Lisa's Culinary Atrocities

     I got an extraordinarily thoughtful Christmas gift from someone very dear to me: a Breville Pie Maker.  Oh goodness…I am beside myself with excitement; a whole new arena of possibility!  And I Looove pie!  Almost as much as waffles.  Maybe more.  Wait, did I say that?

So what will I be doing this long weekend?  Well, making lots of little pies.  First mini pie lab: Tofu, broccoli and cheddar quiche.

There was a little bit of a learning curve, but I figured it all out by the second try.  I used Trader Joe’s pie crust (which is amazing), mixed up my ingredients (below), gently placed the dough in the preheated maker and plopped in the filling.  Within about 10 minutes it was ready.

Now, glorious pie apparatus aside, this recipe is tasty.  Really…  I even bet tofu fraidy cats would like this.  Although tofu lends to different texture, I didn’t miss the egg, but that could be because eggs have been grossing me out lately.  That’s a different story. The mustard in the filling really made it for me.  That and Trader Joe’s South African Smoke (paprika, sea salt, garlic and basil) which I am totally crazy about. I am proud of my recipe!

So, I am on my way to Mini Pie 2012.  Thank you, thank you, thank you, Dan.

Tofu Broccoli and Cheddar Mini Quiche

Ingredients

• 1 (9 inch) unbaked pie crust dough
• 1 pound broccoli
• 1 tablespoon olive oil
• 10 green onions, chopped
• 3-4 cloves garlic
• 1 pound firm tofu
• 1/4-1/2 cup soy milk
• 1/4 teaspoon mustard
• 1/2 teaspoon sea salt
• 1/2 teaspoon Trader Joe’s South African Smoke (paprika, sea salt, garlic and basil)
• 4 tablespoons sharp white cheddar

Directions

Preheat pie maker according to manufacturer’s instructions.

Cut 4 rounds of lightly floured room temperature dough with large round cutter.

Steam broccoli and set aside.  Lightly saute green onion and garlic in olive oil over medium high heat.  Add steamed broccoli and cook 2 minutes.

For the filling, combine tofu, mustard, salt and seasoning blend in a food processor.  Add soy milk a little at a time while blending to make sure the filling remains more on the thick side.  Fold in cheese.

Carefully but quickly place dough round into heated pie maker.  Spoon filling into wells, top with cheese and cook until crust is browned, about 10 minutes.

A mini baguette turned into tasty cuteness…and without the post-french-toast-time-to-take-a-napness.

Had a little extra dough so… cuteness was necessary.

Dang those tomatoes are RED!

While shopping in the art supply, I mean grocery store, I came across a nifty little contraption made by Wonder Bread that both cuts the crust off and seals the sandwich (if not too thick).  Cute!  Not cute enough though, so…had to waffle it.

I prepared two different Waffini’s: Pastrami with cinnamon dusted Toscano cheese and an almond butter and pomegranate preserves, both on spelt bread.

They were both incredibly good—the spelt bread became lightly caramelized on the outside, yet warm and melty on the inside.  My pastrami filling was a bit much so the sandwich didn’t seal properly, but nonetheless, joyful mastication ensued.  Must add here that the Trader Joe’s Toscano cheese dusted with cinnamon is a fantastic cheese on just about everything I’ve tried.  It is very subtle, but apparent enough to add that hint of awesome.

A bread-pocket of tummy love.

One of my comfort foods is farina, made thick and buttery, with soy milk and agave nectar. It settles my tum-tum when she’s cranky unlike most anything else.

In this particular case, I made more than usual and had to use 2 small bowls.  To my delight, after taking a photograph of the super cute bunny bowl of warmth, and deciding to eat it all, I went to combine everything in one bowl and Voilà–art was created.

Neat.

Corn Dog Muffinettes

Oh yes I did!  I put some of those damned little hotdogs inside a teeny little cornbread muffin and now they’re in your FACE!

I definitely want to try this idea with other things, such as soyrizo or a reallly good italian cured meat, or a veggie dog if I can find one that tastes good.

Great with a dollop of mustard—it makes them stick out their tongue. How rude.

Very rude muffin