Asparagus Quiche with Spaghetti Squash Crust

I got the idea for this recipe from Pinterest, but I ended up tweaking it a little bit and have an idea for what I will do differently next time already.  I love quiche, but never make it because the one time I tried before was a disaster!  If I'm being completely honest, I was really nervous about this because really, my favorite part of quiche is the crust.  It's buttery, flaky and oh so delicious...  I'm getting side-tracked!  So, when I decided to try this quiche, I realized that I was just going to go into it with different expectations.  

So, yesterday I roasted my squash.  I used all the muscle I have in order to chop it in half lengthwise, scooped out the seeds, and then roasted it cut side down for about 45 minutes on 400 degrees.  

 I did this step a day ahead because I had the time.  Quiche itself is time consuming, so getting the first step done and out of the way made the whole process go more smoothly. 

So, because I cooked the squash ahead of time, it was scooped out (just scrape it all out with a fork) and cooled by the time I needed to press it into my pie plate.  I pre-heated the oven to 400 and then pressed the squash into it.  I then sprinkled about a handful of grated Parmesan cheese over the squash and then put it in the oven for about 10 minutes.  Now, I did this in hopes that it would help it harden and crisp up a little before I added all the filling stuff, but I'm pretty sure it didn't do anything.  Next time, I'm going to pat it all dry with a paper towel before baking it.  Maybe that will help with the browning.  

Anyway, while that was baking, I peeled a big shallot and threw it in my mini food processor.  I heated a medium skillet with a little olive oil in it and then started the shallots going over medium to medium low heat.  While they are softening up, I cut the ends off of the asparagus (snap one to see where the natural break is, then cut the rest at that same length) and then cut them into 1 inch pieces.  Once you have them ready, toss them into your pan and cook them for just a few minutes.  Don't get them get too soft, just till the green pops and they are tender. Once you get those in the pan, take your "crust" out of the oven.
 
While the asparagus is cooking, mix together 5 eggs, 1 cup of milk, 1 cup of cheese (I grated Gruyere, but Swiss would be good, too, salt, and pepper.  Whisk that all together and then put the shallots and asparagus into the crust and pour the egg mixture over top.  Put it in the oven and let it bake for about 45 minutes.

 Here it is out of the oven.  Notice my beautiful new butcher block counter tops in the background.  Ahh, so pretty!

Overall, I think the quiche is good.  I didn't even really miss the crust.  It was a little sweet, which surprised me, but I did enjoy it very much and would definitely make it again.  Hopefully patting the squash down will help control some of the excess moisture.  Let me know what you think!

 I enjoyed this delicious quiche with a little salad that my friend Adam introduced me to a few weeks ago. I modified it slightly because I don't love feta, but here is what you see pictured here.  I mixed a little spinach and arugula with some chopped fresh mint, some toasted pine nuts, and a little Panela cheese.  Dress it with just a little rice vinegar and black pepper.  It is so yummy! 

Simple Summer Supper

Confession, this dinner was born because of the hungry monster.  I had a yummy salad for lunch, but after a busy day of cleaning and tutoring, I was starving.  It had become a hot and humid evening and I had no desire to cook....  But, I had bought some perfect sea scallops and since I am thinking about going to the beach tomorrow, I knew I had to eat them up!  So, I started doing a mental scan of my kitchen, quickly counting out the spaghetti squash I had originally planned to eat with them because it was too much of a time commitment, and remembered I had frozen quinoa with veggies that I had never tried. I also had some yummy asparagus and a lemon, and then a meal was born.

This meal consisted of pan cooked sea scallops, garlic-lemon pan sauce, quinoa with veggies, and quick sauteed asparagus.  You will need:

4-5 scallops per person

olive oil

butter

juice from 1 lemon

1 garlic clove minced

salt and pepper

quinoa (I used Trader Joes Frozen with veggies, but you could totally cook your own)

asparagus (5ish stalks per person)

Ok, so start by mincing garlic and heating 2 tbsp each of the butter and oil over med-high heat in a pan, then add the garlic.  Let that cook for like, 30 seconds and try not to let your garlic burn (mine got a little browner than I wanted, but it still tasted good!)  Season your scallops with S and P, then add them to the pan.  Turn them ever minute or so until they are cooked through and brown on both sides.  They cook quickly, so watch them!  They only need between 2-4 minutes depending on their size. 

While that was cooking, I heated a few tablespoons of water in a pot and heated the quinoa through.  Then I removed it from the pot, put it on the plate as a bed for the scallops, and heated a little oil and butter for the asparagus. I snapped the bottom of the stalks off the asparagus because they are really tough, and then chopped them into thirds on the bias (cause it's pretty).  Then I added them to the hot butter and oil, and tossed them around with some salt and pepper.  Looking back, I may add some red pepper flakes for a little heat next time.  They just need a few minutes until they are tender, but still snap when you bite into them.  

Remove your scallops from the pan, and add the juice of a lemon to the pan and scrape the yummy bits that are stuck to the pan.  Be careful, it will spit when you add the juice!  Once you take the asparagus off and are ready to eat, spoon some of your sauce over the scallops, and then enjoy!  

 

This was such a tasty, flavorful, healthy, FAST meal.  Give it a try and let me know what you think!  Or invite yourself over and I'll cook it for you!