Healthier Green Chili and Spinich Quiche

Green Chili and Spinach Quiche Recipe

I recently visited a friend that just had a baby and I wanted to bring her and her husband a home cooked meal.  Since we were visiting mid-morning, I thought a quiche would be perfect.  I searched online for a "healthy" quiche recipe, but I just couldn't find what I was looking for.  I didn't want to use a pre-made pie crust or too much butter or cream. I ended up experimenting with a bread crumb crust, cutting back on butter, and adding cottage cheese instead of cream. I used my dear friends as guinea pigs (sleep and food deprived, I don't think they minded) and it ended up being a hit! So here it is:

Crust Ingredients

• Vegetable spray
• 1 cup bread crumbs or Panko
• 2 tablespoons canola or olive oil
• 1/2 cup grated Parmesan cheese

Filling Ingredients

• 1/4 cup all-purpose flour
• 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 6 eggs 

• 1/2 (8 ounce) package shredded Colby-Monterey Jack cheese
• 1 cup cottage cheese
• 1/2 (10 ounce) package frozen chopped spinach, thawed and drained
• 1 (4 ounce) can chopped green chilies

• 2 tablespoons melted butter 

PREPARATION

1.  Preheat oven to 400 degrees.
2.  Make crust - Lightly coat 9-inch pie plate with vegetable spray. In small bowl, combine bread crumbs and 2 tablespoons oil. Press this mixture evenly across the bottom and up the sides of pie plate. 

3.  Sprinkle crust with grated cheese and set aside.

4.  Whisk the flour, baking powder, and salt together in a small bowl; set aside.

5.  Beat the eggs in a mixing bowl until smooth. Whisk in the flour mixture until no lumps remain. Stir in the Colby-Monterey Jack cheese, cottage cheese, spinach, green chilies, and melted butter until evenly blended.

6.  Bake the quiche in the preheated oven for 15 minutes at 400 degrees F, then reduce the temperature to 350 degrees F. Continue baking until the quiche is lightly browned and a knife inserted into the center comes out clean, 35 to 40 minutes.  Let quiche set for 5 minutes, slice and serve!

Valentine's Day Heart Wreath

Now that the Holidays are over and my Christmas wreath is boxed up in the garage, I've been left with a bare front door. What better opportunity to decorate than Valentine's Day? I found this DIY heart wreath on pinterest and thought it would be perfect. I looked up some tutorials online and it seemed simple enough for me. 

All you need is an 8" foam wreath, a half yard of felt in the color of your choice (I chose pink because our front door is red), and straight pins. From here, cut out about 150 circles, 2.5" in diameter. I used a ramekin from my kitchen as a template.

Then take each circle and fold it in half, and then half again. Take a straight pin and pin it through the bottom of the point.

Pin each circle to the styrofoam wreath, continuing all the way around making sure there are no gaps.

When you are finished, take a ribbon, fold it in half and pin the ends to the back of the wreath. And voila, your wreath is ready to hang on your front door!

Wishing you and your loved ones a Happy Valentine's Day!