I had the wonderful opportunity to team up with Kristin from Mamacino this week who has created the most wonderful little quiche recipe for me and for you.
If you don’t already read her blog please head on over because she really creates the most wonderful recipes and tells her cooking stories in a way that will have you whipping up her delights in no time.
Easy Pea and Ricotta Mini Quiches
By Kristin from Mamacino
I have to admit, that I no longer spend hours coming up with new and inventive meals for my children to eat. With three hungry tummies to feed, come five o’clock, I choose meals that are simple, quick to prepare, favour seasonal produce and that are nutritious. Most importantly, I choose food I know my kids will love which takes a lot of the stress out of dinner time.
I try to have a steady store of staples in my fridge and pantry that I can depend on to be transformed into something delicious quickly. Eggs, beans, pasta, tuna and greens from the garden provide the opportunity for lots of easy kids dinners…and if that fails, I rely on the three P’s.
The three P’s represent magical ways to get kids to eat anything and they stand for pastry, parmesan and poke-a-stick-in-it.
Got some leftover bolognaise or vegetable stew? Defrost some pastry and make pasties! Add a dollop of butter and a good sprinkle of parmesan to soups, baked beans, mashed vegetables or plain pasta to make it instantly kid-friendly. Stick a tooth pick in mini meatballs or thread chicken tenders on to skewers and food is fun all of a sudden.
I often make these mini quiches for my kids and they love them. They are so versatile; you can really use whatever you have in the fridge. They work well in lunch boxes and can be frozen for up to a month. Serve them on their own or with soup or salad.
Easy Pea and Ricotta Mini Quiches
Ingredients:
3 sheets of frozen short crust pastry (puff pastry works well too)
4-5 eggs, depending on size
100g (a good handful) of fresh ricotta
½ cup of frozen peas
Sea salt and freshly cracked pepper to taste
What to do:
Set oven to 180C. Lightly grease a 12 hole muffin tin.
Use a glass or a cookie cutter of about 10cm diameter to cut four circles from each sheet of pastry. Place pastry rounds into each hole of the muffin tin and press them in gently.
In a bowl, whisk together the eggs, ricotta, peas and a little sea salt and pepper.
Spoon the egg mixture into the muffin cases so each cup is about ¾ full.
Bake for 20-25 minutes until golden and puffed up.
Some more ideas:
Dairy free: Don’t use the pastry, leave out the ricotta and add extra vegetables like mushrooms, chopped tomatoes and herbs to your mixture to make mini frittata instead.
Mediterranean: Try sundried tomato, basil and fetta for a nice change.
Cooked Chook: Leftover roast chicken chopped up and added with a spoonful of pesto and a sprinkle of parmesan is delicious.
Gluten Free: Forget the pastry and add some cooked quinoa or rice to make your frittata more filling.
