Tag: #eggs

Broccoli and Parmesan Quiche (Serves 6)

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Broccoli and Parmesan Quiche

Broccoli and Parmesan Quiche by The Fat Foodie

I made this broccoli and parmesan quiche a few days ago and I was incredibly happy with how it turned out. The parmesan pie crust is a variant of a Hairy Bikers recipe that I came across and, let me tell you, I’ll definitely be using it again.

This is a gluten-free recipe, so you might need to use some more butter because gluten-free flours are renowned for being really absorbent, but let me know if you do try it please. Also, I made this with standard butter, but you could easily use a non-dairy equivalent. You may need to chill the pastry for an hour in the fridge before you use it though, just to make it easier to roll out.

In this broccoli and parmesan quiche the combination of the parmesan, butter and gluten-free flour makes for a quiche crust that has the crisp texture and taste of a really good savoury cheese biscuit. It’s crunchy and crumbly with a nutty flavour, but it’s also delicate and enhances the eggy filling of the broccoli and parmesan quiche beautifully. It’s a lovely way to worship the humble vegetable that is broccoli.

Ingredients:

For the pastry:

180g gluten-free flour (plus extra for dusting)

100g cold unsalted butter (or a non-dairy version)

2 tsp chopped fresh thyme

50g grated Parmesan cheese (or a non-dairy version)

1 medium egg yolk

1 tsp ice-cold water

For the broccoli filling:

3 medium eggs & the egg whites left over from making the pastry (waste not, want not, right?)

200g of chopped broccoli heads (not the stalks though)

200g lactose-free soft cheese (or a non-dairy version)

150g grated cheddar cheese (or a non-dairy version)

Freshly ground black pepper

Method:

To make the pastry:

Put the flour into a large bowl and rub the butter in until the mixture looks like breadcrumbs.

Add the chopped thyme and parmesan.

Add the egg yolk and cold water and mix until it forms a ball. (If you feel it’s too dry, add a little bit more water until it comes together).

Wrap your pastry in clingfilm and put it in the fridge for at least half an hour.

 

Preheat your oven to 180°C/160°C Fan/Gas 4.

Line your chosen pie tin with tinfoil.

Sprinkle some flour onto your work surface and roll out the pastry until it’s the right size for your pie tin.

Place your rolling pin on the edge of your pastry circle and roll the pastry onto the rolling pin (it makes it easier to transport it to the tin).

Roll the pastry back out onto the tin and push it down so it fits into the tin. (Bear in mind that the sides must be high enough to contain your quiche filling.)

This is quite a crumbly dough, so if it breaks apart don’t worry at all. Just take your pieces of dough and fill all the cracks until you’ve got a structurally sound pie case.

Prick the bottom of the pastry with a fork about 8 times (this helps release any air that might get trapped underneath).

If you have them, fill the tin with baking beans, if not don’t worry about it.

Bake in the oven for about 15-20 mins, or until it’s golden brown. Baking the pie crust first will ensure your quiche won’t have a soggy bottom.

To make the quiche filling:

Mix all of the ingredients, with the exception of 50g of the cheddar cheese, together.

Pour into the pastry case and sprinkle the remaining cheese on top.

Cook in the oven for about 20 minutes or until the egg mixture no longer wobbles when shaken.

Serve with a nice green salad.

Broccoli and Parmesan Quiche by The Fat Foodie

Broccoli and Parmesan Quiche by The Fat Foodie

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French Toast (serves 2)

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French Toast by The Fat Foodie

French Toast by The Fat Foodie

We British have a number of names for bread soaked in an egg and milk mixture and then fried: French toast, eggy bread, and gypsy toast, to name but a few. In my family we’ve always called it French toast. For years I was under the impression that we called it French toast because the egg and milk soaked bread, with a sweet topping of sugar or golden syrup, mimicked the French egg-enriched brioche loaf. However, some investigation has unearthed the fact that the French have their own version (or perhaps the original version?) of French toast – pain perdu, a recipe which sees slices of brioche soaked in a sugar, orange liqueur, vanilla and orange zest milky egg mix and then fried in butter.

Regardless of it’s origins or heritage, I think that French toast remains a favourite in most households, but it is a highly divisive dish, or at least the choice of toppings a person chooses to crown their toast with is. There are those who believe that the only way to properly do it justice is to apply a little salt and pepper. Others coat it liberally in ketchup or brown sauce. Some go the whole hog and cook bacon at the same time, stacking the crispy rashers on top before drizzling it all over with maple syrup. And there are always those with a sweet tooth who reach for the good ol’ standby of golden syrup or maple syrup.

Sunday mornings are the perfect excuse to make a breakfast which would normally be avoided on the grounds of being too time-consuming. When you’ve had a lovely lie-in, a nice leisurely shower, and the sun’s splitting the sky, the thought of grabbing a speedy bowl of granola or a swiftly toasted piece of bread doesn’t quite feel in keeping with the tone of the day. So, I decided a luxurious breakfast of French toast was the way to go, resulting in sweet, plump and fluffy slices of eggy bread that were ready to receive the topping of my choice.

For me, I like to spread one slice of my French toast with a light layer of ketchup and coat the other in golden syrup. The danger, of course, lies in making sure that neither topping touches one another, requiring much plate-watching vigilance. The thought alone is making me shudder, but regardless of this element of danger to the dish, I enjoyed every mouthful.

Ingredients:

4 slices of gluten-free bread (or 2 buns/rolls)

3 eggs

100ml milk (or rice milk)

Sunflower/vegetable oil

Method:

Crack the eggs into a large shallow bowl and whisk in the rice milk until it’s all combined.

Place the bread in the egg mixture and let it soak for a minute.

Once that side is soaked, turn them over and let the other side absorb the mixture. You may need to do this a few times until most (or all) of the egg mix has been absorbed.

Put a large frying pan on a medium high heat with a small amount (around 1 tbsp) of oil in it.

Once the oil is hot, place your slices of bread in the frying pan and cook each side until they are a good golden brown colour and they are no longer squidgy when pressed. Mine took about 8-10 mins to cook.

Place on your serving plate and add your desired topping.

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Poached Eggs on Toast (serves 1)

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Poached Eggs on Toast by The Fat Foodie

Poached Eggs on Toast by The Fat Foodie

Okay, confession time. I can’t make poached eggs on toast to save myself. I’ve tried all the tricks going: creating a whirlpool in the pan of hot water; making sure the water’s only just simmering rather than being at a fast boil; and adding vinegar to the cooking water. It just never seems to work for me.

I think where I go wrong is that I never seem to use the really fresh eggs that chefs recommend. My eggs aren’t that old really, I’m only 36 after all  😉  The problem is, I eat eggs so infrequently that they’re normally a couple of weeks old when I take the notion to eat poached eggs on toast. Thankfully, this morning’s eggy endeavour was pretty successful. Although, in all honesty, I did still have to trim quite a bit of straggly egg white off my eggs in order to make my photo look ‘sexier’. They tasted very lovely though!

I know I’m a big one for preparing ingredients beforehand so that they’re ready to be used immediately when you need them while cooking a recipe, but I like to crack the eggs into a little dish in advance so that I can thoroughly inspect them for eggshell before using. I cannot abide eggshell! (*gags a little at the thought*)  It also makes it easier to just pop them in the water while you’re juggling making your toast at the same time.

If you follow these instructions you should (in theory) make some cracking poached eggs, but if not and you find yourself struggling to make decent poached eggs, consider buying a set of silicone poached egg cups. My Mum swears by them and says that the poached eggs just pop straight out of the silicone moulds so they make poaching eggs an absolute doddle.

Ingredients:

2 fresh eggs

1 tbsp. of white wine vinegar

A slice or two of gluten-free bread

1 tbsp butter (or non-dairy version)

Salt and pepper

Method:

Add the vinegar to a pan of hot water and let it boil at a slow, gentle simmer.

Prepare your bread for toasting.

Stir the water with a spoon so that a whirlpool is created in the centre of the pan and gently slide your eggs one at a time into the whirlpool.

Poach for 3-4 mins, depending on how soft you like your eggs, toasting and buttering your bread in the meantime.

Remove the eggs from the water with a slotted spoon and drain on a piece of kitchen towel.

Place on top of your toast and season with salt and pepper.

Poached Eggs on Toast by The Fat Foodie

Poached Eggs on Toast by The Fat Foodie