This recipe is from Martha Stewart and it's a relatively simple mac n’ cheese to make when you've got the blues.

Clockwise from top: fontina, Gruyère, Parmigiano-Reggiano, white cheddar

Notes from the kitchen:

The original recipe suggests making breadcrumbs with white bread and butter. White bread is evil. I opted to use canned breadcrumbs since I love the way they crunch up during baking.

Martha’s recipe calls for only 8 oz. of macaroni, or half of a standard box. Since I’m used to pasta recipes adjusted for a pound of pasta, I neglected to read the fine print and threw the entire 16 oz. box of macaroni into the cheese sauce. It wasn’t until the following day when transferring the recipe to a card for my box that I noticed my mistake. That’s also after we were all raving about how delicious the mac n’ cheese was. Next time I’ll try it with 12 oz. and it should be perfect. If you want that oozy, Velveeta-like mac n’ cheese, use only 8 oz. of noodles.

The trick to making a good, thick mac n' cheese is in the béchamel sauce. In non-chef talk, it's made when you add milk to your roux (butter and flour mixture). Temperature is important here, but unless you burn your butter, let the flour clump up too much, or burn your milk, you should be fine.

You can easily spice up this recipe by adding 1/2 t. ground mustard, spinach, broccoli, peas, caramelized onions, or anything else your heart desires.

Mac n’ Cheese

Adapted from Martha Stewart, Winter 2009

About 8 servings

breadcrumbs, as desired, about 1/4-1/2 cup
8-16 oz. elbow macaroni (*see Notes from the Kitchen above)
3 T. butter
¼ c. diced yellow onion
¼ c. flour
3 c. milk
2 oz. fontina, grated (½ cup)
3 oz. Gruyère, grated (1 cup), 1/3 c. reserved for top
6 oz. extra-sharp white cheddar (2 cups), 1/3 c. reserved for top
2 oz. Parmigiano-Reggiano (1 cup), ½ c. reserved for top
1/8 t. ground nutmeg
salt and pepper

Boil pasta 2-3 minutes less than recommended. Strain and rinse with cold water.
Preheat oven to 375°. Grease small dishes or a 1.5-quart casserole dish.

To make the cheese sauce, melt butter in a medium to large saucepan over medium heat. Add onion and cook until translucent, about 5 minutes. Whisk in flour and stir until bubbling, about 45 seconds. Add milk and whisk to combine. Bring to a simmer, stirring with a wooden spoon, until thickened, about 4 minutes. Add fontina, 2/3 c. Gruyère, 1 2/3 c. cheddar, ½ c. Parmigianno-Reggiano, nutmeg, and salt and pepper. Stir to combine.

Add pasta to the sauce and stir to cover pasta. Pour into baking dish and sprinkle with reserved cheeses and cover with breadcrumbs. Bake until bubbling, about 25-35 minutes.