Country Vegetable Quiche and Orange Juice Muffins

 

This meal came from the Complete Meals section again, courtesy of Wanda Osolkowski. 

What can I say about Wanda's country vegetable quiche?  Not much.  It was healthy, until I added almost an entire block of swiss cheese.  And it was bland as could be.  And those muffins?  Seriously should be used for skeet shooting targets, ugh.

I was a little excited about using Bisquick.  I have never bought or used the stuff - and the idea of having all my dry ingredients pre-measured was kind of fun.  Maybe I'll stumble on a baking shortcut for years to come!  Think again...

They were dry and crumbly and hard as rocks, with almost no flavor.  I squeezed my own orange juice, so many they would be tasted better with ready-made oj.  

As for the quiche - I thought I would buy a refrigerated pie crust to save time.  The pandemic gods told me this was my opportunity to practice pie crusts, as the store was sold out.  For someone who loves to bake as much as I do, I hate making pie crusts and I'm really terrible at it.  I just need to do it more often and perfect the process.  So I hunkered down and made this whole wheat crust.  

It actually turned out well!  The recipe doesn't call for the dough to be chilled before rolling, so it was a little difficult to roll. I rolled it out to where I could lift it into the plate & continue shaping with my fingers.  It was fine.  

When I read that the main vegetables in this recipe were zucchini and carrots, I had a feeling the flavor was going to be mild and unexciting.  It was.  As my husband said, it felt like we were eating fuel for our bodies and nothing else.  No pleasure in this meal at all.  In fact I boxed up the leftovers and brought them to my college student and her roommates, who will eat anything that's free.

Below are the two recipes as printed. Yes, Wanda said that the muffin recipe makes 12 dozen, but I can assure you it only made one dozen, or 12 total. 

Modifications made: I used butter instead of shortening in the pie crust.  I doubled the thyme (still tasted bland).  I sprinkled a little less sugar mix on top of the muffins, but more sugar would not have made these taste any better.  I didn't serve with orange juice that is WHIPPED IN A BLENDER???

Rating: 👎  Would not make again

Country Vegetable Quiche

Wheat Crust:

1 c. flour                                1 egg
1/2 c. whole wheat flour        2-3 tsp water
1/2 c. shortening

Combine flours; cut in shortening until crumbly.  Add egg and enough water to form dough.  Roll out to fit 10-inch pie plate.  Flute the edges of the crust.  Bake in 375 degree oven 15 minutes; cool.

Filling:

3 c. sliced fresh mushrooms                1 1/2 c. shredded Swiss cheese

2 Tbsp. butter                                      1 c. half and half cream

1 c. shredded zucchini                         1/2 c. sour cream

1 c. shredded carrots                            1 tsp. salt

1 large onion, diced                             1/2 tsp. thyme

1 clove garlic, minced                         1/8 tsp. nutmeg

4 eggs                                                   paprika

Saute mushrooms in butter; spoon into crust.  Saute zucchini, carrots, onion and garlic in same skillet until onion is tender.  Spoon over mushrooms.

Combine eggs, 1 cup cheese, half and half, sour cream, salt, thyme, and nutmeg.  Pour this mixture over vegetables.  Top with remaining cheese.  Sprinkle with paprika; bake at 350 degrees for 40-45 minutes.  Cool 10 minutes before serving.  Garnish with a few sauteed mushrooms, if desired.  Serves 6.

Orange Juice Muffins

2 c. Bisquick mix                    2/3 c. orange juice

2 Tbsp. sugar                           2 Tbsp. sugar

1 egg                                        1/4 tsp. ground cinnamon

1 tsp. grated orange peel         1/8 tsp. ground nutmeg

Heat oven to 400 degrees.  Grease bottom only of 12 muffin cups, or line with paper baking cups.  Stir baking mix, 2 tablespoons sugar, egg, orange peel and juice.  Beat vigorously for 30 seconds.  Fill muffin tins 2/3 full.  Mix remaining ingredients; sprinkle about 1/2 teaspoon over top of each one.  Bake 15 minutes.  Yield: 12 dozen.

Serve with orange juice, whipped in blender, and hot coffee.