America I AM Pass It Down Cookbook (4 page)

Mrs. Robinson’s Spinach & Cheese Quiche

Richmond Heights, Ohio

SERVES 4 TO 6

Carol Robinson’s spinach and cheese quiche is her family’s traditional brunch, special breakfast dish, or even a snack. The quiche is the object of desire of numerous friends and family members who, she says, are always asking for the recipe. “This is an easy, delicious, aroma-smelling quiche that will make your taste buds come to life,” she says. “My husband says it’s one of the best things I have ever made for him.”

½ teaspoon salt
½ teaspoon pepper
5 ounces shredded Swiss cheese
3 ounces shredded Parmesan cheese
1 9-inch deep-dish frozen piecrust
1 tablespoon canola oil
1/3 cup chopped onions
1 tablespoon minced garlic
5 ounces fresh spinach, chopped or frozen chopped spinach, thawed
5 eggs, lightly beaten
1 cup half-and-half

Pass It Down tip

Carol Robinson suggests cutting the quiche in slices and storing in plastic wrap in the freezer. The quiche can be reheated easily or popped frozen into the microwave for a quick snack or easy lunch.

Preheat oven to 350° F.

In a medium bowl, mix the salt, pepper, and both cheeses. Place this mixture in the frozen piecrust.

Heat the oil in a skillet over medium heat, and cook the onions until tender. Mix in the garlic and spinach. Cook until the spinach has wilted or until the liquid has evaporated, if using frozen.

Remove the skillet from heat and pour the mixture into the pie shell over the cheeses.

Mix the eggs and half-and-half in a bowl and pour the egg mixture over the top of spinach mixture in the pie shell. Top the mixture with additional cheese if desired.

Bake in the preheated oven for 45 minutes or until top of quiche begins to turn lightly brown.

Mum’s Ham Bone Soup Bajan Style

Boston, Massachusetts

SERVES 6 TO 8

Leslie Forde is vice president of international strategy and partnerships at the social networking company Communispace. A professionally trained chef, she primarily credits her mother with teaching her to cook through observation. After college, experimentation and voracious cookbook reading led to a turn at Le Cordon Bleu, where she earned a pastry degree, but her culinary hero remained her mother and her home-style cooking from her native Barbados. “My mum is an amazing natural cook who can whip up a feast fit for kings from whatever is on hand. Many of her dishes are influenced by our Bajan heritage. This soup never disappoints and can be made with just about any veggies that you happen to have on hand. It’s also wonderful with chicken or turkey, but the ham bone creates this lovely, complex flavor.”

SOUP

1 ham bone with a generous amount of ham still on it
2 large onions, chopped
1½ cups homemade chicken stock (p. 13)
1 cup green split peas
1–2 sweet potatoes, cut into large cubes
3 russet potatoes, cut into large cubes
1 large carrot, sliced into ¼-inch rounds
1 ancho chili or other hot red pepper
1 spring onion, chopped
5 thyme sprigs
1 bay leaf
hot pepper sauce (from Barbados) or other aromatic hot sauce to taste seasoning salt and fresh ground black pepper to taste

DUMPLINGS

1 cup flour
2 tablespoons sugar
1 teaspoon allspice
1 teaspoon salt
¼ cup cold water or more, as needed

Put the ham bone and 2 chopped onions into a large (8-quart) stockpot. Fill to two inches from the top with cold water. Bring to boil on high heat and reduce to simmer for 1 hour.

Add the chicken stock, reduce heat to medium high, and add the sweet potatoes, russet potatoes, carrot, ancho chili, spring onion, thyme sprigs, and bay leaf. Simmer until the vegetables are tender, about 1½ hours.

Make the dumplings while the vegetables are cooking: Combine the flour, sugar, allspice, and salt in a bowl. Whisk until all ingredients are combined. Add the water to the flour mixture until it comes together in a sticky dough. Form the dough into two-inch balls, then flatten each ball with your palm. Add the dumplings to soup about 45 minutes to an hour after the vegetables have been added. Cook 45 minutes more.

Spice finished soup with pepper sauce, salt, and black pepper to taste.

Three Basic Stock Recipes

Stocks are not simply the start of delicious soups. They can add depth to stews, are the basis of sauces, and are ideal for flavorfully boiling grains such as rice. Adding flavor through stock means you can cut down on butter, fats, and salt to give these foods added taste. And speaking of salt, you’ll notice that none of these stock recipes have any. The boiling-down process would intensify the salty taste, making the stock less versatile as a basis for other dishes. Salt stock only if you don’t intend to use it in a recipe that requires further reduction.

Vegetable Stock

MAKES ABOUT 8 QUARTS

Virtually any vegetable can be used in vegetable stock, although certain ones, like cauliflower, cabbage, broccoli, and others in that family, are considered overpowering in flavor and are best avoided. Tomato in small quantity can add color and taste, but can make the stock more like tomato broth if too much is used.

4 pounds assorted vegetables, or well-washed vegetable trimmings
1 large onion, chopped roughly
10 sprigs thyme
1 teaspoon peppercorns
2 bay leaves
2 cloves garlic

Place all ingredients in a 12-quart (or larger) stock pot.

Add 2 gallons (32 cups) of cold water.

Bring ingredients to a simmer, skimming any accumulated scum from the surface as needed.

Simmer for 1 hour, strain, and cool completely. Refrigerate for up to 5 days.

Beef Stock

MAKES ABOUT 6 QUARTS

This recipe can be used for venison, bison, and most other game or livestock—except pork.Roasting the bones prior to throwing them into the stockpot adds rich flavor, although it is not strictly necessary.

10 pounds raw beef bones and meaty trimmings
2 medium carrots, peeled and cut into 2-inch pieces
2 celery stalks, cut into 2-inch pieces
1 large yellow onion, peeled and quartered
5 cloves garlic, peeled
1 tablespoon whole black peppercorns
1 small bunch parsley, with stems, washed well
4 sprigs thyme

(Optional) Place bones and trimmings in a broiler pan. Broil in the oven broiler until caramelized, about 25 minutes.

Place the bones, carrots, celery, onion, garlic, and peppercorns in a 12-quart (or larger) stockpot.

Add 2 gallons (32 cups) cold water.

Tie parsley and thyme together with a piece of kitchen twine and add to the pot. Bring ingredients to a simmer, skimming any accumulated scum from the surface as needed.

Simmer for 4 hours, strain, and cool completely. Use immediately for soups or sauce, or refrigerate for up to 5 days.

Chicken Stock

MAKES ABOUT 6 QUARTS

As with beef stock, chicken stock benefits from roasting the bones and trimming prior to boiling.

10 pounds raw chicken or turkey bones with meaty trimmings
2 medium carrots, peeled and cut into 2-inch pieces
2 celery stalks, cut into 2-inch pieces
1 large yellow onion, peeled and quartered
5 cloves garlic, peeled
1 tablespoon whole black peppercorns
1 small bunch parsley, with stems, washed well
4 sprigs thyme

(Optional) Place bones and trimmings in a broiler pan and broil in the oven broiler until caramelized, about 25 minutes.

Place the bones, carrots, celery, onion, garlic, and peppercorns in a 12-quart (or larger) stockpot.

Add 2 gallons (32 cups) cold water.

Tie the parsley and thyme together with a piece of kitchen twine and add that to the pot. Bring ingredients to a simmer, skimming any accumulated scum from the surface as needed.

Simmer for 4 hours, strain, and cool completely. Use immediately for soup or sauce, or refrigerate for up to 5 days.

Pass It Down trick:
Freeze stocks in 1 to 2 cup portions in freezer safe containers for later use. Mark the date on the container and don’t use stock older than 1–2 months.