Although I enjoy the leftovers from Christmas dinner, I'm ready for a change in the menu or at least a variation. Hash Brown Quiche is a tasty way to enjoy and utilize the surplus of Christmas ham and is versatile enough to be used for a breakfast or supper main dish.
This recipe was a Country Woman magazine prize winner submitted by Jan Peters of Chandler,Minnesota, many years ago. It's a family favorite in my recipe collection and definitely a leftover relief!
Hash Brown Quiche Ingredients:
3 cups frozen loose-pack
shredded hash browns,thawed
1/3 cup butter, melted
1 cup diced fully cooked ham
1 cup (4 ounces) shredded
cheddar cheese
1/2 cup shredded jalapeno cheese
1/4 cup diced green pepper
2 eggs
1/2 cup milk
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon pepper
Directions:
Press hash browns between paper towel to remove excess moisture.
Press into the bottom and up the sides of an ungreased 9-in. pie plate.
Drizzle with butter. Bake at 425 degrees for 25 minutes.
Combine the ham,cheeses and green pepper; spoon over crust.
In a small bowl, beat eggs,milk,salt and pepper. Pour over all.
Reduce heat to 350 degrees' bake for 25-30 minutes or until a knife
inserted near the center comes out clean. Allow to stand for 10 minutes before cutting.
Yield: 6 servings
Time Saving Tip: Make the hash brown crust and chop the ham,
cheese and peppers the night before.
Sweet memories are made in the kitchen and shared through generations especially during the Christmas holiday. One of our family favorites is Raspberry Delight also known as "Purple Puddin". Ryan's mother made such sweet memories for us, spoiled us rotten with great holiday meals and established a Christmas family tradition that always brings delight down on the dairy farm.
Raspberry Delight
Ingredients:
1 can sweetened condensed milk
Juice of 2 lemons
1/2 pint whipping cream,whipped
4 Tablespoons Seedless Black Raspberry Jam
1 box vanilla wafers
1 cup nuts (optional)
Directions:
Mix together sweetened condensed milk and the juice of 2 lemons; set aside. In a separate bowl, whip cream and gently fold in raspberry jam. Stir mixtures together.
Place a layer of vanilla wafers in the bottom of a 9 x 9 inch dish. Cover wafers with pudding mixture,sprinkle with nuts if desired. Repeat layers ending with wafers on top. Chill.
All of our days are busy down on the dairy farm, but there's all those additional to do lists in December. The lists I'm referring to are the shopping, the baking, the decorating and all the extra activities like practice for the church Christmas cantata or the school play. Midwest Dairy's Cheeseburger Macaroni Casserole fits into a busy schedule perfectly!
Cheeseburger Macaroni Casserole
Ingredients:
Non-stick cooking spray
1 pound lean ground beef
1/2 cup chopped onion
whole-wheat elbow macaroni
1 medium tomato,chopped
1-8 ounce can tomato sauce
1/2 teaspoon seasoned salt,optional
1/4 teaspoon black pepper
1 cup Cheddar cheese
Directions:
Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Spray an 8 x 8 baking pan with cooking spray; set aside.
In large skillet over medium heat,cook ground beef and onion until
beef is brown and onion is soft; drain. Cook macaroni according to package directions,drain.
Spoon macaroni into prepared pan. Spread beef mixture and chopped tomato over macaroni.
Pour tomato sauce over beef. Sprinkle with seasoned salt,pepper and shredded cheese.
Yield: 4 servings
Options:
To spice it up, use your favorite pizza or Italian style tomato sauce instead of tomato sauce
and seasoned salt.
For a later meal, double the recipe and place the second casserole in the freezer for later use.
We're into real leaf falling, leaf piling,frost on the pumpkin fall that includes crisp mornings and chilly evenings. It's not quite cold enough for a fire in the fireplace but perfect for a warm soup at supper. Thanks to Iowa Dairymom Jonna Schutte for sharing this recipe with Midwest Dairy and The Dairy Good CookBook! Chunky Baked Potato Chowder 4 slices bacon 1 cup chopped onion 1/2 cup chopped carrot 1/2 cup chopped celery 6 cups milk 1/4 cup all-purpose flour 1 teaspoon paprika 1/4 teaspoon salt 1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper 11/2 cups shredded Cheddar cheese 3 medium unpeeled russet potatoes, baked,cooled and cut into bite-size pieces Hot pepper sauce 2 green onions,sliced Directions: Cook the bacon until crisp in a large skillet. Remove the bacon from the skillet,reserving the dripping. Crumble the bacon and set aside. Add the onion,carrot,and celery to the bacon drippings in the skillet and cook over medium heat until tender;set aside. Whisk together the milk,flour,paprika,salt,and pepper in a large saucepan. Bring to a boil and stir for 1 minute or until slightly thickened. Reduce the heat and slowly add the cheese, stirring constantly until melted.
Add the cooked onion mixture and potatoes to the soup in the saucepan. Stir well. Heat until all the vegetables are warm. Season to taste with hot pepper sauce. Serve topped with a sprinkling of bacon crumbles and green onion.
Just a few days ago, I was invited to participate in the Midwest Dairy Health and Wellness
Advisory Roundtable on Sustainable Nutrition at the Arkansas Food Bank in Little Rock.
The topic of sustainable nutrition involved presentations about what the dairy industry is
doing in regards to sustainability and the role that food waste plays in our everyday activities.
I keep thinking about these facts...
Nearly 1 in 5 children in the U.S. face hunger.
In Arkansas, 1 in 4 children face hunger.
About 40% of the U.S. food supply is never eaten and is thrown
away at home,in grocery stores and restaurants.
I'm thankful for the health professionals that are working in a variety of settings
in our local communities to fight hunger and food waste
and
the dairy farm families across America that work 365 days a year to
provide nutritious dairy products that consumers want,
in a way that makes the industry,people and the earth economically,
environmentally and socially better--now and for future generations.
No matter what size farm you may visit, according to the USDA,
97 percent of U.S. dairy farms
are family owned and operated, often by multiple generations of the family.
Our son Cody is the 4th generation to live and work on our family dairy farm.
It's hard to believe that today he's the one driving the tractor and working
on the farm instead of sitting on the lap of his grandfather
or being pulled in the wagon.
I'm thankful for the news we received that we will be
welcoming another generation to the farm in April!
Congratulations to Cody and Margaret!
(WOW--I'm going to be a Dairy Grandma!)
