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Happy New Year! We hope you had a wonderful holiday season, and that 2015 is off to a good start for you.
To help us plan for the coming year's activities, we invite you to attend our Open Meeting on Saturday, January 17 at the Curryville Community Center, 786 Albert Mines Rd., in Curryville.
We have a full and entertaining agenda, starting at 3:00PM with a movie, "GMO - OMG," a thought-provoking film by Jeremy Seifert on GMOs in relationship to his 3 young children and the world around him.
Our open meeting follows at 5:00, including a potluck supper. Bring a dish to share. After the meeting, there will be a Crokinole tournament. Crokinole is a board game that was developed in rural Canada in the 1860s. It is a test of dexterity, with elements of shuffleboard and curling on a tabletop scale. For rules and information, click here. Limber up those fingers, and come join in the fun!
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Recipe of the Month
The growing season is long past, but local fresh eggs and meats are still available. This month, we feature a recipe for quiche, the classic French open-faced savoury pastry filled with cheese, meat, seafood and/or vegetables in a custard base. We give you the recipe for the crust and the custard. The rest is up to you. Let your imagination run wild!
Basic Mix and Match Quiche
Pastry crust for 9" pie
1 c. all-purpose flour
1/2 tsp. salt
1/3 c. lard, butter, vegetable shortening or a combination thereof
2-3 tbsp. ice cold water
Combine flour and salt in a bowl, blend in the lard or shortening with a pastry blender or with two knives, until the mixture reaches the consistency of coarse cornmeal. (Note - a food processor makes this very easy!) Sprinkle on the ice water, one tablespoon at a time, until the dough is just moist enough to hold together when squeezed. Gather the dough into a ball and place on a large piece of plastic wrap. Wrap the ball, then flatten it into a disk, about 4" in diameter and 1" thick. Let dough rest in the fridge for about an hour.
Preheat the oven to 375°F. Remove dough from the fridge and allow to warm up for a few minutes. Roll out, on a lightly floured surface, to an 11-12" diameter round, about 1/8" thick. Transfer to a 9" pie plate, trimming and crimping the edges as desired. Line with foil, then fill with pie weights or dried beans. Bake at 375°F until the crust is set. Remove the foil and weights, continue to bake until the crust is lightly golden. Let cool while you prepare the filling. Reduce oven temperature to 350°F.
Filling
Choose any combination of the following (or, use your imagination...). You should have a total of about 1 to 1-1/2 cups.
Meats:
- Cooked, crumbled bacon
- Chopped ham
- Cooked, crumbled sausage
- Leftover roast chicken, shredded
- Cooked crab meat
- Cooked lobster, coarsely chopped
- Cooked scallops, coarsely chopped
Veggies:
- Asparagus, steamed or roasted, cut in 1" pieces
- Broccoli, steamed, cut in 1" pieces
- Spinach or other greens (kale, swiss chard, etc.), coarsely chopped and sauteéd
- Peppers, roasted or sauteed, sliced
- Mushrooms, sliced and sauteéd
- Onions, shallots or leeks, sliced and sauteéd
Cheese - any combination of the following, shredded or crumbled. You should have a total of 3/4 to 1 cup:
- Swiss, Gruyère, or Jarlsberg
- Cheddar
- Gouda
- Goat cheese
- Feta
- Provolone
- Mozzarella
- Brie
- Monterey Jack
Custard
3 eggs
1-1/4 c. half and half
salt and pepper to taste
Whisk ingredients together.
Spread the chopped meats and veggies in the pre-baked pie crust. Top with the cheeses. Pour the custard mixture over all. If desired, sprinkle with pepper, paprika and/or nutmeg.
Reduce the oven temperature to 350°F and bake until the filling is set, 40 to 50 minutes. Let cool at least 30 minutes before slicing. Serve warm or at room temperature.
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