Ultimate Cook Book_ 900 New Recipes, Thousands of Ideas - Bruce Weinstein [19]
Reduce the oven temperature to 375°F. Melt the butter in a large skillet set over medium heat. Add the mushrooms and cook, stirring frequently, until they give off their liquid and it reduces to a glaze, about 8 minutes. Sprinkle the nutmeg over the mushrooms and set aside.
Whisk the remaining 4 eggs, milk, mustard, and pepper in a medium bowl until fairly smooth.
Sprinkle half the grated cheese over the potato crust. Pour the contents of the skillet over the cheese, then top with the remaining cheese. Pour the prepared egg mixture over the cheese, evenly coating it.
Bake until browned and puffed, about 35 minutes. Cool on a wire rack for 5 minutes before serving.
For a quicker quiche, use a basic piecrust. Follow the instructions on section Pies, Tarts, and Fruit Desserts for making the crust and on section Pies, Tarts, and Fruit Desserts for prebaking it. Follow this recipe from step 5.
Or use a store-bought pie crust, following the instructions on the package for prebaking it.
Spinach Cheddar Quiche in a Potato Crust: Omit the mushrooms. Sauté one 10-ounce package frozen chopped spinach and 2 garlic cloves, minced, in the butter until hot and aromatic, about 2 minutes.
Scallop Cheddar Quiche in a Potato Crust: Omit the butter, mushrooms, and nutmeg. Slice 8 ounces large scallops in half so each becomes two disks. Lay these over the first layer of grated cheese.
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The Real Reasons for Maple Syrup
If it doesn’t involve eggs, breakfast should be an excuse for maple syrup. None of these dishes is dusted with confectioners’ sugar or garnished with fruit. Why waste calories?
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A road map for Five Kinds of Pancakes
There’s only one trick to perfect pancakes: never let the batter sit around. Of course, you can save time by mixing the dry and wet separately the night before; keep the dry on the counter and store the wet, covered, in the refrigerator. Makes about eighteen 4-inch pancakes
Start with two large bowls, one for the wet ingredients and one for the dry. Whisk each together separately.
1. Traditional Pancakes
Wet Ingredients
3 large eggs
2¼ cups milk
6 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted and cooled
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
Dry Ingredients
3 cups all-purpose flour
5 tablespoons sugar
1 tablespoon baking powder
½ teaspoon salt
2. Buttermilk Pancakes
Wet Ingredients
3 large eggs
2 cups buttermilk
4 tablespoons (½ stick) unsalted butter, melted and cooled
Dry Ingredients
2 cups all-purpose flour
¼ cup sugar
2 teaspoons baking soda
½ teaspoon salt
3. Buckwheat Pancakes
Wet Ingredients
4 large eggs
2¾ cups milk
6 tablespoons honey
¼ cup canola oil
Dry Ingredients
2¾ cups buckwheat flour
2 teaspoons baking powder
½ teaspoon salt
4. Gingerbread Pancakes
Wet Ingredients
2 large eggs
1¼ cups milk
1 cup sour cream
¼ cup molasses
4 tablespoons (½ stick) unsalted butter, melted and cooled
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
Dry Ingredients
2 cups all-purpose flour
2 tablespoons sugar
2 teaspoons baking powder
2 teaspoons ground ginger
½ teaspoon ground cinnamon
½ teaspoon salt
5. Multigrain Pancakes
Wet Ingredients
2 large eggs
2 cups milk
3 tablespoons walnut oil
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
Dry Ingredients
1 cup all-purpose flour
1 cup whole wheat flour
1/3 cup sugar
¼ cup wheat germ
1 tablespoon baking powder
½ teaspoon salt
Rub a large skillet or flat griddle, preferably nonstick, with a paper towel moistened with a little canola or vegetable oil and set it over medium heat; or spray it with nonstick spray and set it over medium heat; or melt 1 tablespoon unsalted butter in the pan over medium heat, tilting it to coat the bottom thoroughly (see Note).
Mix the wet ingredients into the dry with a fork, just until the lumps are gone—the batter should still be a little grainy with some undissolved flour.