Broccoli Pie

Last weekend I had a couple of my girl friends over for a candle party/ Sunday brunch. Mostly it was an excuse to hang out with my lady friends with no husbands or kids allowed. As a single woman I was pretty familiar with how to throw a dinner party. Or a cocktail party. I could gather people together in the evening and I knew what to make. I gotta admit though. The idea of Sunday brunch intimidated the crap out of me. All I could think of was Ina Garten saying that the first time she entertained she made omelets and it turned out horribly because omelets are hard to keep warm and serve everyone at the same time.

Oh the anxiety.

So I called my mom. Zucchini pie is always good she said. I called my sister Super G and asked her what to make. Zucchini Pie, she responded. I'd only barely even heard of Zucchini Pie. So Super G talked me through the ingredient list as I wandered through Meier. First major trauma came in the produce department. The zucchini were small and shriveled and far from fresh and tasty looking. Super G suggested broccoli. But she said if I went with broccoli I needed to change the cheese to cheddar too. Oh boy. So the next major trauma happened when I realized I'd never actually bought crescent rolls before. I had no idea what they looked like or where to find them. I'm a freak. I know this. Super G talked me off that cliff and then I went home and discovered another trauma. I didn't have the recipe for Zucchini Pie. Crap.

Remember I mentioned how my mom had given us all cookbooks she had written out good recipes in? Well the Brain has a problem with lactose and although it was in everyone else's cookbook, Mom figured something laden with cheese was probably not something I'd be making and she left it out of my cookbook. Fortunately, I called Mom and she quick emailed it to me. Whew. I then took a long nap.

Sunday came around and I have to say, Zucchini Pie, er Broccoli Pie is one easy and delicious recipe to make. It's not horrible bad for you, but it's apparently no fail and it's really very delicious. And now if I invite people over for brunch I know of at least one thing I can make and have it all go smoothly!

Broccoli Pie

an adaptation of a family recipe

1 8oz package of Crescent Rolls (use the Pillsbury type)

4 cups chopped broccoli

1 cup diced onion

2 Tbsp butter

2 eggs well beaten

8oz package shredded cheddar cheese

1/2 tsp salt

1/2 tsp pepper

1/4 tsp basil

1/4 tsp oregano

1/4 tsp garlic powder

2 tsp Dijon mustard

Preheat oven to 375 degrees F.

Over medium-high heat saute vegetables and onion in butter until tender, approximately 8 minutes. Add spices except mustard and stir well. In a large bowl combine eggs and cheese. Add vegetables to cheese mixture and combine thoroughly. Separate crescents into triangles. Smoosh dough into bottom and up sides of ungreased 10 inch pie pan. Press seams to seal completely. Spread mustard on bottom of crust. Fold in vegetables and cheese mixture. Cook for 18-20 minutes or until knife inserted in center comes out clean.

Note: cover edge of crust with tin foil strips the last 5 minutes of baking if crust becomes too brown.

Quick and Easy Broccoli

Sometimes, especially if I stop by the gym, or go for a run before cooking dinner, I find myself home late. Starving hungry. And really I would be happy with a bowl of ice cream for dinner and then off to bed. Or cake. But I have a husband now. So, being that it's his job to give me money when I ask for it, it's my job to have a meal in the evening for him. (It's not exactly that simple, but you get the idea.)

So today, hungry, I decided to go with the standard of baked chicken and some noodles. I was going to make this delicious looking chicken dish over at more than burnt toast, but I didn't have any cheese and I hadn't stopped at the grocery store on the way home. For a vegetable, I turned to my trusty Cooking Light (March 2007 issue) and found Broccoli with Red Pepper Flakes and Toasted Garlic. The Heck with George H. Bush, broccoli is darn tasty. (Don't get me started on GW.)

This is one speedy recipe to prepare too. Let me explain my timeline this way. I got home and started the baked chicken thighs and put on the water for the noodles. Then I did the dishes from breakfast; It's the most important meal of the day you know. In the time it took the pasta to cook, I got the broccoli florets cut from the stalks and thinly sliced the garlic. Maybe it's just me, but I'm always jealous of the guy in Goodfellas who's slicing the garlic with a razor in prison and he gets it wafer thin. My garlic just seems coarsley sliced in comparison. But I digress, I drained the pasta and pulled the chicken out of the oven. While I was letting the chicken rest, I whipped together the broccoli. Simple. Easy. So very very delicious.

Broccoli with Red Pepper Flakes and Toasted Garlic

from Cooking Light

2 tsp olive oil

6 cups broccoli florets (about 1 very big head)

1/4 tsp kosher salt

1/4 tsp red pepper flakes

4 garlic cloves, thinly sliced

Heat olive oil in a large nonstick skillet over medium high heat. Add broccoli, salt, red pepper, and sliced garlic. Saute 2 minutes. Add 1/4 cup water. Cover, reduce heat to low, and cook for 2 minutes or until broccoli is crisp-tender.