Friday 11 January 2013

Post Christmas pick me up...Bacon, Spinach and Mushroom Quiche

So what do you do after you are all turkey'd and ham'd out after the Christmas? Make quiche! I love quiche. I find it incredible satisfying and perfect with a good helping of salad. The best part of it all is that it is incredibly simple to make. Especially if like me you are extra lazy and buy the ready made short crust pastry! You bake that first for about 10 mins with some parchment and baking beads on top. The rest is a matter of deciding what you would like to put in the quiche or whatever you have in your fridge. Generally I like to gently fry those ingredients first. Then I add them to 4 eggs, milk and cream. Pop in some dried herbs, add a grating of nutmeg, salt and pepper and into the dish. Bake in the oven for about 55 minutes or until the egg is set. When you take it out, hold back from cutting into it. Let it cool for about 15 minutes. Then away you go...it couldn't be simpler and the possibilities are endless! Just use your imagination...

Christmas Bundt Spice Cake...

Got this recipe from the lovely blog of Not Quite Nigella. It was quite an alternative cake for this household who enjoys the rather traditional cake. The spice taste was good and strong, however I would have liked it a little more moist. Mine seemed a bit dry so I made up for that by spreading on some butter thickly! Not sure if the dryness was due to it being in the oven too long, would have to shorten the time if I made it again. I must admit I do like the traditional cake with its extravagant amount of fruit, so I did add extra into this and soaked them overnight in some rum. Let's face it a Christmas cake isn't a Christmas cake without the hint of something alcoholic in it. Nevertheless it was good to try something different but I might be back to traditional cake again next year...