Asparagus Quiche

at Lia's request...

Ingredients

• 1/2 pound fresh asparagus, trimmed and cut into 1/2 inch pieces
• 5 slices bacon
• 1 deep dish unbaked pie shell (I used Pillsbury pie crust cause it was fast.)
• 6 eggs
• 1 1/2 cups milk
• 1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg
• salt and pepper to taste
• 1 cups shredded Swiss cheese

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees F (200 degrees C). 
2. Place bacon in a large, deep skillet. Cook over medium high heat until evenly brown. Drain, crumble and set aside.
3. In bacon fat, cook asparagus until tender but still firm, about 6 minutes. Drain
4. Sprinkle crumbled bacon and chopped asparagus into pie shell.
5. In a bowl, beat together eggs, cream, nutmeg, salt and pepper. Sprinkle Swiss cheese over bacon and asparagus. Pour egg mixture on top of cheese.
6. Bake uncovered in preheated oven until firm, about 35 to 40 minutes. Let cool to room temperature before serving.

Lia's Amazing Spaghetti Sauce

The Approved Spaghetti

2 lbs ground beef
3/4 lb. sausage
4 cloves garlic, minced
4 med. onions, minced
2/3 C olive oil
4 16-oz. cans tomatoes
4 6-oz. cans tomato paste–1/2 to 1 C water
4 T sugar
1 T salt
½ tsp pepper
4 Bay leaves
1 T oregano
2 T basil
½ tsp marjoram
1 tsp sage
3 T Worcestershire sauce
¼ cup parsley

Brown meat with garlic and onions
Add remaining ingredients
simmer for several hours (it’s easier in a crockpot) –be sure to stir hourly

Lia's notes: It makes a ton, and it's so nice to freeze in smaller bags and use later. You can make it in a crock pot or simmer it for a long time on the stove, even overnight. You don't actually have to stir it every hour like it says. And I usually go easier on the olive oil than it says, although with Mom's lovely extra virgin olive oil that she gave us, it sure has nice flavor.

White Chicken Chili

Lia was incredibly nice and made me and Steven a bunch of freezer meals after the baby was born (bless you, Lia!). Not surprisingly, all of the meals were delicious, and I coaxed Lia into giving me all the recipes, so I will be posting them here over the next little bit.

I don't think I've ever come across a White Chicken Chili that I didn't like, but this one is particularly delicious and fast. I made a few modifications to fit what I had on hand, but it still turned out very good. Here's what I did instead: I poached 1 pound of frozen chicken breasts (see this tutorial) in the chicken broth that the recipe calls for, and then put the chicken into the kitchenaid to shred it (so much easier than using a fork). I used cheddar cheese instead of pepper jack and half-and-half instead of the cream. I also used frozen corn instead of canned corn and regular tortilla chips instead of fried tortilla strips.

4 Chicken Breasts (cooked and shredded – rotisserie chicken is good)

3 Cans Chicken Broth (I used 5 cups)

1 onion, sautéed in 2 Tbsp Butter

2 small cans diced green chilies

2 cans black beans (drained)

2 cans white corn (drained)

1 can white beans (drained)

1 seasoning packet McCormick’s White Chicken Chili (Walmart)

heavy cream – to your liking

Serve with:

Grated pepper jack cheese

Sour cream

Fried Tortilla strips

Saute onion in butter, add chicken and broth. Add green chilies, beans, corn, and seasoning packet. When heated through, add heavy cream. Serve with a dollop of sour cream, sprinkle of cheese, and tortilla strips.

Makes enough for dinner for me and Steven and lunch for both of us for two days.

Source: Lia