JZ's Vegetarian Spinach Muenster Quiche

Everything below will be divided into 2 pies.
You will need:
2 standard pie shells (16 oz. each)
16 oz. grated Muenster cheese
2 packages frozen, chopped spinach
A big onion, chopped finely
1 tablespoon (+/-) chopped garlic
Olive oil for saute
5 eggs
A pinch of salt, to your taste

1. Preheat oven to 350° F.
2. Defrost and squeeze the liquid from the spinach and move to giant mixing bowl.
3. Saute the onion and garlic in a pan, over medium heat until soft and transparent. Let cool.**
4. Mix grated cheese into spinach.
5. When onions are cool, fold into spinach/cheese mix.
6. Beat eggs and gently add to the mix.
7. Pour the mix into equal parts into the pie shells.
8. Bake for about an hour, or until each pie firms up.  It may need longer, depending on your oven.

*Because these quiches are so thick, we bake them at a pretty low temp for a long time, to avoid overcooking on the outside and undercooking on the inside.  Depending on your oven, you might need to adjust the cooking time.

*Could you add an herb or spice?  Oh my, yes.  I tend to add a dash of nutmeg to spinach dishes.  But any kind of herb would probably be delicious...maybe a hint of curry?  Or oregano?  Or basil?  Yarp.

**Remember that part I mentioned about letting the sauteed onion mix cool off before adding it to the spinach/cheese mix?  I mean it. 
Hear me now and believe me later:  One thing you don't want is having hot onions melting super soft cheese prematurely and turning the whole deal into a globby, melted cheese disaster in a bowl before you pour it into the pie shells.  Not pretty.

Everyone in our house loves this kickass quiche...even our finicky toddler.
You could sprinkle some Parmesan cheese on top, also, btw.

ONE MORE IMPORTANT THING:
After you take the quiche out of the oven, let it sit and rest for about ten minutes.  The eggs will continue to cook.  Also, Jay says, "The cheese needs to calm down." What he means is that the cheese is too hot, angry, and melty, straight from the oven when it's nuclear hot.  Just like pizza, you can't cut a clean slice until the dish sits untouched for a bit.

A little something called quiche

My husband makes the best spinach-Muenster quiche in the history of spinach-Muenster quiches.
AND THAT'S THE FACT, JACK.

Easy Blackberry Cobbler

I found this recipe after blackberries completely took over our yard and left it looking like a "Life After People" documentary.  I needed a way to use the berries, after all the trouble they'd caused us.  We collected a bunch of the ripe berries before taking down all of the vines.  This recipe is so simple and easy, and oh my...so good.  Don't forget to put a little vanilla ice cream on top when you serve it.  
Theoretically, you could make someone fall in love with you, using this cobbler.  It is just that dangerous.

Ingredients:

1 cup all-purpose flour

1 cup sugar

1 tablespoon baking powder

1/8 teaspoon salt, maybe a tiny bit more.

2/3 cup milk

1/2 butter (1 stick)

16 ounces blackberries, fresh or frozen, cleaned and drained.

1. In a 2-quart baking dish, melt the butter.

2. In a separate bowl, mix all of the ingredients except the berries.

3. Carefully pour the batter over the melted butter in the baking dish. DO NOT STIR - you are gently layering it on top.

4. Add the berries on top of the batter, dotting them evenly over the whole thing.  (As it cooks, the berries will sink down and the batter will rise over them and cover them.  It's kind of miraculous how perfectly it happens.  See my picture below.)

5. Bake at 350 degrees F for about 40 minutes, or until the crust turns a golden brown.

***For extra flavor, I added a pinch of ground cloves and a few drops of vanilla extract to the batter.

Roasted Cauliflower, yummmm.

Wash and slice your head of cauliflower into bite-sized chunks.
Toss with about 2 tablespoons of olive oil, or whatever oil you've got.
I sprinkled a little Rosemary Lemon Sea Salt on the florets, that I recently made.
Spread the florets onto a baking sheet. Bake for about ten minutes at 450° F, which will be approximately the halfway point of cooking.  Then use a spatula and stir/turn the pieces.
Cook for another 7-8 minutes.
Sprinkle some parmesan cheese on, and maybe some chopped herbs.  I added some fresh basil and oregano from the yard.  Also, Trader Joe's has some awesome cheese, called Unexpected Cheddar, which is like a cross between a sharp white cheddar and parmesan.  Try that for a treat.
Bake until everything is melty and roasted.
That's it.  Yum.

Homemade baked black bean burgers: with or without avocados, they are superb

These are baked and delicious.

Once you eat these, you'll be hooked and not want to buy the frozen ones (that will suddenly taste way too salty and overprocessed) anymore.

Ingredients:

• 1 (16 ounce) can black beans, drained and rinsed
• 1/2 green bell pepper, chopped fine
• 1/2 onion, chopped fine
• 3 cloves garlic, peeled and chopped fine
• 1 egg
• 1 tablespoon (or as little/much as you like) chili powder
• 1/2 (or more) teaspoon cumin
• 1 teaspoon Tabasco or other hot sauce
• 1/2 cup bread crumbs
• Salt to taste

1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees F, and lightly oil a baking sheet.
2. In a medium bowl, mash black beans with a fork until thick and pasty.
3. Finely chop bell pepper, onion, and garlic (you can also use a food processor).  ***At this point, I suggest the optional step of sauteeing the peppers, onions, and garlic in a pan with a little olive oil and letting them cool.  It makes the burgers taste great this way, but you can also keep them raw when you add them to the black bean mash mix.***
4. Stir the vegetables into the mashed beans.
5. In a small bowl, stir together egg, chili powder, cumin, and hot sauce.  Add a little salt at this point, if you like.
6. Stir the egg mixture into the mashed beans. Mix in bread crumbs until the mixture is sticky and holds together (we use our hands). Divide the mixture into four patties.
7. Place patties on baking sheet, and bake about 10-11 minutes on each side.  Keep an eye on them until they feel thoroughly cooked.

Stuff we like to top the burger with, in various combinations:

Cheese
Avocados
Lettuce
Thinly sliced bell peppers - red or green
Sauteed mushrooms
Mayonnaise
Ketchup
Mustard
Thousand Island Dressing
Pickles or relish
Fresh tomatoes

Sometimes we toast the buns.  Sometimes we like them soft and squishy.

My vegetarian spinach mini pizzas were delicious

Peanut Butter Spirals

If you love peanut butter (as I do), this is a tasty, unusual recipe.  So good and so easy.  You can serve it with a drizzle of hot chili oil, if you are a lover of spicy things.

• 12 oz. uncooked spiral pasta
• 2/3 cup natural peanut butter
• 3/4 cup water
• 3-4 tablespoons soy sauce
• 2 tablespoons mild vinegar
• 1 scallion, chopped
• 1 tablespoon honey or rice syrup
• 1/2 teaspoon (or more) ground ginger
• 1/2 teaspoon chili powder
• 1 1/2 cup frozen peas

1. Cook pasta.  Set aside.

2. Combine all ingredients except peas and blend until smooth.

3. Add peas and sauce to pasta and gently mix together.  The sauce will thicken on its own.

Creamy Artichoke Heart Pasta

1 jar marinated, quartered artichoke hearts
1 bag frozen quartered artichoke hearts, defrosted and ready to use - or - a can or 2 of quartered artichoke hearts (non-marinated).  (You will want to chop these up a little finer than they are.)
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 tablespoon butter
1 chopped onion
1 teaspoon dried basil
1 cup sour cream
1 cup cottage cheese
1 package egg noodles
Plus:
Things to top it with:  Shredded mozzarella, crushed red pepper, Parmesan cheese (shaved or powdered)

• Start boiling your noodles. They will take about 7-8 minutes to cook, which is just enough time to make the sauce.
• In a very large pan, saute onion with olive oil and butter over medium heat.  Cook until onion is translucent.  Add basil.
• Add the chopped artichoke hearts.  Cook until everything is very hot.
• Turn off the heat for the sauce.  Add sour cream and cottage cheese.  You can add more or less of these.  You don't have to use all 8 ounces of either of these.
• Let the sauce get melty and gooey.
• After your noodles are cooked and drained, put them back into their large pot, and fold the artichoke sauce into them.
• When you serve them, top with a little mozzarella.   You can use a vegetable peeler to shave Parmesan cheese from a block, or else sprinkle the powdered kind.  Sprinkle crushed red pepper on top, if you like. 

This is one of those recipes that you can + or - any of the ingredients.  If you are crazy about artichoke hearts, add more.  You could double or triple them.  If you want to use low fat dairy products, go ahead.  If you want to cut down on the cottage cheese and sour cream, you can use only 4 ounces each.
I tend to go heavy on the basil, because I love the flavor.  You could also add extra garlic.  When I was still eating meat, I sometimes added little chunks of shredded, cooked chicken.