Mustard Flavored-Tuna & Veggie Tartlets and a Blog-anniversry

I have an impulsive nature. I always have ever since I was young. But I have to admit that with age comes restraint (I'd rather call it wisdom though). I’d like to believe that since I am now much wiser, hence I'm less impulsive.

Well, this blog is a result of such impulse. I didn’t plan on having a food blog, never thought of having one ever before in my life – although to be honest, I had already been browsing other food blogs for recipes and inspiration. But one day after entertaining some friends in the house, I wanted to take a picture of my husband’s creations, thus, the thought of starting my own food blog came to mind… and I acted out on it immediately.

And so, Spice Of Life was born in cyberspace around this time last year. Wow. Time indeed passes by so quickly. This is one of those rare times that my impulse yielded some positive results.



I am truly thankful that I have this blog. Despite the dedication and the hours that it requires, I do love sharing my passion with you. This blog had opened a whole new dimension of culinary exchange for me and have allowed me to meet some of the most talented, creative, fun and kindhearted people from all over the world. Albeit these friendships are virtual, nevertheless I feel that sharing a common love and interest in food and food photography have somehow forged a bond among us.

So, to all those who faithfully visit and for those who are just checking this blog out for the first time – THANK YOU. I do hope you’ll continue to come, and I look forward to learning from you in as much as I hope that somehow, I’ve inspired you to cook your meals at home through this blog.

To celebrate my blog's 1st birthday, I’ve decided to do a recipe that’s from one of the most favorite food blog that I visit regularly – Bea of La Tartine Gourmande. I distinctly remember this particular dish of hers, because I was attracted to its vibrant colors, not to mention that I love Tuna. It is a very pretty and nutritious dish…. and did I tell you that I love tuna? :o)

So to celebrate my bloganniversary, I have created Bea’s Mustard-flavored Tuna and Veggie Tartlets. The only minor thing I did to the recipe was to change up the flours. Her’s is a gluten-free version but since I have no gluten problem, I decided to use ½ cup wheat flour instead of quinoa, and ½ cup teff instead of millet flour. Thus, my crust came out darker than hers.



This is a very filling but healthy dish. I especially like the fact that you get the crust, tuna, cheese and veggies all in one bite! I’m glad that I tried this. If you want to, check out the recipe here

Bea, I hope that I’ve done justice to your beautiful creation.

I am also serving this dish to the Lasang Pinoy: Tri-colore. The three colors here being the green from the zucchini, red from the tomatoes and white from the cheese.

Lasang Pinoy (La.Pi.S.) is a weekly thematic food photography meme, Filipino style.

Imperial Asparagus

Friends, I have really been remiss in keeping my blog up to date. For this, I apologize. I didn't expect for the year 2009 to become as busy as I am now. But I'm not complaining. I like to be busy but I am in that period where I am still adjusting, trying to juggle my time in the hope of achieving a proper balance, so that I'd have time left to upload photos and write my blogs. So, please be patient with me.

I'm sure everyone agrees that food blogging is time consuming - the cooking, the photography set-up, shooting, uploading and then writing.. all these require a chunk of our time.

Then, there are times when your food has been photographed and uploaded, and yet you stare at the computer screen not knowing what to write about. Have you had that exprience? I'm sure you did. Isn't that frustrating?



Anyway, enough of my venting.

This week's Lasang Pinoy's theme is STEAMED. I have done Siomai (pork wanton dumplings) and Siopao (steamed buns) before so I can't post that here anymore. But, I do steam a lot - my veggies, especially. I prefer steaming because we all know that it is much healthier to do so, than blanching them in hot water. Steaming preserves more the vegetables' nutrients.

One of the favorite veggie I steam is Asparagus. I do like to roast them too, but since steaming is quicker, then I steam it most of the time. It is an excellent side dish to any entree you have, be it pork, fish or poultry.

As you can see here, I served the asparagus with roasted sweet potatoes ("kamote", as they're called in my native tongue) with caramelized onion, and chicken breasts simply roasted with extra-virgin olive oil, salt, pepper and herbs de Provence. This is a meal that is straightforward, but healthy and satisfying.
This my entry to Lasang Pinoy Sundays: Steamed.
Lasang Pinoy is weekly food photography meme, Filipino style.



Imperial Asparagus (serves 4)
2lbs of green or white asparagus, steamed
3 tablespoons of butter
3 tablespoons of flour
1 cup chicken stock
1/2 cup white wine
4 tablespoons heavy whipping cream
dash of hot sauce or ground cayenne pepper (optional)
salt and pepper
pinch of sugar

1. Trim the asparagus and peel the stalks to the tips.
2. Steam asparagus for 5-7 minutes (depending on how you like them. I like them crunchy still so I don't leave them that long)
3. Make the sauce. Melt the butter in a heavy based pan, in medium high heat.
4. Lower heat heat and stir in the flour. Stir with a wire whisk, for 1 minute to cook the flour a bit.
5. Gradually add the white wine and the stock. Stir until smooth then place over a low heat. Bring to the boil stirring constantly, until sauce thickens.
6. Add the cream and a dash of ground cayanne pepper, if preferred.
7. Now add the salt and pepper and a pinch of sugar, to taste.

Note*: My sauce didn't come out white because I cooked it in the same pan where I cooked my chicken, so I can have the chicken flavor in it. But if you've have guests, you might want to cook the sauce in a clean pan, so your sauce can come out white as it should be. Also, I added cayenne pepper because I wanted the kick. And lastly, I also added a dash of sweet paprika on top, as garnish.

Caprese Salad (Insalata Caprese)

It is a fact. Technology is taking over every aspect of our lives.

For the last decade, the advancement of technology from the medical to industrial to the telecommunications industry (most especially), has truly made leaps and bounds. Amazing.

So much have changed that I feel the world actually seems so much smaller than ever. The internet has done a huge difference in our day-to-day existence. Instead of writing letters via post/mail that will take days to get to the recipient, we send an email that only takes seconds to be read. Text messages have replaced personal phone calls. Photo albums are now gathering dust somewhere in favor of digital pictures that are saved in our computers. We can now all view videos together even if we are halfway around the world from each other, thanks to YouTube. News can be broadcast within seconds worldwide. Heck, we can now even date online. And with cell phones and every conceivable tracking device there is, “not being able to contact” someone has become short of impossible.

I can go on and on regarding the merits of technology but on the flipside of it are also its disadvantages. Technology has replaced our interpersonal communications that we have lost much of that valuable “personal” touch in the process.

With these techno-gizmos available at our fingertips, a question begs to be asked. Will there come a point that people will actually forget how to communicate personally? Worse, will the English language change to wazup, LOL and BRB, from hello, you’re funny and goodbye?

In a society that's laden with superficial standards which we don’t feel we always measure up to, computers have become our scape-goats. It is easy to hide behind our monitors to avoid being judged. How long before a personal handshake be completely replaced with the keyboard? Will a robot eventually take the place of a human-to-human, interpersonal communication? Hmmnn… food for thought.



I miss the good old, simple life sometimes. Yes, technology is good, but there are things in life that cannot be replaced with it. So once in a while, let’s remember those times before the internet, iPhones and iPods, shall we? Let’s make time for our friends and families by speaking to them in person, sending them cards with personal handwritten notes or even visit them in person, ok?

So with this post, I would like to remember our missionary friends (the Logan family) who are in South Africa. I have actually made this for them in the past as mentioned in my previous post, but thought that this dish deserves a post of its own.

This salad is not only pretty, but delicious as well. It is especially good for warm summer days when the last thing you would want to do is stand in front of the stove /oven and cook!

Moreover, this is a breeze to make. You can put this together probably within 5 minutes and you’ll have a fresh salad that will transport you to the isles of Capri -- with the aid of your imagination, of course! :o)

Insalata Caprese
(from Everyday Italian by Giada De Laurentiis)

1-1/2 pounds tomatoes like vine-ripened tomatoes*
1 pound fresh mozzarella
3/4 to 1 teaspoon fine sea salt or fleur de sel
Freshly ground black pepper
1/3 cup packed basil leaves, torn or cut into thin strips
1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil
drizzle of fresh lemon juice

1. Slice the tomatoes and cheese into 1/4-inch thick slices. Arrange the salad on a serving platter or individual plates in an alternating pattern.
2. Season with the salt and pepper to taste.
3. Scatter the basil leaves over the top and drizzle with the oil and lemon juice.
4. Serve at room temperature.

NOTE*: I used two types of tomatoes. I thought that the different shapes would help the salad look attractive. If only I found sun-gold yellow tomatoes or even heirloom ones, then this salad even look more "summery"...

Coleslaw Salad

This post is sort of a continuation to my previous post, which was about our July 4th celebration. As mentioned to you, my hubby and I decided to grill some rib-eyes, and I prepared this side salad.

Like I said, this coleslaw was inspired by KFC. I've always liked how they prepared the coleslaw, so I wanted to make an imitation of theirs. I've browsed through the internet for recipes, and I was so surprised that there's a lot that came up as a result of my search. I compared a lot of the recipes that I found and noticed that most of them have similar ingredients, only the ratio varies just a tiny bit. So, I decided to make my own version.

The salad is a breeze to make, mainly because I also decided to use the pre-shredded mix in the bag. Of course, nothing beats fresh ingredients from the market. But for working wives like me, or if you're pressed for time, those pre-washed, bagged salads are a huge help.

Anyway, the following recipe is more like a method than anything else. Please feel free to adjust the ingredients' ratio, according to your preferences. The measurements I gave below are all an approximation, as I eyeballed everything, and tasted the mix every now and then until I've convinced myself that I've come close to KFC-coleslaw taste that I was trying to achieve.

Coleslaw Salad
1 small onion, finely chopped
1/2 cup mayonnaise
1/4 cup milk
1/4 cup sour cream
2 tbsp white vinegar
1 lemon, juiced
3 tbsps granulated sugar (more or less, depending on your taste)
1 bag of pre-shreddix coleslaw mix (or approx 1 head shredded cabbage, 3 medium sized shredded carrots)
1/4 kosher salt
1/4 freshly ground pepper

1. In a bowl, mix the first 5 ingredients, from onion thru lemon. Let it stand while you shred the vegetables. (Skip this if using the pre-shredded mix)
2. Add the vegetables to the mixture. Toss until dressing is well incorporated. Season with salt and pepper.
3. Cover the salad with plastic and let it rest in the fridge for about 2 hrs before serving.

Chili-Glazed Tofu Over Asparagus And Rice

Every once in a while I do try to experiment and cook something vegetarian. Mr. J and I both like to watch what we eat, and vegetarian dishes make us feel like we could eat more and still feel not guilty at all.

Unfortunately, the word "healthy" in food has not always been associated with "tasty". It is only in the past few years, when different diet plans began to emerge and the organic-food revolution came about that the mindset about healthy food has changed -- that healthy could also mean flavorful, tasty food, afterall.

Well, here's one such recipe. Mr. J and I both like tofu, so this recipe is perfect for us. And instead of using white rice, I decided to use organic brown rice that has more fiber -- for good measure. Hmmn... the tofu was sweet and spicy- perfect for a light dinner. Trust me, with this dish, you won't miss meat at all!

This recipe would also be my very first entry to Fat Chef or Skinny Gourmet, a food event hosted by Ivy of Kopiaste and Ben of What's Cooking focused on diet or low-calorie foods.




Chili-Glazed Tofu Over Asparagus Rice
2 cups brown rice (I used organic brown-wild rice mixture)
2-1/4 cups asparagus, chopped 1 in. (about 1 lb)
2 cups water + pinch of salt
1 tbsp peanut oil
1 tbsp sugar
2 tbsp rice vinegar
2 tbsp low-sodium soy sauce
1 tsp fresh minced ginger (or bottled)
1 tsp hot chili-garlic sauce
1 lb extra firm tofu, drained and sliced to about 1/4-inch thick
1 tsp salt, divided
1/4 tsp black pepper
3/4 cup shredded carrot
1 tsp dark sesame oil

1. Cook brown rice according to package directions.
2. In another pot, bring 2 cups water to a boil. When boiling, add a pinch of salt and the asparagus. Cook 1 minute.
3. Take asparagus out of the hot water and straight into an ice-cold water to stop the cooking process. Let aspargus stay in water for 3 minutes. Drain and dry.
4. Combine sugar, vinegar, soy sauce, ginger and chili sauce in a small bowl.
5. Slice tofu to about 1/2 thick. Dry tofu by putting it in between paper towels and pressing it a little bit using the palm of your hand.
7. Heat peanut oil in a skillet. Sprinkle tofu with 1/2 teaspoon salt and pepper. When oil is hot, add tofu to pan, cook 3 minutes on each side until brown.
8. Add soy sauce mixture; cook 20 seconds, stirring constantly. Remove from heat.
9. Combine rice, asparagus, 1/2 tsp salt, carrott and sesame oil. Serve tofu over rice.

Sesami Crusted Tuna With Roasted Cippolline Onions

It all started when I saw the beautiful tuna steaks in the supermarket. I couldnt resist them so I bought, albeit with eyes half-closed because this fish could get a little pricey. But heck, we're treating ourselves tonight because all work and no fun makes us dull.... yep, good food is fun, especially the kind that you don't have to feel guilty about after having wiped out your plate. And this dish fits the bill (no pun intended).

I love fish, and if you've read my previous blogs, I grew up in the Philippines having the freshest fish from the Pacific Ocean. (Just an observation, I think the seafood from the Pacific Ocean taste much sweeter than those from the Atlantic... in my opinion). Anyhow, we try to eat fish once or twice a week. First , because I'm not really a big meat eater (Mr. J is, though), and second, because of all the nutrition that you can get from them (Omega 3 acid, most especially).

I have made this dish before, but this time I just dressed up the tuna a little bit with the black and white sesame seeds. Honestly, as much as I love fish -- I can't say which one I love better in this dish- the tuna or the cippolline onions in balsamic reduction. I think they go oh so well together that one cannot be without the other.

I served this this with a Peanut-Ginger Rice (see recipe in my next blog).





Sesame-Crusted Tuna
(adapted from Cooking Light)

1 tbsp sesame oil
4 (6-oz) Yellowfin tuna steaks*(about 3/4 oz thick)
2 tbsp soy sauce
1 tbsp fresh lemon juice
1/3 cup sesame seeds, toasted ( mix black and white sesame seeds if you have them)
pinch of salt
pinch of freshly ground black pepper
2 tbsp green onions for garnish

1. Combine tuna , soy sauce and lemon juice in a bowl, tossing gently to coat. Sprinkle tuna with salt and pepper. Go easy on the salt because the soy sauce is already salty. Let tuna marinate for a few minutes.
2. In the meantime, heat oil in a large , non-stick skillet over medium high heat.
3. Dredge the edges of tuna in sesame seeds.
4. Add tuna to pan and cook until desired degree of doneness.
5. Serve tuna with the cippollini onions (recipe follows) and peanut-ginger rice (recipe following this post).

*NOTE: If you want your tuna cooked rare, buy sushi-grade tuna.

Roasted Cipolline Onions
1 lb cipolline onions (or pearl onions)
2/3 cup balsamic vinegar
1/3 cup extra virgin olive oil
2 tbsp honey
1/2 tsp salt
1/4 tsp pepper

1. Bring a large pot of water to boil. Add the onions and cook for 2 minutes. Drain and cool. Peel the onions and cut off the root ends.
2. Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F.
3. Toss the onions, vinegar, oil, honey, salt and pepper in a baking dish.
4. Roast in the oven until the onions are tender and golden, stirring occasionally, about 40 minutes to 1 hour.

GAME PLAN:
1. Get the onions to the oven first as this takes the longest to cook.
2. 20 minutes before the onions are done, get the rice started.
3. 10 minutes later, start on the tuna. By the time tuna gets done, the onions and rice should be done and just waiting to be served.

Crab Cake With Dijon Sauce

This dinner is reminiscent of what Mr. J and I had when we went to Christy's restaurant (here in Miami) a few months earlier. I wasn't really interested in ordering an appetizer then, but Mr. J suggested that we get the crab cakes. So I thought, why not? And you know what -- I wished I had the crab cakes for dinner. They were oh soooo good. I think I liked it better than the steak... hahaha.. I just fell in love with their crab cakes and since then, I've vowed to try making my version that I hope would come close to the one we had in that restaurant.

But looking for a good crab cake recipe was a mission. Oh, don't get me wrong, there's ton of recipes out there.. It's just choosing the right one that would get me close to what I had at Christy's proved to be not an easy task. In the end, I had 3 different recipes at hand which I kind of combined to come up with my own version.

I don't know if I even came close to Christy's crab cakes, but this sure was delish. I got a thumbs up from the hubs -- which was all I needed for my efforts to be worthwhile!

Crab Cakes
1 lb crab meat, picked free of shells
1/3 cup panko (japanese breadcrumbs), plus more for dredging
1-1/2 tbsp Emeril's Essence or Old Bay Seasoning
3 tbsp c finely chopped onions
1 stalk scallion (green and white parts only), finely chopped
1/4 cup pimiento
1/4 cup finely chopped red bell pepper
2 tbsp mayonnaise
1 egg, lightly beaten
1 tsp Worcestershire sauce
2 cloves garlic, finely chopped
1 tbsp lemon juice
1 tsp salt
1/4 tsp freshly ground black pepper
1-2 tbsp butter
Olive oil, for sauteeing

1. In a large bowl, mix together all the ingredients except the crab meat, butter and olive oil.
2. When thoroughly mixed, add the crab met. Mix together gently, being careful not to break apart the lumps too much.
3. Using hands, shape the mixture into patties.
4. Place patties in a wax paper lined plate.
5. Refrigerate for 15-20 minutes (or longer).
6. Heat olive oil and butter in a large skillet over medium heat.
7. Take out crab cakes from fridge and dredge patties with panko.
8. When oil is hot, gently pace crab cakes, in batches, in pan and fry till golden brown, about 4-5 minutes on one side.
9. Carefully flip crab cakes and fry on the other side until golden brown, about 4 minutes.
10. Serve with Dijon sauce (recipe follows)

Dijon Sauce
1 tbsp vegetable oil
1 small shallot, minced
1 small garlic clove, minced
pinch of kosher salt
pepper to taste
1 cup white wine
2 tbsp Dijon mustard
1 tbsp butter

1. Saute shallot and garlic in vegetable oil over medium heat, till shallot is transluscent.
2. Add wine to deglaze pan. Reduce liquid for 30 sec to 1 minute, or till wine is half its original amount.
3. Add mustard, salt and pepper. Bring to boil.
4. Remove from heat. Add butter. Stir. Serve with crab cakes.

Oh No, Rice Again!

Hey guys...It's mystery chef here, and as it turns out, I found yet another recipe for the rice that I made a few days ago. This time I was inspired to make breakfast for my wife, but for lunch. The ingredients are as follows:

3 tbsp. olive oil
1/4 diced onion
1/4 diced red pepper
1 clove garlic, diced
1/2 cup spanish rice leftovers
2 eggs scrambled
1/4 cup italian blend cheese
1/4 cup salsa
sea salt and ground black pepper (to taste)
1 cup leftover diced grilled churrasco steak (oops thats another recipe...lol)

First, saute the onions an peppers in olive oil, salt and pepper, Then, add the spanish rice, leftover steak and diced garlic continuing to stir heating the mixture thoughly. When ready, add your scrambled eggs into the mixture and fold until it is cooked. Remove from pan and plate, adding dollop of salsa, a few shakes of Tobasco, and your cheese topping and enjoy! Yet another use for rice!

Hi-jacking the Foodie Blog!

Thats right, I'm hijacking the Foodie Blog...hahaha.

This week there's a guest blogger in the house. Hmmmmm, who could it be?
Me, of course...Well my name is Joe and I am the husband of the best-lookin' filipina chef. Since I'm on vacation for a few weeks, I will be relieving her from most of her cooking & blogging responsibilities. Before you shriek at the thought of me in the kitchen, I will have you know that I do have about 15 years experience in most aspects of the restaurant business, with many of those years spent cooking and preparing tons of food.

Anyway, (((sinister laugh))) I get to finally be creative in the kitchen and blog about it here! F.Y.I., I know this may seem hard to believe, but my wife and I have been married now for 6 years this month (Apr.20) and she has never stopped to complain about cooking for me. She faithfully prepares my breakfast, lunch, and dinner and takes great pride and is joyful when I give her the thumbs-up on her culinary creations. (Very few thumbs-down, btw). Just so you know, I do cook sometimes, and try to help her out as much as possible around the house to show my appreciation for her taking care of me, so be kind to me, please, in your comments, LOL.

Her previous cooking experience was cooking her own native filipino dishes, under the direction of her mother. Since we got married, Jescel's culinary skills have grown immensely by cooking for me and our friends, watching the food network, and catching the food-bug as we get together for dinner with others and asking lots of "How did you do that?" type questions. You go girl!

She has learned so much and is so passionate about food now... How could my stomach ever refuse to let her cook??? Just having Food Network on in the house is a blessing, because we can eat more than just rice! Yehey!

Some co-workers have told me, "Oh wait a year and she'll stop cooking for you" or "You keep eating like that and youre going to get fat". Most of the time my wife prepares food that is not diet oriented, but is substantially healthier than what I could get elsewhere. To see guys drool every morning at what my wife made for me is its own sweet reward --LOL. I know she doesn't hear this nearly enough from me, but "Thank you for taking great care of me... I love you!"

This week I made my own creation, inspired by spanish rice that is good enough to eat as a light lunch, or the next day as the stuffing for a vegetarian, southwest style burrito -MMMMMM..

MMMMM.....

Spanish-Style Rice Ala-Joe
(serves 4 people)

2 cups cooked jasmine rice
3 cups water
pinch of salt
1/2 green pepper, diced
1/2 med onion, diced
2 tbsp olive oil
dash of salt & pepper
2-3 cloves garlic
1 can diced tomatoes (15 oz)
1/2 c tomato paste
1 tsp dried oregano
splash of Merlot wine
1 can red kidney beans (15 oz)
handful of yellow corn kernels
dollop of lite sour cream

1. Bring to a boil the water, add a pinch of salt; add in the jasmine rice, stir and then reduce to simmer for 20 mins.
2. In the meantime , heat olive oil in the pan and saute onions, green pepper until soft. Add a dash of salt and pepper, and then add the garlic. Saute for 1-2 mins, followed by the diced tomatoes and tomato paste to thicken the sauce. Stir until completely incorporated.
3. Then add a pinch of red-pepper flakes for heat,some sea-salt and fresh-gound black pepper to taste, dried oregano and a splash of merlot. Simmer for several minutes more, then remove from heat.
4. Once the rice has cooked, add this to the sauce and mixed it all together. Let mixture cool for a few minutes, then add the red kidney beans (for protein), some yellow corn (for crunch), and voila! It is now ready to serve.

My wife was a little late coming home for lunch, so I began plating and served this with a dollop of lite sour cream and that's all. It made for a very light and nutritious lunch. I knew my wife would like it simply because it had rice (that Asian thing, you know :OP ).

But wait, thats not all. Like I ALWAYS tell my wife, most things that are mixed together like soups, sauces, gravies, etc... are so much better the next day! So, I took my day old, nuevo spanish rice cuisine, and upgraded it for lunch today. I took the leftovers from the 'fridge and scooped enough for the two of us, mixed in

2 tablespoons sour cream,
some smoky paprika,
couple dashes of green tabasco sauce

and heated that up and used that as filling for a sun-dried tomato(flour)-wrap burrito laced with italian-blend of cheese melted on the inside as well as the outside. It was very filling as my wife was unable to eat it all.

Maybe it was the breakfast I made for her that filled her up? This dish was really simple to make and is flexible enough to be used a few different ways on a few different days.

Let us know what you think, ok...and if you've found any different uses for this, too.


Until Later, The Mystery Chef :o)

Quick-eesh

It's that time of the month again, in our office at least. Time to celebrate somebody's birthday.

The girls at work (yeah, that includes me) started a monthly potluck for birthday celebrants. This was also in an effort to have a chance to fellowship with each other and relax, even if it's just for a few minutes. And it has sort of developed into an official birthday treat for all the birthday guys/gals that month. It's the best excuse to have a potluck, wouldn't you say?

I thought that it would be good to bring something different during our potluck brunch other than donuts, breads or cakes. Does this sound like carb overload? Well, yeah, so I thought, maybe a little protein thrown in the mix wouldn't hurt us. So since last year, I've been making my now famous quiche for the potluck. And since then, it's been requested every time! Darn! Now, I am officially the quiche lady in the office. Hey, at least they like it.... But really, it's my pleasure to do this for them whenever I can.

This recipe is so simple even with my own variation - it's a breeze to do. Makes for a delicious and healthy breakfast, or brunch.

Spinach Quiche
4 eggs
1 cup half-and-half (or for those not from US, combine half milk and half heavy whipping cream)
1/2 cup mayonnaise
2 tablespoons flour
1/3 cup onions, diced + 1 tbsp butter
Salt and garlic powder
8 ounces shredded Swiss or sharp cheddar cheese
1 package frozen chopped spinach (wrung dried)
1 pre-made piecrust

1. Pre-heat oven to 350 degrees F.
2. Place pie crust in a deep, 9-in pie dish, or a tart pan (like I did). Bake for 5-7 minutes. This will prevent soggy crust.
3. Saute onions in the pan with butter , unti it has turned slightly brown. Let it cool.
4. In a large bowl, whisk together the eggs, half-and-half, mayonnaise, and
flour. Add the remaining ingredients, including the cooled onions.
5. Pour the egg mixture into the crust and bake for 45 minutes to 1 hour
or until the top is golden brown.

Additional notes:
- If you want a thicker crust, use two pie crust sheets.
- If reheating the next day, cover with foil to prevent top from being over done.

*** P.S.: My quiche was well done (well, ok, I was distracted by American Idol.. lol). But it was a good accident because the top was a bit crunchy, then the inside was soft, and the crust not soggy.

How've Ya Bean?

I've always liked beans but I just never realized its benefits until I came across a Cooking Light magazine article about it. Turns out, beans are the most overlooked source of antioxidant-rich foods.

According to the research of Clifford Beninger from the University of Guelph in Ontario, Canada, beans are rich in anthocyanins, an antioxidant with possible anticancer properties.

The darker the bean, the more healthful it is. Black beans therefore, are the most potent, containing 10x the concentration of antioxidants found in oranges and an amount equivalent to that of apples, grapes and cranberries. A half-cup black beans has the same amount of anthocyanins as two glasses of red wine. Beans also has fiber, calcium and B vitamins and are low in fat and slim in calories.

So, black beans, bring it on!

This is my take on a classic Cuban dish of black beans (frijoles negros) and rice. The traditional way of preparing this dish takes long because it requires using the real beans which you need to soak overnight, before boiling it in water the next day for about 1 hour to tenderize them.

But I am not doing it the traditional way. Truth be told, I prefer doing the short-cut version, which makes this dish one of the simplest ones that I can whip up in less than 30 minutes.

Black Beans And Rice
2 cloves garlic, minced (use 1 of you don't like garlic)
1 can (15 oz) black beans
1/2 c size onion, chopped
1/4 c green pepper, chopped
2 tbsp olive oil
Dash of Badia Complete Seasoning (Sason Completa)
Pinch of red pepper flakes or a dash of hot sauce (optional)
Chopped tomatoes or onions, for garnish
Chopped italian flat-leaf parsley or cilantro, for garnish

1. In a skillet, saute onion until translucent, then add garlic and pepper. Saute for one more minute. Add a dash of red pepper flakes, if preferred.
2. In a separate bowl, pour half of the beans from the can and mash with fork. This will help thicken the sauce.
3. Then add to the skillet half of the beans from the can with the liquid, as well as those that you mashed in a separate bowl. Simmer for 2-3 minutes.
4. Season with complete seasoning, salt and pepper to taste.
5. Serve over steamed white rice. Garnish with chopped tomato and parsely.

If you notice, I didn't use green pepper as what I have on hand was the yellow one. If you can't find the Complete Seasoning, use the following combination: dash of garlic powder, dash of cumin, 1 bay leaf, dash of dried oregano and 1-2 tsp vinegar - you just have to adjust amount of seasoning according to your taste.

You can eat this as is for a vegetarian meal, or serve it as a side dish for chicken or pork (in Adobo-style would be good).