Friday, November 30, 2012

Fiesta Quiche

by Sheila Connolly


My thanks to Sisters in Crime New England member Sharon Daynard who generously shared this recipe.


It's party season, with lots of pot-luck events, right?  Here's a dish that you can make ahead, or make more than one of, so you'll have something tasty to take along. Plus it looks Christmas-y, with all the red and green ingredients.
 

One added bonus: you can make this as mild or as spicy as your guests and family like.  I've added the spicy ingredients in red (for hot!).


Ingredients:

 
1 frozen 9" deep dish pie shell
1½ cups grated cheddar or jack cheese/
habanero or pepper jack cheese
3 eggs
¾ cup light cream
½ pkg. (4 oz.) sausage/
hot sausage
¼ cup finely chopped onions
¼ cup chopped red pepper
¼ cup chopped green pepper/
chopped jalapeno pepper
½ tsp red pepper flakes
Ground cayenne pepper (to your taste)
 

 

Directions:

Preheat the oven to 375°F.


Thaw the pie shell and score, then bake 10 minutes until lightly browned. Set aside.


Crumble the sausage into a large fry pan and sprinkle with red pepper flakes. Brown and drain.

 
 


Spread the warm sausage on the bottom of the pie shell, and top with the grated cheese.


Sprinkle the chopped peppers and onion evenly over sausage and cheese.


Beat the eggs, light cream and a few dashes of cayenne pepper until 
blended. Pour slowly and evenly over the ingredients in the pie shell. (You may notice that there is no salt added, but the cheese and the sausage will provide enough.)

 
Ready for oven


Bake on cookie sheet 40-45 minutes or until a knife inserted in center comes out clean.
 

 
Let cool for 5-10 minutes before you cut it.

 





Thursday, November 29, 2012

Lucy Burdette's Pesto Pizza

LUCY BURDETTE: Okay, it's that time of year when we're recovering from Thanksgiving, but not yet geared up for Christmas. So what's for dinner? You need sustenance for your holiday chores, but you crave a breath of summer...The solution: pesto pizza! 

The good news about this dinner is you can make it all from scratch, or make the dough from scratch but use purchased pesto, or make the pesto and buy the dough. You don't even need summer-quality tomatoes--a box of Romas will work fine. (My recipe for pesto can be found right here--I usually make several batches in the summer and freeze about a dozen little containers which last me through the winter.)


If you possibly can, go ahead and make your own pizza dough. The recipe from THE JOY OF COOKING is very good and
really not that hard. In fact, I find the kneading part therapeutic:). You’ll just need to plan ahead a couple of hours to let it rise. (And it makes dough for two pizzas, one of which you can freeze
for another day.) Lately I've been substituting 1/3 white whole wheat flour for the white--this gives the crust a little bit of a nutty flavor. Or you can buy premade dough from a pizza joint–definitely a step up from Boboli!


Ingredients:

1 pizza crust, unbaked 
1 batch pesto
6 to 8 Roma tomatoes, sliced
1 8 oz ball fresh mozzarella, sliced

Oil your pizza pan (or cookie sheet if you don't have one)

On a floured surface, roll out the pizza dough with a floured rolling pin until it's roughly the right size. Drape the dough over the pin and transfer to the oiled pan. Shape the edges so the filling doesn't run out and make little impressions in the dough with your fingers. Let this rest about ten minutes, then...

Spread the pesto onto the dough (works better if it's at room temperature.)

Place the cheese and tomatoes on the dough in an artful way:).

 Bake in a 475 degree oven for about 12 minutes until the crust is browning and the cheese melted. 

Serve with a green salad and enjoy your taste of summer!

  Now back to Christmas shopping...don't forget that culinary mysteries are the perfect size for stocking stuffers:)...

 You can learn more about Lucy Burdette and her Key West food critic mysteries at her website or on Facebook or Twitter. 

Wednesday, November 28, 2012

Butternut Squash and Pistachios


From Avery Aames
I know Thanksgiving is over, but I still love fall vegetables, and a couple of weeks ago, our very own Sheila made a recipe called butternut squash pappardelle. It happened to be the same day that I thought about making butternut squash, using a recipe that I found in the latest edition of Cheese Culture Magazine (one of my favorites!!!). After seeing Sheila's recipe, I was convinced. I tweaked this recipe to suit my tastes. Everything needs tweaking, doesn't it?

Wow, did this squash turn out great. It's ugly, right? The gourd, itself. But the flesh is a beautiful orange. I mean, gorgeous.

I agree, this squash belongs in a meal, pre-Thanksgiving.

But wait.

Maybe you are a maverick. Maybe you aren't ready for red and green or blue. Maybe you're willing to shake up the colors on your plate from now through January 1st!!

Here's a great recipe for butternut squash that is like a warm salad. Delicious.

Note: This is not an easy squash or "gourd" to work with. It's hard to cut. Be careful. But the result is worth it.


The recipe requires one of my favorite cheeses. Parmesan.  I think I've said this before, but Parmesan is a perfect cheese. Firm with a bite. Salty. Adds flavor to so many things. Veggies, popcorn, spaghetti, etc., etc. Yum!!!


BUTTERNUT SQUASH, PARMESAN and PISTACHIOS

Ingredients:

1 butternut squash
3 tablespoons white wine vinegar
3 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
1 teaspoon salt
¼ cup pistachio nuts, shelled
¼ cup grated Parmesan cheese (artisan Pecorino)

Directions:

Heat the oven to 375 degrees. Cut the butternut squash in half and place on a baking sheet that has been drizzled with water. Bake the squash for about 35-40 minutes or until a fork slides in and out. (Tender). Set the squash aside until it’s cool (about 15 minutes).

When it’s cool, cut off the skin (not too hard now) then scoop out the seeds.

Now there are two ways to proceed:

1)    Cut the squash into bite-size pieces or…
2)    Leave in halves…it will probably break into chunks.

Either way…drizzle the squash the vinegar and oil. Season with salt.

If you chose to cut into bite-size pieces, toss the squash to incorporate the oil and vinegar. If you chose to leave as in halves…that’s it [picture upper left].


Arrange the squash on serving plates or serve as side dish and adorn with pistachios and top with Parmesan.

Delicious warm…also good cold the next day.


***************



The 4th in A Cheese Shop Mystery series: 
TO BRIE OR NOT TO BRIE
coming February 2013.

You can pre-order the book HERE. 

Click this link to watch the TRAILER

Click this link to read an EXCERPT.

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Also, you probably know by now about my alter ego,
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"Like" Daryl's page on Facebook and "follow" Daryl on Twitter.
"She" doesn't say all the same things "Avery" does. Promise.

Say cheese!

***********







Tuesday, November 27, 2012

How to make Holiday Bliss Cookies, inspired by Starbucks Bliss Bar from Cleo Coyle




Holiday Bliss (A week before Holiday Buzz)

To read more about
Holiday Buzz,

Click Here


Yes, one week from today is the official publication date for Holiday Buzz, the new book in my Coffeehouse Mystery series.

Today I'm kicking off an entire month of holiday recipes and contests. To wit: At the end of this post, I have two links where you can enter to win an autographed copy of my new book (one from a former police officer and loyal follower of this blog). Stay tuned and keep checking my online coffeehouse for more fun giveaways and recipes.

And speaking of recipes...

I'm happy to confirm that today's holiday recipe was inspired by the famous Cranberry Bliss Bar at Starbucks, a blondie bar with dried cranberries, cream cheese icing, and white chocolate drizzle.



The Starbucks Bliss Bar is a gorgeous pastry for the holiday season, but it's not the only inspiration for this post. Last year, I found out exactly how good cranberry and cream cheese are together when I combined them for my post on what to do with leftover cranberry sauce after Thanksgiving dinner. 

If you missed my "Baby Berry Pastries" post, you can download an illustrated PDF of the recipe by clicking here.



Cleo's Baby Berry Pastries
made from leftover cranberry sauce.
To download a PDF of this recipe,
click here.

Yes, this is me - Cleo Coyle
Learn about my books here.

Friend me on Facebook here.
Follow me on Twitter here.

So getting back to those Holiday Bliss Cookies...

If you do still have some cranberry sauce leftover from Thanksgiving dinner, this is an outstanding use for it. And if you don't, well, make some more. You'll be glad you did.



Cleo Coyle’s 
Holiday Bliss Cookies
with "Pink Chocolate" Icing


The cranberry sauce in this recipe is not overpowering. It simply gives the cookie a light, fruity taste. Still, if you're not a fan of cranberry sauce, you can easily replace it with cherry preserves--or strawberry or raspberry preserves. The cookie is a very pretty one to include on holiday dessert trays. Presentation tip: Even if you swap out cranberries for cherry or strawberry preserves, use loose, whole cranberries as a decorative accent (as I did in my photos) to make your cookies really shine. May you bake and eat them with joy!


~ Cleo





This recipe is no longer available online.


Find it, and many other delicious 
recipes in the appendix of 
my culinary mystery...

DEAD COLD BREW



Filled with wonderful twists
and surprises, this is one
Coffeehouse Mystery you
won't want to miss!


Buy now, click links for... 


May you drink 
(and read) with joy!

~ Cleo Coyle

New York Times bestselling author of
The Coffeehouse Mysteries

Yes, this is me, Cleo (aka Alice). 
Friend me on facebook here.
Follow me on twitter here
Visit my online coffeehouse here.




* * *


Our newest bestselling hardcover 
is now a bestseller in paperback!



Join amateur sleuth Clare Cosi

as she sets out to caffeinate
our nation's capital and solve
a capital crime.

To buy now, click links for... 


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This culinary mystery includes

more than 25 delicious new recipes!
Get a free Recipe Guide by 

* * *


The bestselling Penguin hardcover 
is now a bestseller in paperback!




Once Upon a Grind 
by Cleo Coyle

To buy now, click links for...

A Best of the Year Pick ~ Kings River Life 
"Fresh and fun...clever" ~ Booklist
A Mystery Guild Selection 

*

Join coffeehouse manager Clare Cosi as she solves the crime against "Sleeping Beauty," opens secret doors (uptown and down), and investigates a cold case that's been unsolved since the Cold War.

*

Wonderful recipes are also featured
in Cleo's 14th culinary mystery, Once Upon a Grind including...


* Dairy-Free "Cinderella" Pumpkin Cake
* Dairy-Free Almond Milk Custard
* Caramel-Dipped Meltaway Cookies 
* Black Forest Brownies 
* Cappuccino Blondies 
* Shrimp Kiev
* Dr Pepper Glazed Chicken
* Silver Dollar Chocolate Chip Cookies
* Poor Man's Caviar
* Snow White Chocolate Mocha

...and many more recipes, including 
a guide to reading coffee grinds...

See Once Upon a Grind's 
Recipe Guide by clicking here.



*  *  *






Billionaire Blend:
A Coffeehouse Mystery

To buy now, click links for... 

See Billionaire Blend's
Recipe Guide by
 clicking here.


*  *  * 


The Coffeehouse Mysteries are bestselling
works of amateur sleuth fiction set in a landmark
Greenwich Village coffeehouse, and each of the
15 titles includes the added bonus of recipes. 


GET A FREE
TITLE CHECKLIST 
OF BOOKS IN ORDER


See mini plot summaries 
for every title and news on
 Cleo's next release!




* * *







Book #1 of
which Cleo write under the name 
Alice Kimberly


Haunted Bookshop 
Mysteries

Get a free title checklist, with 
mini plot summaries, by clicking here.


Or learn more about the books
and meet Jack Shepard,
our PI ghost by clicking here.




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Subscribe to Cleo's free Coffeehouse E-Newsletter with bonus recipes, fun info, books news, and drawings for signed books, premium coffees, and more....







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