I graduated from college with a degree in theatre.  I got plenty of “What are you going to do with a degree in theatre?”, though thankfully, not from my parents who were supportive of a less conventional major.  I attended a liberal arts college so there were plenty of English and Art History majors, but there were also lots of Economics and Government majors who all thought their degrees would be more “useful”.  My college roommate’s father allowed her to major in theatre but only if she double majored in Economics.  Not a lot of crossover in those two fields.

While I did not go on to become an actress, nor did I ever attempt to become an actress, I feel like my degree has been extremely useful in my life.  At the most basic level, I learned a lot about theatre and plays and I had a chance to read some of our greatest examples of literature.  Randy and I make it a priority to go the theatre and I am always amazed by how much knowledge I have retained.  (I can’t say the same about my math class.)  I got to experience putting on the makeup and costume of another person and becoming that person for a few hours every night.  I learned the art of working ahead – getting school work done a week before it was actually due so that I would have production week free from those pressures.  I also learned how to do work behind the scenes as a stage manager, makeup artist, costume assistant.  I learned that, no matter how intense the butterflies in my stomach, I would never actually throw up, and how to channel that adrenaline into a better performance.

Beyond those four years of acting, directing, reading, I also learned how to speak clearly, make eye contact, appear calm even when I am not, and use my voice effectively.  I’ve used those skills while performing in plays or singing in coffeehouses but also in every job interview I have sat through, every date I have been on, every presentation I have ever made, and every class I have ever taught.  Like many of my classmates, I would never have imagined myself doing what I do now when I was throwing my cap up in the air in May of 1992.  But I can’t believe how much I love it.

I know I mention my cooking classes here often but I don’t think I’ve mentioned how I feel about them.  I love teaching.  I really do.  I taught yoga from 2001-2003 and I loved that as well.  Sometimes a special thing happens between teacher and student, especially when the teacher is really passionate about what they teach, and I feel lucky to have experienced that feeling in two different spheres.  I am in planning mode for my spring quarter of classes and am really excited about what the next few months will hold.

Alas, teaching means testing.  And I don’t mean making my students take a test.  I mean searching out recipes, or developing my own, and making sure, time and time again if necessary, that they work.  I mean sometimes eating the same thing several nights in a row while trying to get it right.  It’s all worth it of course.  But sometimes, when I am gearing up for a busy couple of weeks, I miss just being able to, you know, make dinner.

I had a little window before my cooking life became not my own and I knew I had to take advantage of that freedom to just make something I wanted to eat.  Not test.  As is often the case, I got a little overwhelmed with choices.  I have so much bounty in terms of recipes between books, magazines, blogs, restaurant experiences – how to choose what to make.  Perhaps you are familiar with this feeling.  As I started to get overwhelmed and ordering pizza started to seem like a good idea, I opted to just stick with a cookbook that is relatively new to me and exciting.  It was the jumping off point for this salad and also has the least imaginative name ever.  But boy, did we love this dish.

We don’t often eat eggs for dinner.  You should know that as I’m typing that sentence, I am simultaneously promising myself that we will eat eggs more often for dinner.  I love a good poached/fried/soft-boiled egg but none of those options sound good to me at breakfast time.  It would make sense, seeing as I love them and that I am a vegetarian, that eggs would be a regular part of our dinner routine.  I’ve just never made them a priority.  But when I see a recipe like this one, really just an egg curry, and it speaks loudly to me, it is clear I need to rethink the egg and dinner relationship.  As I was getting ready to serve this lovely, filling, and nutritious dish, I decided it seemed a little thin, so I added chickpeas.  Not necessary, especially if you add more eggs, but I thought the combination was great.

Two Years Ago:  Red Lentil Dhal
Three Years Ago:  Oatmeal Chocolate Chunk Cookies

Sambal Telur
Loosely adapted from Vegetarian
Serves 4

4 eggs
2 tbsp. vegetable oil
4 shallots, 1 chopped for garnish, 3 thinly sliced
Kosher or sea salt
3 garlic cloves, minced
2-inch piece of ginger, finely minced or grated
1 tsp. coriander seeds, crushed
1 tsp. cumin seeds, crushed
½ tsp. ground tumeric
1 tbsp. sambal oelek, or other chile sauce
1 14-ounce can diced tomatoes
2 tbsp. tomato paste
1 14-ounce can coconut milk (can be “lite”)
1 tbsp. tamarind concentrate
1 tbsp. light brown sugar
1 15-ounce can chickpeas, rinsed and drained

Place the eggs in a medium saucepan and fill to cover with cold water.  Bring to a boil, then turn off the heat and set the timer for 6 minutes.  Immediately scoop out the eggs and place in a bowl of ice water to stop the cooking.  Drain and set aside.  (This amount of cooking time will give you an egg with a very soft yolk.  Let them sit for another minute, 7 total, if you like your yolk a little firmer.)

Place a large sauté pan over medium-high heat.  Drizzle in about 1 tablespoon of the oil.  Add the chopped shallots along with a healthy pinch of salt, and cook, stirring frequently, until cooked through and brown, about 5 minutes.  Shallots burn very easily so keep a close eye on them.  Scrape the shallots out onto a paper towel lined plate.  Set aside for the garnish.

Return the pan to the heat.  Pour in the other tablespoon of oil, then add the sliced shallots, garlic, and ginger, and cook for a minute.  Add the coriander, cumin, tumeric, sambal oelek, the canned tomatoes, and the tomato paste.  Sauté for 5 minutes, stirring frequently.

Stir in the coconut milk, tamarind, and brown sugar along with a large pinch of salt.  Bring to a boil and simmer for about 5 minutes until the mixture thickens.  Add the eggs and the chickpeas and simmer for a few minutes more to heat it all through.  Serve over rice and garnish with the fried shallots.

Eggs for one is easy.  You poach, scramble, fry, hard boil, soft boil, or make an omelet.  Whatever suits you.  Eggs for two is the same.  Even eggs for four, although the poaching might get a little tricky and you might feel like a buffet cook at a bad hotel with the omelets.  Eggs for eight really necessitates a frittata, a Mediterranean style one or a frittata made with grits, or perhaps onions that have been cooked long and slow.  But more than eight people means you need to start thinking egg casserole.

We attended a New Year’s Day brunch with a group of my favorite people.  Five couples with kids, all of whom had celebrated New Year’s Even in some way or another.  In other words, we needed plenty of eggs and the cheesy grits that our hosts make and make so very well.  I have made a savory bread pudding for this gathering before but with the grits and biscuits and muffins, I thought something without bread added it to it would be a better option.

Epicurious had plenty egg casseroles but most of them had giant huge tremendous amounts of cheese.  One notable recipe had 8 cups, that is two pounds, of cheese for four eggs.  I’m sorry.  That is a cheese casserole, not an egg casserole.

The one I eventually decided on is not exactly spa food but there are some vegetables and herbs and much of the cheese is actually cottage cheese.  Because we were a large group, I tripled this recipe and split it between two large dishes.  As it baked and I could smell the mingling of the scallions, cheese, and dill, I realized that I had made a very good choice and the taste proved me right.  We ate a full one and a half which was a lot of egg casserole.  I even sacrificed some of the stomach room I had reserved for cheesy grits and filled it with egg casserole.  The next time you are making eggs for a group, this is a surefire hit, but you can also enjoy it on a much smaller scale by making the recipe as written and not tripling it.

One more note.  I know some of you are new here so I thought I would put this out there.  I cook a lot of food and a large percentage of that food never sees this blog.  Sometimes it is because I just can’t get a decent photo (there is a gorgeous Beet Tart that I made four times in a month and just can’t seem to get my photography ducks in a row).  Sometimes it is because the food is not blog worthy.  In other words, I don’t put up every single thing I cook – only the things that I really like or think you would really like.  Occasionally, I will talk about something that didn’t work but I really do that to air out my frustration or to demonstrate that, although I have been cooking for almost 20 years and have made somewhat of a career out of it, I can make mistakes just as easily as a newbie.  All this to say, I’m not just telling you about egg casserole because it was something I made.  It’s good.

One Year Ago:  Tofu and Shiitake Noodle Soup
Two Years Ago:  Bruce and Dana’s Pasta Sauce

Spinach Cheddar Casserole
Adapted from Bon Appétit
Serves 4-6

4 eggs
¾ tsp. kosher salt
½ tsp. pepper
1 10-ounce package frozen chopped spinach, thawed, squeezed dry
1 16-ounce container cottage cheese
1 bunch green onions, chopped
1 cup packed grated sharp cheddar cheese
¼ cup all purpose flour
3 tablespoons chopped fresh dill

Preheat oven to 350°F. Butter 8x8x2-inch glass baking dish. Beat eggs, salt and pepper to blend in large bowl. Mix in spinach. Add remaining ingredients and stir until well blended. Transfer mixture to prepared dish.

Bake casserole until center is firm and top is golden, about 45 minutes.  Give the dish a shake, the center should not wobble.  Allow to cool 10 minutes, then serve.  This dish can sit and be served at room temperature.

There is a restaurant in Seattle called Sitka and Spruce and it is a pretty much uncontested local treasure.  It is always on “best of” lists and gets lots of awards.  They are passionate about local and have been for years – even before it was super cool to cook like a locavore.  The restaurant used to be in a tiny and unassuming space in an urban strip mall.  Randy and I had some amazing meals there.  The menu was always just written up on the blackboard according to the chef’s whims and the food was always super fresh, innovative, and very tasty.

One night, we went in for dinner and were told that it would be a 20 minute wait.  We went across the street for a beer only to come back and have them tell us that it would be another 20 minutes.  I’ll spare you the play by play but by the time we walked out, we had been waiting for an hour and a half with no apology, no offer for an appetizer on the house, no comped glass of wine.  Randy swore he would never eat there again.

And, until recently, he didn’t.  When the restaurant moved into decidedly more swanky digs and I was dying to try it, I went for lunch with friends.  Twice.  The food is still super local, inspired, and very flavorful.  They also have an incredibly heavy hand with the olive oil which I don’t love.  Still, it is a very special place.  And they have a tiny grocery area where they sell amazing things that are hard to find elsewhere.  Last time I was in there, I picked up some Muscat vinegar.  As I was waiting to pay, I glanced at the menu.  All I saw was something like Potatoes, Jerusalem Artichokes, Arugula, and a Poached Egg.  If I hadn’t already eaten lunch, I would have ordered it right then and there.  So I did the next best thing.

I am often inspired by menus.  The dishes I make from those inspirations are usually things I have actually eaten in the restaurant.  But with those ingredients, all of which I was able to find in the Sunday farmers market, I knew I would have a home run.  Plus, roasted potatoes for dinner?  Hurray!

Potatoes, Jerusalem Artichokes, Arugula, and a Poached Egg
Dana Treat Original, Inspired by Sitka and Spruce
Serves 2

I confess to having an egg poacher (which is mine look like that) so I am not going to offer advice on how to do it the old fashioned way.  I am not very good at it.  You can check here for good instructions.  Jerusalem artichokes look like something you want to peel, but it is not necessary.  Just give them a good scrub.

1 tbsp. unsalted butter
3 medium Jerusalem artichokes, scrubbed and thinly sliced
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
3 large Yukon gold potatoes, cut into large chunks
1 small sweet potato, peeled and cut into large chunks
Olive oil
8 cherry tomatoes
2 ounces arugula leaves
Good olive oil
Your favorite vinegar
4 eggs, poached
3 tbsp. chopped parsley

Preheat the oven to 400ºF.

Melt the butter in a medium skillet and then add the Jerusalem artichokes along with a pinch of salt.  Try to lay them in one layer if possible.  Cook, turning occasionally, until completely tender and browned in spots, about 10 minutes.  Turn out onto a paper towel lined plate.

Place the potatoes and sweet potatoes on a medium baking sheet.  Drizzle with about 2 tablespoons of olive oil and then sprinkle on a large pinch of salt and a few grinds of pepper.  Place the tomatoes on a small baking sheet and drizzle them with about 1 tablespoon of olive oil, salt, and pepper.  The sweet potatoes will roast faster than the Yukon golds so separate them on the baking sheet.

Bake the tomatoes for about 10 minutes, or until starting to brown.  Bake the sweet potatoes and Yukon golds until fork tender, about 16 minutes for the sweet and 25 minutes for the Yukons.  Resist the urge to toss them, allow them to develop a nice brown side.

Place about 1 ounce of arugula on each plate.  Drizzle with your best olive oil and then your favorite vinegar and sprinkle with salt.  Add pepper if you like it.  Top with half the vegetables and one or two poached eggs.  Sprinkle with parsley and repeat with the other plate.

One of the very trickiest things about cooking is the timing.  Getting dishes to come out around the same time or having food on the table when you want it to be ready can be very tricky.   I truly believe the timing piece only comes with practice.  Someone can have a naturally good palate but kitchen timing does not seem to be a genetic trait.

I remember struggling with timing when I was first learning to cook.  Learning that you really need to read a recipe thoroughly before you start cooking helped.  But truly I got better from sheer practice.  These days, I’m pretty good at getting everything to come out at once.  I’m also good at judging how long things will take start to finish.  But once in a while, I get tripped up.

This recipe for a mammoth quiche has been sitting quietly in my notebook for years now.  It is a recipe that is never far from my mind.  With all the cooking I do, it is hard for me to believe that it took me all this time to make it.  I guess it’s not really weeknight cooking because it is a little fussy and it is also huge.  It’s not really dinner party cooking because, I don’t know – quiche seems a little brunchy for a dinner party.  We have people over often for brunch – so why didn’t I make it one of those times?  I wondered all of this as I was preparing to make it.  And then, when all was said and done, I realized why.

This is a Thomas Keller recipe that comes from the Bouchon cookbook, but I have it because it appeared in Food & Wine.  I remember Keller writing that, for him, quiche needed to be large.  And boy, is this large.  Rather than a tart pan or a pie plate, this baby is made in a springform pan.  The crust itself is several inches high.  The filling has 2 cups of milk, 2 cups of cream, 6 eggs, 2 pounds of mushrooms, and just a smattering of cheese.  It is gorgeous.  It is awe-inspiring.  And if you ever make it, please remember to read the part where I tell you it takes about 5 hours to make, start to finish.

Yep.  I had some good friends over today for a late morning get together.  I put out pumpkin bread and granola and thought I would serve the quiche as it got closer to lunch time.  But, because I had a momentary being-good-at-timing lapse, all my friends left and the quiche wasn’t even out of the oven.  I left it in there for a full two hours and, as you can see from the photos, it still wasn’t completely cooked.  Regardless of runniness, we will be eating this quiche for days for several reasons.

1)  Anything that takes me 5 hours to make will be consumed without question.
2)  This is one of the tastiest things I have ever made.
3)  I used a pound of button mushrooms and a pound of chanterelles (some regular and some yellow foot) which cost me $16.

So, Over the Top Mushroom Quiche it is until Sunday!

One of my readers made a terrific suggestion – how about creating a “My Favorites” category.  I went back through my old posts and tagged the recipes that I like the very best.  You can scroll down to it on the sidebar to your right.  In spite of this being truly delicious and a recipe I will no doubt make again – I’m not sure I can call a five hour egg and crust dish a favorite.  Not yet anyway.

One Year Ago: Frittata with Caramelized Onions, Goat Cheese, and Sage
Two Years Ago: Fennel and Brie Risotto Wedges

Over-the-Top Mushroom Quiche
Adapted from Food & Wine
Serves 12

Keller recommends oyster mushrooms but that type creeps me out.  And I live in a part of the country where we get incredible (and relatively affordable) wild mushrooms.  Use what you like.  I had Manchego in my cheese drawer so I used that but his recommendation is Comté or Emmental.  Finally, as stated above, it took my quiche a LOT longer to bake than the time specified below, but every oven is different!)

1 tbsp. vegetable oil
1 pound exotic mushrooms
1 pound white mushrooms, quartered
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
1 tbsp. unsalted butter
2 small shallots, minced
1 tbsp. fresh thyme, chopped
¾ cup shredded Manchego cheese
Buttery Pastry Shell (recipe follows)
2 cups milk
2 cups heavy cream
6 large eggs, lightly beaten

Preheat oven to 325º.  In a very large skillet, heat the oil.  Add all the mushrooms, season with salt and pepper, and cook over high heat, stirring until starting to soften, about 5 minutes.  Reduce the heat to moderate.  Add the butter, shallots, and thyme and cook, stirring often, until the mushrooms are tender, about 12 minutes longer.  Season with salt and pepper and let cool.

Scatter ¼ cup of the cheese and half of the mushrooms evenly over the bottom of the Buttery Pastry Shell.  In a blender, mix half each of the milk, cream, and eggs and season with 1½ teaspoons salt and 1/8 teaspoon of pepper.  Blend at high speed until frothy, about 1 minute.  Pour the custard into the pastry shell.  Top with another ¼ cup of cheese and the remaining mushrooms.  Make a second batch of custard with the remaining milk, cream and eggs plus the same amount of salt and pepper, and pour into the shell.  Scatter the remaining ¼ cup of cheese on top.

Bake the quiche for about 1½ hours, or until richly browned on top and the custard is barely set in the center.  Let cool in the pan until very warm.

Using a serrated knife, cut the pastry shell flush with the top of the pan.  Carefully lift the springform pan ring off the quiche.  Cut the mushroom quiche into wedges and serve warm.  (The unmolded quiche can be cooled completely, then refrigerated overnight.  To serve, carefully cut the quiche into wedges, arrange on a baking sheet and bake in a 350ºoven until warm, about 10 minutes.)

Buttery Pastry Shell
Makes one 9-inch shell

Since I love to make savory tarts and galettes, I have a lot of experience with tart dough.  I have learned to sacrifice flakiness for flavor when using all butter.  This crust is almost impossibly flaky in spite of having no shortening and the flavor is terrific.

2 cups all-purpose flour, plus more for dusting
1 tsp. kosher salt
2 sticks chilled unsalted butter, cut into ¼-inch dice
¼ cup ice water
Canola oil, for brushing

In the bowl of a standing mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, mix 1 cup fo the flour with the salt.  At low speed, add the butter pieces, a handful at a time.  When all of the butter has been added, increase the speed to medium and mix until the butter is completely incorporated.  Reduce the speed to low and add the remaining 1 cup of flour just until blended.  Mix in the water just until thoroughly incorporated.  Flatten the pastry into an 8-inch disk, wrap in plastic and refrigerate until chilled, at least 1 hour or overnight.

Set the ring of a 9-inch springform pan on a rimmed baking sheet lined with parchment paper, leaving the hinge open. Brush the inside of the ring with oil.

Dust the pastry on both sides with flour.  On a lightly floured work surface, roll out the pastry to a 16-inch round, about 3/16-inch thick.  Carefully roll the pastry around the rolling pin and transfer to the prepared ring, pressing it into the corners.  Trim the overhanging pastry to 1 inch and press it firmly against the outside of the ring.  Use the trimming to fill any cracks.  Refrigerate the shell for 20 minutes.

Preheat the oven to 375º.  Line the pastry shell with a 14-inch round of parchment paper; fill the shell with dried beans or rice.  Bake for about 40 minutes, or until the edge f the dough is lightly browned.  Remove the parchment and beans and continue baking the pastry shell for about 15 minutes longer, or until richly browned on the bottom .  Transfer the baking sheet  to a rack and let the pastry cool.  Fill any cracks with the reserved pastry dough.  (The uncooked pastry can be frozen for up to 1 month.  The Baked pastry shell can be wrapped in plastic and kept at room temperature overnight.)

True confession time.  I have a deep dislike of leftovers.  There.  I said it.  Randy would be happy to spend the rest of his life eating left over food out of plastic containers, but I would rather eat a plain bagel than last night’s dinner tonight.  Why?  I don’t know.  I have no good answer for you.  If forced, I still need to make something fresh – a crostini or a big salad – to negate the leftover-ness of the meal.

Leftover ingredients fall into a slight different category.  Bits and pieces that I can be creative with feel more like a challenge to me than drudgery.  As I do more catering, my refrigerator can, at times, have some pretty interesting things in it.  I did that party last Friday and then friends came over for dinner on Saturday.  I was thinking I wanted to keep things pretty simple after making appetizers for 25 people but, as usual, I got kind of carried away.  I started with the idea of making a Spanish tortilla for dinner using up the leftover potatoes pieces and Romesco sauce.  Soon a crostini with balsamic sauteed red peppers got added along with a green salad featuring watermelon, haloumi, and fennel.  And homemade white chocolate chocolate chip ice cream sounded like a terrific idea for a hot night.  Can simple food still be called simple if there are many different components?

Remember those chickpeas?  Remember that when I tasted them at Cantinetta they were the fresh kind?  Well, when I want to the store to buy the zucchini that I decided to add to the tortilla, my Whole Foods had fresh chickpeas.  What is a girl to do but buy them, painstakingly pop each one out of the skin while she should have been doing countless other kitchen tasks, quickly boil them and give them the olive oil, lemon juice, and Pecorino Romano cheese treatment?  {Moment of silence.}  Those things are so good.  Check out my bean section on the side bar to your right and you will see that I love me some chickpeas.  Fresh is a whole different animal.  I mean really different.  Fresh they taste more like a pea than a bean and they are tremendous as a garnish on this tortilla.

This is a non-traditional way of making a tortilla because the potatoes are already cooked and I just served it right from the pan rather than turning it out.  I know this.  Please don’t sic the tortilla police on me.

Tortilla with Potatoes and Grilled Zucchini
Dana Treat Original
Serves 6

2 medium zucchini, cut into thirds lengthwise
Olive oil
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
1½ cup potato trimmings or cooked slices of potato
10 eggs
½ cup grated Pecorino Romano cheese, divided
¼ cup fresh basil, julienned

Preheat a grill to high.  Place the slices of zucchini on a baking sheet and toss with a drizzle of olive oil, a healthy pinch or two of salt, and a few grinds of pepper.  Place each slice on the grill and cook, until grill marks appear, turning once.  Make sure the zucchini are tender but not mushy.  Remove and allow to cool.  Cut into 1-inch pieces and set aside.

Preheat the oven to 400ºF with the rack in the middle position.  Heat a large cast iron skillet, or other oven-proof pan over medium-low heat.  Drizzle olive oil to coat the bottom of the pan.  Crack the eggs into a large mixing bowl then give them a good whisk.  Add in the potatoes, zucchini, ¼ cup of the Pecorino Romano, the basil, a pinch of salt and a few grinds of pepper.  Carefully whisk the mixture together and then pour it into the pan.  Cook slowly, occasionally scooping up the edges of the tortilla to let some of the raw egg seep around the edges of the pan.  You don’t want to stir it and you don’t want to cook it so fast that the bottom gets brown.  Turn down the heat as necessary.

When the edges are looking set but the middle is still runny, scatter the remaining Pecorino Romano over the top and place the pan in the oven.  Bake until the middle is set, about 15 to 20 minutes.  Carefully remove the pan from the oven (it will be extremely hot) and allow to cool for 10 minutes.  Slice it into wedges and serve topped with Romesco sauce.  (And fresh chickpeas if you are lucky enough to find them.)

Yes, I want to tell you about this very good, very simple frittata I made for brunch on Sunday.  It uses those incredible leeks and it was delicate and delicious in a ladies-who-lunch kind of way.  It could probably be made more substantial with extra eggs, milk, and cheese – but our guests liked it just the way it was.  This morning I have been dreaming about putting it on a ciabatta roll slathered with aioli and topped with thin slices of tomato and peppery arugula.  For breakfast.  Or lunch, or dinner.  Or all three.

Seeing as it is a winner, I will most definitely share the recipe but first I have an important question to ask.

For a long time, I have been wanting another tattoo.  I have a small Leo symbol on the back of my left shoulder.  It’s about the size of a half dollar (remember those?) and I got it when I was 22.  At the time, I wanted something that I knew I could relate to the for the rest of my life.  I considered getting the Pearl Jam symbol but thought I may not be a Pearl Jam fan when I was 40 but would always be a Leo.  (As it turns out, I am 3 months away from 40 and still a Pearl Jam fan.)

Anyway, my tattoo is sideways (the guy made a mistake) but I have loved having it.  I feel like I have a special secret and I love those few months in Seattle when I can wear things that make it visible.  Now I feel like I am ready for something more out there, something that I can show on a daily basis.  For the past year or so, I have thought about getting something on my left forearm but haven’t been able to come up with the right thing.  I want something pretty and feminine – something that would look right with a short-sleeved shirt and jeans, and something that would look right with the amazing dress I will wear to celebrate my 40th birthday.

I had dinner with a friend recently who has a gorgeous spoon on her upper arm.  She is a chef and it is the perfect thing for her.  I love the idea of doing something related to food but I want something more feminine – more girlie.  I was telling Randy about it and he said, “Why don’t you get some kind of herb?”.  And then it hit me.  Chives.

We have a gorgeous chive plant in our front yard.  It is the first of our plants to bloom and it produces all spring and summer.  I love the long green stem and the delicate yet substantial purple blossom.  I love purple.  I love purple and green together.  I love herbs and I love chives and, of course, I love to cook.  Doesn’t this seem like a natural fit?  It’s pretty, it relates to my life in food…I feel like it’s me.

So – here is where you come in.  Am I crazy?  Would this look beautiful or just weird?  Will I love it in 20 years or regret it?  This is, obviously, a big decision, and I am definitely looking for feedback, so tell me.  What do you think?  In the meantime, while you are pondering, make this frittata.  Delicate, lovely, delicious.

Leek Frittata
Dana Treat Original
Serves 4

¼ stick unsalted butter
2 large leeks, white and very pale green part only, cut in half lengthwise and then sliced into ¼-inch thick slices
1½ tsp. chopped fresh thyme leaves
1 tbsp. water
¼ tsp. salt
6 eggs
½ cup whole milk
1/2 cup soft goat cheese, such as Montrachet, divided
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
Chives, for garnish

Preheat the oven to 375ºF.  Spray a 9-inch pie plate with non-stick spray (or lightly coat it with oil).

Melt the butter in a large skillet over medium-low heat.  Add the leeks along with the salt and stir to coat.  Add the thyme and cook until starting to soften, about 4 minutes.  Add the water and reduce heat to low.  Cover the skillet and cook, stirring occasionally, until the leeks are meltingly tender, about 25 minutes.  If there is still liquid in the skillet, remove the top and allow it to cook off.  Remove from heat and set aside to cool for a few minutes.

Crack all of the eggs into a medium mixing bowl and give them a good whisk.  Add the milk and whisk again.  Add the leeks and mix together, then add half the goat cheese and stir carefully.

Pour the egg mixture into the pie plate and crumble the remaining goat cheese over top.  Place in the oven and allow to bake until the middle is set, and the edges are only very light brown, about 20 minutes.  Remove from the oven and allow to sit for 5 minutes before serving.  Can be eaten warm or at room temperature.  Or cold from the refrigerator the next day.

You know when you get a new accessory – say, a pair of earrings or some awesome shoes – and you just want to wear them with everything?  Or a new lipstick shade that looks just right no matter what you have on?

That is kind of how I feel about this quinoa dish.  I want to eat it everyday.  I want to eat it straight out of the bowl and I also want to gussy it up by filling giant portabello caps with it, and roasting it in the oven with a sprinkling of cheese.  I want to feed it to the people I love.  There are a lot of people I love but that’s okay because this recipe gives you a lot of quinoa.  And it keeps beautifully.

This dish comes to you by way of 101 Cookbooks, a lovely site and one I turn to when I want über-healthy food or when I just need more whole grains in my life.  That Heidi knows her way around quinoa, let me tell you.  Let me also tell you what I love about this dish.  If you have tried quinoa, you probably like it.  It has a mild nutty flavor and a delightful little pop under the tooth.  Here it is tossed, while still warm, with a little butter that has been mixed with Tabasco, lemon juice, salt and mustard.  An intoxicating combination if there ever was one.

I had a lonely little bag of red quinoa sitting on my “grains” shelf (yes, I am annoying – I have a large pantry) so I used that but regular old quinoa is fine, of course.  (Although I have to say I really liked that red stuff and since I have a grains shelf, I plan to buy more.)  Heidi mentioned that she ate this dish the next day fried rice style with some egg added in.  I decided to add it from the start since we can always use more protein around here and, being a baker, I always have eggs in my refrigerator.

As I mentioned up top, this makes a lot of quinoa.  We ate it three nights in a row and the third night I shared it with three other people.  It tasted as good the third day as the first and because I shocked the asparagus in ice water so they would keep their lovely green color, it looked as good too.  We doused ours with extra Tabasco one night, spooned on a tomatillo salsa the next, and dabbed it with an Asian sweet chile sauce the third.  Very adaptable – just like the perfect pair of shoes.

One Year Ago:  Gruyère Gougères

Tabasco and Asparagus Quinoa
Adapted from 101 Cookbooks
Serves many

2 cups quinoa
3 cups water
¼ cup (½ stick) unsalted butter, room temperature
1 tsp. Dijon mustard
15 drops Tabasco sauce
Juice of half a lemon
¼ tsp. salt
1 pound asparagus, cut into 1-inch segments
1/3 cup pine nuts, toasted
¼ cup plain whole milk yogurt (optional)
3 eggs, beaten

Rinse the quinoa in a fine mesh sieve.  Bring the 3 cups of water to a boil in a medium saucepan along with a large pinch of salt.  Add the quinoa, allow  it to return to a boil, then cover and reduce heat to a simmer.  Cook for about 25 minutes, until the quinoa is tender and the water is absorbed.

Place the butter in a medium bowl and mash it with a fork.  Add the mustard, Tabasco, lemon juice and salt and mash well to combine.  Add to the pot of quinoa and stir to combine well.

Boil the asparagus in a large pot of salted water for just a minute or so.  Immediately remove them to a bowl of ice water.  Once they are completely cool, drain well.

Heat a small non-stick pan over medium heat.  Melt a bit of butter in the pan and then add the eggs.  Allow them to cook, occasionally lifting up the edges and allowing the raw egg on top to go to the bottom of the pan.  Once the eggs are cooked, slide the omelet onto a cutting board and cut into 1-inch pieces.

Add the asparagus, pine nuts, eggs, and yogurt to the quinoa and stir well to combine.

Some people are afraid of yeast so they don’t make bread.  Some people are afraid of crusts so they don’t make tarts or pies.  (I myself am afraid of frosting layer cakes but I don’t let it stop me.)  So, If I say “tart”, are you one of those people who gets scared?   Truth be told, I find crusts can be tricky even thought I have made a lot of them.  Every time I make a pie, I say a little prayer to the crust gods to make things go smoothly.  My only advice is that it helps to have a good recipe and lots of practice.

If you do suffer from a crust phobia, please make this pie.  I would say it’s like a crust-less quiche, but it does in fact have a crust.  It is nothing more than some breadcrumbs sprinkled into a buttered pie plate, but somehow just that little bit of attention makes it more elegant, interesting, and also helps hold the slices together.  The lack of a butter and/or shortening  crust also makes a slice much lighter and healthier – so you can be a little more heavy-handed with the cheese.

This is one of many Jeanne Lemlin tarts that I have made – all easy, all delicious.  It is totally adaptable and great for lunch, brunch, or dinner.  Although she says it is important to use Swiss cheese in this one to help keep it all together, I bet you could substitute another firm cheese and have it turn out fabulously well.

One Year Ago: Chocolate Chip Coffee Cake

Zucchini, Tomato, and Swiss Cheese Pie
Adapted from Quick Vegetarian Pleasures
Serves 4

1 tbsp. unsalted butter, room temperature
¼ cup bread crumbs
Olive oil
1 medium onion, diced
2 garlic cloves, minced
2 medium tomatoes, seeded and diced
3 medium zucchini, quartered lengthwise and thinly sliced
1 tsp. fennel seed
¼ tsp. salt
Freshly ground black pepper to taste
3 large eggs
1/3 cup milk
¼ pound grated Swiss cheese
3 tbsp. grated fresh Parmesan cheese

1.  Preheat oven to 375º F.  Butter a 9 inch pie plate, then sprinkle the bread crumbs all over the sides and bottom.  Allow whatever loose crumbs are there to just sit on the bottom.

2.  Heat a large skillet over medium heat.  Add enough olive oil to just coat the bottom, then add the onion.  Sauté until translucent, then add the garlic and sauté for another 3 minutes.  Stir in the diced tomatoes and sauté another 5 minutes.  Raise the heat to high.  Mix in the zucchini, fennel seed, salt and pepper.  Cook until the zucchini is barely tender, about 5 minutes.  Remove the pan from the heat and cool 5 minutes.  (The recipe may be prepared in a dvance to this point an dchilled up to 24 hours.  Bring to room temperature before proceeding.)

3.  Beat the eggs in a large bowl.  Stir in the milk, then mix in the zucchini mixture.  Pour half into the prepared pie plate, top with the Swiss cheese, then pour on the remaining vegetable mixture.  Sprinkle the Parmesan cheese all over the top.

4.  Bake 30 minutes, or until a knife inserted in the center comes out clean and the top is golden brown.  Let sit 10 minutes before cutting.

I have introduced my husband Randy to many different foods over the nine years we have known each other.  In some ways, I feel like I have introduced him to food period.  Randy has always been athletic and so he has always viewed food as fuel.  Before he met me, he had some crazy calculation for the protein to carb to vegetable ratio so that he could just keep moving without bonking.  It had very little to do with taste.  There was a lot of tuna, chicken, rice, and salsa in his life.  Occasionally a vegetable or two.

Then along comes me.  Vegetarian.  Loves to eat.  Loves to dine out.  Loves to talk about food.  Loves to research restaurants in far away cities.  Loves to obsess about each and every upcoming meal.  I’ve got to hand it to the guy – he has made a huge effort to embrace the obsession.  He tries new restaurants with me.  He enthusiastically eats everything that I cook, even the most aggressively vegetarian food (he is a carnivore).  He has opened his mind up to food that he thought he hated.  And I have converted him.  Peas, lentils, brussels sprouts, cauliflower, and tofu used to be on the black list.  He eats all of them now.  (Brussels sprouts are still dicey and cauliflower only if it is roasted.  But still, progress.)  The only dislike he holds on to is beets.  And I can live with that for now.

But before I pat myself on the back too heartily, there are foods he has brought into my life for which I am eternally grateful.  It is hard for me to believe, but I had never tasted Pho (the Vietnamese rice noodle soup) before a trip we took to Vancover together.  Now Pho is a large part of our family’s life.  He also reawakened my love for Mexican food, spicy food in general, and he made me embrace onions.

I still don’t like raw onions, but I do love them in all other ways.  Especially caramelized onions.  I have been cooking up lots of them lately.  I love them in these tarts, and in a quick and easy appetizer that I will share here shortly.  When my brother and sister-in-law came for brunch yesterday, I knew I wanted to make this frittata.  I’m not sure why so much time has gone by since my last go-around with this lovely dish but I guess that’s what happens in a busy kitchen.

Now, you might be wondering – are those eggs brown?  Did she overcook the frittata?  We all know that overcooked eggs are one of the worst things about brunches in restaurants, right?  Let me reassure you.  That brown top is actually balsamic vinegar that has been cooked down so that it is syrupy and sweet, and then brushed over the top of the frittata.  Not an A+  in the looks department but definitely in the taste department.

Want another Frittata?  Check out this one.

Frittata with Caramelized Onions, Goat Cheese, and Sage
Adapted from Fields of Greens
Serves 6

2 tbsp. olive oil
3 medium onions, quartered and thinly sliced
Salt and pepper
3 garlic cloves, finely chopped
8 eggs
1 ounce Parmesan cheese, grated, about 1/3 cup
1 tbsp. chopped fresh sage
3 ounces mild creamy goat cheese, crumbled
3 tbsp. Reduced Balsamic Vinegar (method follows)

Preheat oven to 325ºF.  Heat 1 tablespoon of the olive oil in a large skillet; add the onions, a large pinch of salt and a few grinds of pepper.  Sauté the onions over medium heat for about 10 minutes to release their juices.  Add the garlic; continue to cook over medium heat for about 40 minutes, gently scraping the pan with a wooden spoon to keep the onions from sticking as they caramelize.  Transfer the onions to a bowl and set aside to cool.  (DT: These can be made days in advance.  Put in an airtight container in the refrigerator.)

Beat the eggs in a medium bowl.  Stir in the onions along with the Parmesan and sage.  In a 9-inch sauté pan with an ovenproof handle, heat the remaining tablespoon of oil to just below the smoking point.  Swirl the oil around the sides of the pan to coat it.  Turn the heat down to low, then immediately pour the frittata mixture into the pan.  The eggs will sizzle from the heat.  Crumble in the goat cheese and cook over low heat for 5 minutes, until the sides begin to set; transfer to the oven and bake, uncovered, for 20 to 25 minutes, until the frittata is golden and firm.

Loosen the frittata gently with a rubber spatula; the bottom will tend to stick to the pan.  Place a plate over the pan, flip it over, and turn the frittata out.  Brush the bottom and sides with the vinegar and cut into wedges.  Serve warm or at room temperature.

For the balsamic vinegar, heat 6 tablespoons of vinegar in a small saucepan and cook down gently until it is reduced by half.  If you want to have some of these amazing taste treat on hand, just make extra and store it in the refrigerator.  This process goes quickly, so watch your pot carefully.

There is the old saying “When life gives you lemons, make lemonade.”  What do you do when life gives you chard?  And carrots?

For the last three weeks straight, I have received chard and carrots in my CSA box.  Actually, the carrots I’m not that worried about.  Farm fresh and stored in the crisper drawer, they will last a month or more.  Plus there is always vegetable stock to make, this soup, and this dressing.  But the chard?  I loved this recipe but didn’t want to make it again and again.  In order to use up the two huge bunches I had taking up lots of space in my refrigerator, I decided to cook it down and serve it over grilled bread.

The good thing about chard is that, if you want to use a lot of it, it melts into almost nothing.  The two of us were able to eat it the two giant bunches without too much trouble.  I sautéed a bit of garlic, added as many leaves as I could put into my large skillet, and then added more as they wilted.  I also added about a teaspoon of smoked paprika and some sliced sun-dried tomatoes.  I let the chard cook for a good long while, until it was really soft.  I was going to poach the eggs directly in nests of chard, but my pan was too large and I opted to make them in my egg poacher instead.  Fried eggs would also be delicious here.

Verdict?  A great way to use a lot of chard.  And a very quick dinner.  Randy called it “bitter” but would not come right out and say that he didn’t like it, although I told him he was allowed to.  I loved the egg and the bread (and the roasted potatoes I served along with it), but I would find another green for next time.  Broccoli rabe perhaps or kale.  Or maybe the mustard greens I was just informed are coming in this week’s box.  Along with some carrots.  I’m not kidding.

One Year Ago:  Dimply Plum Cake

Smoky Chard Over Grilled Bread
Dana Treat Original
Serves 2

If you find yourself with only one bunch of chard, do not despair.  You can still make a dinner out of this, you will just have slightly less chard to go over the bread and I would cut the smoked paprika down to 1/2 teaspoon.

Olive oil
2 garlic cloves, minced
2 large bunches chard (any type)
1 tsp. smoked paprika
6 sun-dried tomato halves, thinly sliced
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
4 medium slices country bread, drizzled with olive oil and grilled or toasted
4 eggs, poached, fried, or hard-boiled and sliced

Cut the chard leaves off of each stem (you can also just tear it off).  Cut the leaves into approximately 2-inch strips.  Reserve the stems for another use.

Heat a large sauté pan over medium heat.  When hot, add just enough olive oil to lightly coat the bottom.  Add the garlic and stir constantly until just starting to brown.  Do not allow to burn.  Add as many chard leaves as will fit into the pan and sauté until starting to wilt.  Add more leaves and continue to cook down until wilted.  Continue this process until all the chard is in the pan.  Add the paprika, the sun-dried tomatoes, a sprinkle of salt and pepper and lower the heat.  Cook, stirring often, until the chard is very soft, about 20 minutes.

Meanwhile, grill the bread and cook the eggs to your liking.  An alternative here is to cook the chard in a smaller sauté pan that has a lid.  Make 4 wells in the cooked chard and crack an egg into each.  Cover and cook over low heat until the eggs are cooked to your liking.