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French Fridays with Dorie: Spinach and Bacon Quiche
TGIF! Friday morning means one more day of work for the week. Also, it means one more sleep until I go to Maryland for a quick overnight visit to see my sisters and my Dad and other family. And, of course, French Fridays with Dorie, which means it’s time to talk about this week’s recipe for this on-line cooking group.
Every week brings a different feeling of anticipation. It varies between excitement, curiosity, ambivalence, and dread. I was enthusiastic about this week’s choice: Spinach and Bacon Quiche (page 160 from Dorie Greenspan’s Around My French Table).
I love quiche, particularly spinach quiche. Dorie’s version with bacon was a different twist from the way I usually make it (from Julia Child), and I made some variations on Dorie’s version. I truly enjoy making pastry crust. It’s a baking feat I have mastered. I have to admit that I substituted my own go-to pastry crust recipe (actually Mark Bittman’s) for Dorie’s since it works better for me.
I was a little light on the spinach because the huge box from the store turned out to weight only 7 ounces, not the ten called for. Spinach cooks down so much, so I was worried my shell wouldn’t be filled enough, but it was fine. I also opted to lighten it, using half-and-half instead of cream. Finally, I was out of Parmesan, but found some aged Gouda in the cheese drawer. Aged Gouda is a favorite at our house and I thought it would complement the smoky bacon nicely.
I do love how spinach quiche is more filling than custard. It’s so pretty when filling the shell, and then even prettier once browned in the oven.
My first bite cried out BREAKFAST! It must have been the bacon that triggered that reaction. However, this will be lunch and dinner fare for us. With a side salad, this makes a perfect meal, filling but not too heavy.
After my initial enthusaism, the end result was not disappointing, it was GREAT! This was my favorite FFwD recipe in a while. My usual spinach quiche recipe is topped with Gruyère, and I think that would also work well on top of this bacony version. I can’t wait to make it again.
You can also check out the links for other bloggers who made this quiche at French Fridays with Dorie. I love to read about their variations and make notes of my favorite ideas for “next time”. We don’t post the recipes, but consider getting your own copy of the book, Dorie Greenspan’s Around My French Table. Maybe you’ll even want to cook along with us on Fridays. You’ll enjoy it, I promise.
Next week, it’s bacon again as part of Bacon, Egg, and Asparagus Salad, another recipe I’m excited about.
French Fridays with Dorie: Bistrot Paul Bert Pepper Steak
This week’s recipe for French Fridays with Dorie taught me an new technique for cooking a steak. At our house, steak is always grilled or broiled. We never have it any other way. However, I tried Dorie’s way of making steak, bistro-style.
The steak is rubbed with a generous amount of coarsely crushed peppercorns (I didn’t have Sarawak, but used India Tellicherry from Penzeys Spices) and then seared in a hot cast-iron skillet with a little added butter and olive oil. Dorie’s recipe called for filet mignon, but I try to eat only meat whose provenance I know, so I used a thick boneless sirloin steak from our CSA share from Chestnut Farms. I’m sure the sirloin wasn’t as tender as filter, but it didn’t ruffle my conscience.
Searing the steak was rather smoky. Even running the exhaust fan on high couldn’t keep the smoke at bay. It didn’t help that the potholder caught on fire. I also made the brandy cream sauce, choosing to ignite the brandy, which seemed like a more fun option than boiling it down. It turned out that the flavor of the sauce wasn’t for me. Overall, I did like this recipe.
For me, my takeaway from this recipe was similar to the Scallops with Caramel-Orange Sauce. I learned a new cooking technique that I will use again, even though I won’t repeat the accompanying sauce.
For accompaniment, I made my new favorite potato recipe: Roasted Potatoes (from The Essential New York Times Cookbook) and the classic steakhouse vegetable side, Creamed Spinach. It was a hearty and delicious meal.
As a bonus recipe, here’s my version of Creamed Spinach. I’m always surprised by how cooking drastically reduces the volume of greens. This dish is rich, so it goes farther than it looks like it will.
Creamed Spinach
Serves 2-4
1 lb fresh spinach, coarse stems discarded, torn into 1-2 inch pieces, washed very well, and drained
½ small onion, diced
1 Tbsp butter
¼ cup heavy cream (also works with light cream or half-and-half)
Pinch of nutmeg
Salt & pepper to taste
Melt the butter in a large sauté pan over medium heat. Saute the onion until softened, about 5 minutes. Add the spinach, with any clinging water. Stir to distribute onion throughout the spinach. Turn up the heat to medium-high, cover, and cook until the spinach is wilted, about 2 minutes.
Stir in cream and nutmeg. Add salt and pepper to taste.
Check out how my fellow FFwD bloggers interpreted this week’s recipe here. We don’t post the recipes, but consider getting your own copy of the book, Dorie Greenspan’s Around My French Table. You’re always welcome to join in the fun!
A Plateful of Happiness 