Wednesday, January 30, 2013

another cooking post: EGGS and MORE EGGS

So here is the (obvious) problem with me committing to daily blog posts:  I forget.  Honestly.  Monday, I remembered at 11 p.m. that I was supposed to post, which is why there's that badly written post that I dashed off Monday night.  Last night, I remembered at 12:07 a.m.--i.e., it was already too late to post on Tuesday.  Oops.

Now it's Wednesday, and it's only 10:20, but I don't want to write the posts I have in my head, so I'm chickening out (smirk) and giving you my favorite egg recipes (so far), which someone asked for a couple of months ago.  Julie reminded me today about custard, which I've never even tried to make before, so I will do that soon and let you know what happens.

And by the way, the yogurt is merrily souring or whatever yogurt does right this very minute in its little jars in the machine on the counter.  The directions sounded simple, but it turned out to be a little trickier than expected, so I'm not sure if it's going to work or not.  Full report later.

Spinach Casserole - Every time I make this I am surprised at how good it is, because I am not the world's biggest spinach fan unless it's raw in a salad.

1 lb bag frozen chopped spinach (or two 10 oz boxes)
6 eggs
16 oz cottage cheese (Low-fat OK but not non-fat)
1/4 C flour (I haven't tried gluten-free flour but it seems like it would work, or just omit the flour)
2 C shredded cheese, divided (sharp cheddar or a mix)

Preheat oven to 350. Spray a 2 qt casserole with cooking spray.
1. Microwave spinach until thawed (about 4 minutes in my microwave).  Transfer to a colander in the sink to drain.
2. Break eggs into a large bowl and beat lightly.
3. Stir in cottage cheese, then 1 1/2 C shredded cheese
4. Press spinach lightly to remove excess liquid, then add to egg mixture.  Stir with a fork until evenly distributed.
5. Turn into prepared casserole and top with remaining cheese.  Bake for about 50 min, or until the top is browned and the whole thing is bubbly. 

Chile Relleno Casserole
This was ubiquitous in the community cookbooks of my childhood.  I didn't even know that it wasn't "real" chile relleno until I was in college.  This is sort of a work in progress because our eggs aren't uniform in size so it's hard to predict how it will turn out.  But it always gets eaten up.

1 12-oz can evaporated milk
6 eggs
1/2 C corn meal
1 t Worcestershire sauce
1/2 t salt
1 7 oz can diced green chilies
2 C grated cheddar or Mexican blend cheese
Serve with salsa, sour cream, guacamole (optional, but the salsa is highly recommended)

Stir together the evaporated milk and eggs.  Then stir in the cornmeal, Worcestershire, and salt.  Fold in the chilies and 1 1/2 C of the cheese.  Transfer to a baking dish sprayed with Pam and top with the rest of the cheese.  Bake at 350 for about 40 minutes until just set in the middle. Do not overbake. 

Potatoes and Eggs  This isn't really a recipe, but it's MadMax's favorite way to eat eggs so I'm including it.  Peel and dice 3-4 potatoes.  Steam or boil them for 4-5 minutes until just tender.  Heat about a tablespoon each of butter and canola oil for about 5 minutes in a large skillet.  Add the potatoes and distribute them so that they evenly cover the bottom of the skillet.  Let them cook without stirring for about 8-10 minutes, until the ones on the bottom are starting to brown.  Then stir them with a wooden spoon.  Pour in 8 eggs beaten with a little milk.  Allow to cook without stirring for a couple of minutes, then stir the eggs and potatoes together until the eggs are done.  Top with salt and pepper and serve.  You can also add cheese, but MadMax likes it better without.

Maybe I will wait and do desserts in another post after I've tried making custard.  I'm intrigued.

2 comments:

  1. Printed. Waiting to hear how the yogurt and custard went.

    ReplyDelete
  2. Sigh. I wish the rest of my family liked eggs. Because I love them.

    ReplyDelete