A Killer Quiche to Celebrate the Release of Avery's LOST and FONDUE!

What a week! As most of you know by now, two of our Mystery Lovers' Kitchen cooks just won Agatha Awards.

Avery Aames won the Agatha for Best First Novel for her debut Cheese Shop Mystery THE LONG QUICHE GOODBYE and Mary Jane Maffini won the Agatha for Best Short Story -- "So Much in Common," published by Ellery Queen magazine. Way to go, girlfriends!

Well, today we have an all new reason to celebrate because it's RELEASE DAY for Avery. Her second Cheese Shop Mystery LOST AND FONDUE is now officially on sale, so don't miss your chance to return to the picturesque town of Providence, Ohio, and visit with Charlotte in her charming Fromagerie Bessette. Of course, Charlotte has a brand new murder to solve, and it's one killer mystery.

For a review of Avery's new novel, check out Lesa Holstine's blog here. To read a sneak peek from the book, click here. And to view the book trailer, just click the arrow in the window below...



To help Avery celebrate the release of her new Cheese Shop Mystery, I wanted to make something very special today.

I asked Avery if she wouldn't mind my whipping up one of Charlotte's special quiches for you all. (Charlotte creates a new quiche every week for her cheese shop customers.)

Avery graciously shared one of Charlotte's recipes. I whipped it up for a Sunday brunch and my husband and I inhaled it. The quiche is absolutely delicious with fragrant layers of flavor that transcend the average fare. So here you go. A killer of quiche recipe courtesy of Avery Aames -- and her amateur sleuth, cheese shop owner Charlotte Bessette...

Avery Aames'
Vidalia Onion
and Bacon Quiche

To download a free PDF of this recipe that you can print, save, or share, click here.





Serves 6

Ingredients:

1 pie shell, homemade, frozen, or pre-made such as Pillsbury
6 slices Smoked Bacon, cooked crisp
2 teaspoons olive oil
1/2 large Vidalia Onion, sliced thinly
3 green onions (scallions), chopped
1/2 to 1 teaspoon white pepper
4 ounces shredded Fontina cheese (or more, if desired, to taste)
1/4 cup arugula leaves, finely chopped
1/4 cup cream
3/4 cup 1% or low-fat milk
4 extra large eggs
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon ground pepper

Directions:

(1) Bake or sauté bacon until crisp. Remove from heat and cool on paper towels. Break into thirds.

(2) Sauté Vidalia onions and green onions in olive oil at medium heat until they turn limp and slightly brown/caramelized. Remove from heat and drain on paper towels.

(3) Sprinkle (1/2 to 1) teaspoon of white pepper and 2 oz. shredded cheese on pie crust. Layer with finely chopped arugula.

(4) Lay onions on top of arugula. Lay bacon on top of onions.

(5) Mix milk, eggs, and seasonings together. Pour into pie crust. Sprinkle egg mixture with remaining cheese.

(6) Bake 35-40 minutes at 375 degrees F. until quiche is firm and lightly brown on top and crust.

*Note, if Gluten-free pie shell used, this recipe is Gluten-free.

Allow to cool for a few minutes
before cutting into slices and...

Eat with joy!

~ Cleo Coyle, author of
The Coffeehouse Mysteries

www.CoffeehouseMystery.com 

And congrats again 

to Avery on the release of

LOST and FONDUE!

Pineapple & Ham Quiche

I love comfort food...

food that melts in my mouth and makes me feel like I'm home and settling in, enjoying a dish that has probably been made for years.

Well, guess what, quiche has!

A tidbit of history: Most people think quiche originated in France, but according to Wikipedia (and we all know that it MUST be true), quiche originated in Germany. Actually in the medieval kingdom of Lothringen, an area the French later renamed Lorraine. Can’t you just see all those pies being made during the medieval times? Quiche comes from the word kuchen, which means cake in German. The pie was originally open-topped and consisted of egg and cream custard with smoked bacon or lardoons.

The bottom was a bread dough, not a crust. Not until later did cooks start adding cheese to the “cake.”

Nowadays, quiche is made with all sorts of ingredients, different vegetables, different cheeses. In The Long Quiche Goodbye, Charlotte makes a different quiche each week as an "extra" from The Cheese Shop. One of her favorites (and mine, inspired by a pizza that my son loved) is pineapple and ham quiche. I can't tell you how many people have written to tell me how much they've enjoyed this particular recipe at the back of the book.

It's definitely a "brunch" quiche, with sweetness reminiscent of French toast. Drizzled with syrup? A delight.

Do you have a favorite quiche? Will you share?

HAM AND PINEAPPLE QUICHE

Ingredients:

1 pie shell (home baked or frozen)

Dash of white pepper

2 slices pineapple, fresh, diced.

4 slices thin ham [I use Applegate Farms Black Forest Ham], diced.

2 oz. sour cream

2 oz. light cream or whipping cream

2 oz. milk

2 eggs

1 Tbs. brown sugar

2 oz. shredded Edam or Cheddar or Monterey Jack cheese

Dash of cinnamon

Directions:

Sprinkle white pepper on pie shell.

Arrange meat in pie shell. Arrange pineapple on top. Sprinkle with sugar.

Mix milk, creams, and eggs. Pour into pie crust.

Sprinkle with cheese. Dash with cinnamon.

Bake 35 minutes at 375 until quiche is firm and lightly brown on top.

Note, serve this with a crisp sauvignon blanc. The tart of the wine will go perfectly with the sweet of the pie.

If you'd like to know more about The Long Quiche Goodbye and want to download a few other recipes from me (on recipe cards), click on this link to my website: Avery Aames. I've posted recipes in the "morsels" section. There's lots of other fun stuff, as well. And sign up for the fan club to get in on the next contest.

The Long Quiche Goodbye

 By Avery Aames

Today officially ends our Iron Chef Week with secret ingredient: EGGS, suggested by Janel G. Thanks, Janel. Eggs inspired us to create Angel Food Cake, Aioli sauce, omelets and more!

If you'd like to try your hand at winning our next Iron Chef contest (the new prize and winner will be announced soon), just send your Iron Chef secret ingredient suggestions to MysteryLoversKitchen@gmail.com

And now, I'm pleased to share with you one of my favorite things: quiche. Eggs are a key component of quiche. They give it the fluff and substance and work so well with cheese!

Quiche: not just for women.

In my new book, The Long Quiche Goodbye, [coming in July] I have quiche in the title for a reason. [Oooh, guess you’ll have to read the book to find out why…]

Okay, twist my arm. I’ll tell you a little bit. Charlotte, my protagonist, makes a point of cooking a new quiche every week for customers. She thinks it’s important to show customers how to enjoy cheese in its raw form as well as in recipes. And quiche with a glass of wine? Scumptious.

One of Charlotte’s favorite quiches is Pineapple, Ham and Brown Sugar quiche. That recipe will be included in the book. Check it out.

In the meantime, another that is mentioned in the book and happens to be one of my favorites--a savory one--using Asparagus and Zucchini.

It’s so pretty that I included it in my book trailer. [Note – I’ll have a contest regarding the trailer in March…but more on that in a future blog.]

For now, here's my egg-citing (thanks, Julie for all the fun puns this week)

ASPARAGUS AND ZUCCHINI QUICHE!

Ingredients:

1 pie shell (home baked or frozen )

1 teaspoon white pepper

6 asparagus, end snapped off and cut into 1” long pieces.

2 tsp. olive oil

1/4 c. sliced leek tips

2 T. pine nuts

1/2 a small zucchini, diced [approx. 1/2 cup]

3/4 cup milk

4 eggs

1 T. fresh basil snipped small

1/2 tsp. dried thyme

1/2 tsp. salt

1/4 tsp. ground pepper

2 oz. shredded Edam or cheddar cheese

2 oz. shredded Ementhaler cheese

Directions:

Blanch asparagus for 1 minute then drain and rinse with cold water.

Sautee leeks in olive oil at medium heat. When they turn limp, add pine nuts.

When pine nuts have toasted, take pan off burner, add drained asparagus, zucchini, sauté quickly.

Sprinkle 1 teaspoon white pepper and 2 oz. shredded cheese on pie crust.

Put sautéed veggies and nuts on top of cheese.

Mix milk and eggs and seasonings together.

Pour into pie crust.

Sprinkle with remaining cheese.

Bake 35 minutes at 375 until quiche is firm and lightly brown on top.

Last but not least, if you’d like, sign up for my next newsletter, where I share lots of tidbits about my new book as well as a history about particular cheeses, click on this link: Avery Aames Newsletter.

Say Cheese for Cheddar Biscuits

Dear Readers, our latest Iron Chef contest is completed, and we'll be using the special ingredient our winner Molly Ebert suggested in December, but we'll be having another Iron Chef contest in December, with the special ingredient to be announced in January, so continue to sign up and drop us suggestions! Someone will be a lucky winner close to the holidays! And the prize is a Junior's Cheesecake! Remember, one entry per person, per day, and you must be a follower of the blog.

This week, I've prepared one of my favorite things, Cheese Biscuits. But this week's recipe is for all my gluten-free pals. That's right, Gluten-Free Cheese Biscuits that melt in your mouth. My husband, who can eat anything he wants, loves these biscuits. The recipe uses two cheeses!And the biscuits don't need any butter on the side. YUM!

GLUTEN-FREE CHEESE BISCUITS

Ingredients:

2 oz. butter, room temperature (1/4 cup)
1/2 cup shredded Cheddar and Gouda cheeses
1/2 cup sour cream
1/2 tsp. dried parsley
1/4 tsp. dried thyme
1/2 cup sweet rice flour

1/2 cup tapioca flour or potato starch

1/2 tsp. Xanthan gum
1 tsp. baking powder
1/4 tsp. baking soda
1/4 tsp. salt

Directions:

Heat oven to 350 degrees.

In a mixing bowl, combine the butter, cheeses, sour cream and herbs. Add the Gluten-free flours, Xanthan gum, baking powder, soda, salt. Stir together until blended.

Spoon the dough equally into 8-10 muffin cups. [That's right. No forming, no nothing. Spoon it in!]

Bake for 20 minutes until lightly browned.


YUMMMMMM! Especially hot out of the oven.

Enjoy!

This coming holiday season, and throughout the year, enjoy your family. Enjoy your friends. Take long walks in the crisp air. And say thanks for the freedoms that you have in your lives. May they be many.

If you want to check out more about me, check out my website: Avery Aames. And don't forget to signup for my SAY CHEESE! newsletter, filled with facts and, well, news!!

Better yet, become one of the first to buy The Long Quiche Goodbye. It's now available on Amazon, Borders and Books a Million for pre-order!! [Haven't seen it yet on Barnes and Noble. What are they waiting for??] The publishing date is July 6! No cover art yet, but that's coming soon!