November 22, 2024

Sausage Mushroom Frittata

August 28, 2015 by

Sausage Mushroom Frittata

When I was a kid, my Mom made two quiches as part of her dinner menu rotation:  a spinach quiche, and a sausage mushroom version.  I loved them both.  And I was going to make one for this week’s Girlfriends’ Coffee Hour blog post and then I realized:  I don’t need a crust!  I can turn my Mom’s quiche recipe into this Sausage Mushroom Frittata, which is just as tasty, saves calories when you don’t include a crust, and cooks up quicker to boot!

You can use any kind of cheese you like.  I think my Mom used Swiss, but my girls don’t like it, so I used Monterey Jack.  You can also mix some cheese into the egg mixture for a richer taste, but I wanted mine to be a lower-calorie meal.  I used bulk breakfast sausage (the kind you get in a tube, by the bacon), but you can use any kind of sausage.  Serve a slice of this frittata hot, with maybe a side salad and a piece of nice bread.  You can also have this for breakfast, of course, with some fruit or toast.  Get crazy – get cooking!

Sausage Mushroom Frittata

Ingredients:

  • 8 ounces bulk sausage
  • 8 ounces button or cremini mushrooms, sliced
  • 6 eggs
  • 1/3 cup whole milk (or use half and half for a richer taste)
  • salt and pepper
  • 2 or more slices of Swiss or Jack Cheese

Directions:

  1. In an oven-proof skillet, cook the sausage, crumbling it with your spoon as it cooks.  After 3 minutes, add the mushrooms.  Season them with a little salt – this helps draw the water out of the mushrooms.  Cover and simmer on medium for five minutes.
  2. Lift the lid and let all the water in the pan cook off.  If the pan looks dry, you can add a tiny bit of olive oil or butter and mix that in.  If it looks like the sausage left enough fat to lubricate the pan, go to Step 3.
  3. In a large bowl, whisk the eggs with the milk.  Season with salt and pepper.
  4. Turn on the broiler in your oven.
  5. Pour the eggs over the sausage mixture and stir a few times.  When the edges look set, put the cheese on top of the eggs and place the pan in the oven.   Make sure it’s not too close to the broiler!
  6. Broil for about 3-5 minutes.  Keep an eye on this!  Take it out when things look golden and bubbly.  Slice and serve hot!

Explore, experiment, enjoy! — Dana

To view even more of Dana’s unique recipe, you can visit her at Frugal Girlmet

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Egg and Olive Salad

April 10, 2015 by

Egg Olive Salad Leaf

This was my favorite lunch when I was a kid: an Egg and Olive Salad sandwich on wheat bread, maybe with a leaf or two of lettuce, and some fruit. If your fridge looks like mine, you still have a few hardboiled pink and purple eggs in there from Easter!  What better way to use them up with this unusual spin on plain old egg salad!

This recipe is pretty bare bones, and that’s how I like it. Like any other salad, people like to add different things; please feel free to doctor this as you see fit. If you are watching your carbs or are cutting out refined and processed foods, skip the bread and serve on lettuce leaves – either in little bundles in butter lettuce leaves, or down the middle of a romaine leaf.

Egg Olive Salad Plate

Egg and Olive Salad

Ingredients:

  • 4 hard-boiled eggs
  • 1/4 cup green olives (preferably with pimentos)
  • 2 tablespoons mayonnaise
  • 1 teaspoon yellow mustard
  • salt and pepper (optional)

Directions:

  1. In a mixing bowl, use two knives to roughly chop the eggs. Don’t mash it, but don’t leave the chunks of egg too big. Mix in the mayo and mustard. Check for consistency – you may want a little more mayo, it’s up to you.
  2. Chop the olives and mix into the egg salad. Taste – you’ll probably want to add some pepper, but it might already be salty enough from the olives. Serve on bread or lettuce leaves.

Explore, experiment, enjoy! — Dana

To view even more of Dana’s unique recipes, you can visit her at Frugal Girlmet!

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Christmas Morning Breakfast

December 22, 2014 by

♪♬♪ It’s the most wonderful time of the year! ♪♬♪ Here we are…approaching Christmas Day!  Still many tasks to accomplish here!  How are you doing with your lists?  Lots of items checked off?  I am getting there…

  • game for the grandkids✔
  • Robert’s birthday card
  • gift for upstairs neighbor ???
  • a few additional stocking stuffers
  • waiting for 3 packages to arrive ✔✔

and groceries for:

  • Robert’s birthday dinner ✔
  • Christmas Eve with MKEKLR ✔
  • Christmas morning ✔
  • Aldi list

But amidst all of these details, what joy is ours as we contemplate just HOW MUCH God Almighty loves us!  He cared SO MUCH for us that He sent His precious Son to the earth to be born as a human and to live amongst men.  Ultimately, to sacrifice Him to redeem and save us so we could be called His children!  Hallelujah…what a Savior!

I pray for you (and me, too), my friends, that we will keep our priorities in order.  Even if there were no Christmas tree decorated with glittery ornaments and special momentos…if there were no carols to sing…if there were not piles of beautifully wrapped presents under the tree…we would still have MUCH to be singing God’s praises and thanking Him for as we remember the reason for the season—Jesus our Savior.

For unto you is born this day
in the city of David a Savior,
which is Christ the Lord.
Glory to God in the highest,
and on earth peace, good will toward men.
Luke 2:11,14

 *    ♥  ~  ✝  ~  ★    *

Here’s our menu for a simple Christmas morning breakfast:
fruit salad
mini quiche
spicy Thai tea

The best part about this breakfast will be that it can all be prepared ahead of time!  When we are ready to eat, just pop some mini-quiche into the toaster oven to reheat, dish out some of the fruit salad, and pour beverages; love it!  Oh!…there is one important tip to success with these mini-quiche: the fillings (veggies and meat) should be cut up fairly small.   Whenever I make this recipe, i quadruple (yes, i DO!) the ingredients.  These little two-bite quiches freeze beautifully.  Enjoy!

2014-12-21 21.01.42

Mini Quiche (makes one dozen)

egg filling:

3 large eggs
1/2 cup milk (I used coconut milk)
1/4 teaspoon kosher salt, freshly ground black pepper

  • whisk these 4 ingredients together, thoroughly blending the eggs
  • pour into a container with a spout (for ease in filling muffin tin) and set aside

Spinach&Swiss with Bacon

1/2 cup frozen chopped spinach, defrosted
2 slices bacon, cooked and crumbled
4 tablespoons chopped onion
1+ tablespoons dried dill or tarragon
1/2-3/4 cup finely grated Swiss cheese

place spinach in colander, allow to defrost, and then squeeze dry (with your hands); set aside preheat oven to 375
grease with melted butter (or spray with cooking spray) your mini muffin tin; be thorough
cook bacon, cool, and crumble
saute onion in a bit of the bacon drippings until soft
when done, mix with spinach and herbs; let mixture cool
evenly distribute the veggies, the bacon, and the cheese among the muffin cups; these should be at least 1/2 full
then carefully pour the prepared Egg Filling mixture into each muffin cup. fill almost full but do not overfill!
bake for approximately 12-15 minutes until the eggs puff and are lightly golden brown
remove from oven; let sit for 10 minutes, then carefully remove from muffin tin. if you have thoroughly greased your muffin tin in preparation, this shouldn’t be too hard. I used a small, flexible spatula—but a teaspoon or small knife will do—and just run it around the edge of each quiche to loosen. serve immediately.

Broccoli-Cheddar with Ham

4 tablespoons chopped onion
1/2 cup chopped broccoli (cooked and cooled; I used frozen)
1/2 cup cooked ham, chopped small
1+ tablespoons dried crushed rosemary or marjoram
1/2-3/4 cup of finely grated sharp Cheddar
coconut or olive oil

preheat oven to 375
grease with melted butter (or spray with cooking spray) your mini muffin tin; be thorough
cook ham cubes for 2-3 minutes, set aside to cool
saute onion in a bit of olive oil until soft
when done, mix with broccoli and herbs; let mixture cool
evenly distribute the veggies, the ham, and the cheese among the muffin cups; these should be at least 1/2 full
then carefully pour the prepared Egg Filling mixture into each muffin cup. fill almost full but do not overfill!
bake for approximately 12-15 minutes until the eggs puff and are lightly golden brown
remove from oven; let sit for 10 minutes, then carefully remove from muffin tin. if you have thoroughly greased your muffin tin in preparation, this shouldn’t be too hard. I used a small, flexible spatula—but a teaspoon or small knife will do—and just run it around the edge of each quiche to loosen. serve immediately.

filling variations (choose one from each category)

veggies: (1/2 cup) of either sauteed mushrooms, peppers, seeded tomatoes, zucchini, butternut squash (this is a great way to use up bits of leftover veggies in your ‘frig!)
cheese: (1/2-3/4 cup) of your favorite Cheddar, Monterey Jack, goat cheese, Gruyere, Parmesan, Fontina, Provolone, Gouda
herbs: (1+ tablespoon) of your favorite: parsley, chives, tarragon, basil, dill, rosemary, marjoram
meat: (1/2-3/4 cup) finely chopped ham, cooked&crumbled bacon or breakfast sausage, prosciutto

♥  ♥  ♥  ♥  ♥

God loves you! ♥ (Don’t ever forget that!)
Merry Christmas to you and yours!  ♥ coleen

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Tahini Pancakes

July 11, 2014 by

Tahini Pancakes resize

Oh, pancakes!   We all love them.  But sometimes you just don’t want to make them, even when the kids are whining for them.  They take time to mix up (unless you’re using a pre-made mix like Bisquick…in which case, check out that long list of chemicals and preservatives!), and they’re pretty high in carbs.  Ready for a game changer?  Try these Tahini Pancakes!

This recipe is just three ingredients long.  WHAT?!?!  All you need is a very ripe banana, an egg, and a tablespoon of tahini.  You could use another kind of nut butter, but we use tahini to avoid allergies in my house.  Tahini is an amazing thing.  I keep a can of it in my fridge at all times, because it is crucial to homemade hummus, baba ghanoush, and this kale salad.  It’s just sesame seed butter, but it’s lovely.  These pancakes have no gluten and no nuts, plus they’re high in protein.  Win! Win!

Dress these up however you like.  Add in chocolate chips, coconut flakes, or raisins.  They don’t rise like regular pancakes, but they’re certainly more substantial than a crepe.  Try them for breakfast tomorrow and you—and your pancake-loving kids—will thank me!

Tahini Pancakes

(makes two six-inch pancakes.  Go ahead and double or triple the recipe if you like.)

Ingredients:

  • 1 large egg
  • 1 overripe banana
  • 1 heaping tablespoon tahini
  • coconut oil or butter for the pan

Directions:

  1. Heat a small skillet over medium heat.  Add a teaspoon or so of coconut oil or butter.  Make sure the pan is really well lubricated.  These pancakes can fall apart if they stick.
  2. In a bowl, beat the egg.  Mix in the banana and mash and mix well.  Beat in the tahini.
  3. Pour half the pancake batter into the frying pan and reduce the heat to medium low.  Let cook for a few minutes until, like a normal pancake, it gets dry with burst air bubbles on top.  Very carefully, flip the pancake over and turn the heat all the way to low, or even turn it off.  Let cook a minute or two, then slide off the pan and onto a plate.  Smother with whipped cream and berries, or maple syrup, sliced bananas and walnuts.

Explore, experiment, enjoy! — Dana

To view even more of Dana’s unique recipe, you can visit her at Frugal Girlmet!

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Pickled Red Beet Eggs

April 18, 2014 by

Pickled RB Eggs hand resize

I remember as a kid being very sad one Easter Sunday.  It was because, when I peeled one of the eggs I worked so hard to paint and dye and sticker-ize and bedazzle—all that work—the inside looked just like a plain, un-dyed egg!  (I hope my Mom told me that beauty is only skin deep.)  But later on in the day, I was delighted when my Mom took the big container of Pickled Red Beet Eggs out of the refrigerator! When you cut into one of these purple beauties – surprise! – the color went all the way through to the yolk!

This recipe is a great way to use up those hardboiled eggs.  I’ve found my kids like dyeing them way more than they like eating them, so I am usually guaranteed half a dozen eggs to use in this dish.  This is an old Pennsylvania Dutch recipe that came from my Mom and her mother, in Lancaster County, Pennsylvania.  You can adjust the ratio of vinegar to sugar, but I like how these are sweet-tart and firm.  Some people add very thinly sliced onions to the beet brine, and others add whole cloves.  I like them with just these 4 ingredients.

You’ll want to let these soak for at least 2 days.  I wouldn’t let them sit more than a week, but I really doubt they’ll last that long!  Make sure the eggs and beets are in a deep and narrow container so everything is submerged – if you go shallow and wide, your eggs won’t color evenly and you’ll have to rotate them at least 2 times a day.  So raid the kids’ Easter baskets and start pickling!

Pickled RB Eggs resize

Pickled Red Beet Eggs

Ingredients:

  • 6 eggs
  • 2 cans sliced beets (not pickled beets)
  • 1/3 cup sugar
  • 1/2 cup vinegar (you can use white or apple cider)

Directions:

  1. In a sauce pan, place eggs in one layer.  Fill pan, covering the eggs with an inch of water.  Cook on high until a boil is just reached, then immediately remove from heat and cover with a lid.  Set a timer for 13 minutes.  When the time is up, drain the eggs and fill the pan with ice and water.  Let cool.
  2. Peel the cooled eggs and put them in a deep container with a lid.  Dump the two cans of beets and their juice into the container, followed by the sugar and vinegar.  Swirl around to dissolve.  Store in the refrigerator for at least 2 days, making sure the eggs are submerged (or turning them if they are not.)  Cut eggs in half and serve with beets.

Explore, experiment, enjoy! — Dana

To view even more of Dana’s unique recipe, you can visit her at Frugal Girlmet!

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