Today a crazy thing happened. Through some kind of magic osmosis, Cornelius and I exchanged places. At 7pm tonight I realized that I hadn’t eaten anything since breakfast! Instead of thinking about food, figuring out what I could prepare for dinner, or checking the fridge for snacks, I was lost in a pile of freelance work. I didn’t think about food or eating once. Cornelius, on the other hand, called me from work to tell me that he felt guilty because he went out for dinner at a restaurant I’ve been wanting to go to for a while now. Now, this may not seem strange to you, but I know Cornelius. When we first started dating, I asked him what his favorite food was, and he replied “uh…flour?”. You see, Cornelius couldn’t really care less about what goes into his mouth. He’s definitely thankful that he gets to share in the food bounty I cook up, but as long as his stomach isn’t rumbling, he doesn’t worry about it. So it was a definite shock that he not only told me about going to Senhor Rooster, but he raved on and on about how amazing the food was, intricities on the preparation of the food, about how there was a magazine doing a shoot the same time as he was eating and how he got to speak with the chef. Grrrrr!
But no worries, dinner is better late than never in my opinion! So at 7:30 tonight, I got back onto the computer and checked out Joe’s recipe archives at Culinary in the Desert. I landed on the Broccoli Cheese Pie and dinner was settled. By 8pm, dinner was in the oven and 45 minutes later, I was able to cut myself a nice piece of cheesy, broccoli goodness. Delicious! And in just a few minutes, Cornelius will return from work and eat his second dinner of the night. Hmph!
broccoli-cheese pie
(Adapted from Culinary in the Desert)4 large eggs
1 1/4 c skim milk
1 t hot sauce
1/4 t salt, or to taste
1/4 t freshly ground pepper
2 c cubed multigrain bread
3 c broccoli florets & stems
2 t olive oil
1/4 c black forest ham
1 medium onion, chopped
3 garlic cloves, minced
1/2 c grated cheddar cheese1. Preheat oven to 350. Lightly coat a 10″ pie dish with cooking spray.
2. In a large bowl, whisk together eggs, milk, hot sauce, salt and pepper. Add bread cubes and stir to coat. Set aside.
3. Steam broccoli until bright green and just tender. Chop coarsely.
4. In a medium skillet, heat oil over medium-high heat. Add onion and garlic and saute until softened, 3 to 5 minutes. Add ham and stir about until heated through. Add the onion mixture and broccoli to the egg mixture. Stir in cheese. Pour into the prepared pie dish and evenly spread the mixture.
5. Bake until light golden and set about 45 to 50 minutes. Let cool for 5-10 minutes and then cut into wedges.
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Ohhh I’m so trying this recipe!!!! Oh the blackberry picking ( i cheated and went to a local farm 😉 ) lol
Men…grrr my hubby does that to me ALL the time. Goes out for lunch somewhere I’ve been dying to try! LOL What do you do eh?
hugs
My mum would love this recipe….and so do I! I am curious about this senhor rooster place…good food according to Cornelius?
hag, although, c isn’t enthusiastic about food, he definitely can enjoy it, so i trust his verdict on senhor rooster. plus, it gets rave reviews from serious eaters too!
it’s a good one, jenn! and you saved yourself some scratches and pain getting the blackberries at a farm. nice.
Oh man, this broccoli pie sounds good. It might just be dinner.
By the way, your blackberry cake was almost made into raspberry birthday cake, but then I got lazy and made box mix cupcakes instead.
But I never bake from scratch, so just getting me to consider putting on an apron is pretty impressive.
I really want to make this, but do you think it will be flavorful enough without the ham? I don’t eat red meat…
beth, i’m glad you could consider putting on an apron for this cake! it’s really simple so an apron is justified.
amy, yup, i think it would be fine without the ham. it’s got onions and garlic which lend it a good flavour and you could always use a stronger tasting cheese like swiss or extra old cheddar.
I’ve never tried doing anything remotely interesting with my broccoli, always just steam it or chuck it in with my veggies for a stir-fry. This looks like such a tasty new recipe for me to try! 🙂
that must have been some very riveting freelance work to keep your mind away from your lunch. good looking pie, the perfect thing after a day like that
This pie sounds soooo good. I’m going to have to give it a try tomorrow. I’ve got some day old coissants…..
This is a definite recipe for my dinner table! Sounds and looks wonderful!
I have to force my hubby to eat most of the time. He thinks it’s a waste of time to stop and eat!
ellie, enjoy trying new things with broccoli! its one of my favorite vegetables.
yeah, it’s kind of crazy, lobstersquad. i never thought anything could keep me away from food!
mmm, i think so day-old crossants would be lovely in this, finallyfifty!
judy, i just don’t understand that kind of thinking!
Oh I made it and it was YUMMY! I loved it and so did my kids! WOW lol thanks hugs
I made this recipe last night. It was really good but I confess, I added a few things. I added a cup of cooked rice and cut down on the bread (1 cup instead of 2). I added spinach, olives, parsley, oregano, nutmeg and marjoram. It was still missing something though… I think the next time I make this, I will use feta cheese and Kalamata olives or stick to regular black olives and cheddar but add tomatoes. It was so good and what I like is you could add just about anything to this recipe. Thanks!!!
Kickpleat – I’m glad to hear you gave this recipe a go! We really liked it!
jenn, so glad this meal turned out so well for you!
rachel, it’s good to play around with a recipe! i like your additions and i think adding olives would be delicious.
joe, this was a great recipe! thanks for the tip 😉
You inspired my husband to create a new dish!
rachel, i’m so impressed with your husband! making you cupcakes and now dinner! hmmmm, i think i’m getting a raw deal!
This was a very yummy and easy to make lunch- perfect 🙂