Quiche

This recipe is mainly for the crust.  Once you have this part down you can make any kind of quiche imaginable.  In fact, you can take all of the savory elements out of the crust recipe and replace them with sweet ones to make the perfect crust for a tart!

*UPDATE - I have made this crust many times for sweet and savory dishes having omitted the ground flax seed. It works just as well with 3 cups of almond flour or 2 cups almond flour and 1 of coconut flour. This should simplify things a bit on the supply end of things. I also use this for pies and anything that needs a crust.

Quiche crust

1 1/2 cups almond flour

1 1/2 cups fresh ground golden flax seed 

10 or more roasted garlic cloves (I roast my own)

1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil

1/4 cup cold water

1 tsp sea salt

1 tsp of seasoning of your choice (I used a little cayenne, onion powder, and an organic mixed seasoning)

1/2 tsp arrowroot or tapioca starch

*If you eat dairy, definitely throw some parmesan cheese in there!

**If you are making tart crust use 2 to 1 ratio almond to coconut flour.  Use lard or coconut oil instead of olive oil; sweeten with stevia extract or xylitol (both is better); cinnamon, nutmeg, clove and vanilla extract to season; lower the amount of salt to a pinch or two.

Directions

Mix all of your dry ingredients in a mixing bowl with a whisk to make sure it is evenly distributed.  Crush or chop the garlic cloves and add to the dry mix with the olive oil and water.  Use a pastry dough blender (a food processor works just as well) to mix the ingredients until you have an evenly moist pile of crumbles.  Dump the crumbles into a pre-greased baking dish and begin kneading them down into an even layer all the way up the sides.  I usually bake it for about 5 minutes before I fill it.

And there is your crust!

Now for filling the quiche.  I use bacon almost every time because I can sauté all of my veggies in the bacon grease to really get the flavor in everything.  I did this with red onion, spinach and fresh parsley this time and if I were eating dairy right now you can bet there would be cheese!

Once all of your veggies and extras are spread evenly around in the crust, you can pour an egg mixture over the entire thing almost up to the top of the sides. For this size quiche I used 1 1/2 dozen eggs, however, if I were eating dairy I would have used a dozen eggs, a cup or so of organic heavy cream and 1/2 cup of shredded cheese.  Cream cheese or goat cheese is definitely a wise choice. 

Don't forget to season this egg mixture too!  Use about 1/2 tsp or more of sea salt and maybe a pinch of some of the seasonings you used in your crust.

Once the egg mixture is poured over everything it will go in the oven until everything has a little brown color on it and a toothpick comes out clean.  I usually bake on or around 400 degrees because I have no patience.  Just remember, I am baking at 10,000 feet and I am constantly checking the progress of what I am cooking.  Generally, when you start to smell what you are baking, it is time for it to come out of the oven or pretty close to it.

Cauliflower Pilaf

Using cauliflower as an alternative to rice is nothing new to some people but perhaps I can offer what I think is the best way to prepare it.  I have never liked cauliflower cooked or raw and have heard the same from many others, so why not mask the taste as much as possible?  This is a recipe inspired by my sister, who proved to be quite a primal chef while putting me up for the last couple weeks at her place in Encinitas, CA.  (Sidenote: Jimbo's is a great place to shop for most of your primal needs if you live in that area.)

Cauliflower Pilaf
1 head organic cauliflower
10 or more cloves of roasted garlic (I roast my own)
handful organic fresh parsley
4 tbs. bacon grease (or organic butter)
4 organic green onions
1 cup organic broth (doesn't matter what kind - I make my own stock)
sea salt and pepper to taste
organic no-salt seasoning

Directions
Grate the head of cauliflower or put it into a food-processor until it has the same consistency or size of rice.  Chop your green onions, roasted garlic and parsley and throw them into a skillet with the bacon grease.  Add the cauliflower rice and seasoning.  *I used a grill seasoning mix and a couple dashes of hot sauce for an extra kick.
After the pilaf is getting a little color (it won't turn yellow- this happens to be the color of the cauliflower we used) pour the broth in the pan and let it soak into the mix.  That's it!

You really can use any kind of veggies or seasoning you want.  The key to the recipe is really the butter or bacon grease giving it that meaty flavor.
The bar-b-que chicken thighs are a recipe passed down from my fiance's family, so I will let him post that one.

Tools: Silpat

This convenient silicone mat is an amazing tool for making sweet-potato fries, cookies, biscuits for eggs benedict or even just a steak.  You can buy them online through amazon.com or stop in to Bed Bath & Beyond and pick one up.   They even make round ones to fit in your cake pans!  I would advise anyone who is regularly using a baking sheet to get one.
Make sure that you are not putting it in the dishwasher when you are done because it will make your food taste like soap for ever after.  Because it absorbs a little of what you cook on it, I would also not recommend that you cook a piece of salmon and then bake cookies right away.  Why not just have two? ...one for sweets and one to use for savory items.  Silpat's specific cleaning instructions are on their website.