Preserved Lemons

This is a great preserving recipe because it requires no special canning equipment. When incorporating into a recipe, make sure to rinse the lemon first to avoid over-salting your dish.

Ingredients

4-5 meyer lemons
8oz jar with lid
coarse salt
distilled water

Instructions

1. Sterilize your jar & wash lemons. To sterilize, Bring a large pot of water to boil and submerge your jar and lid for a minute. Let air dry. Drying with a towel may incorporate unwanted bacteria.
2. Cut the ends off of your lemons, and quarter, careful to not cut all the way through, leaving one end in tact.
3. Place 1t salt in the bottom of your jar, and 1t inside the cuts of your first lemon. Squeeze lemon into the jar so you start extracting the juice. Place lemon into jar cut side down and press down with end of spoon. Top with 1t salt. Repeat process until jar is full.
4. Fill any remaining space with distilled water or additional lemon juice.
5. Let stand for 4 days in a cool dry place away from direct sunlight. After day 4, transfer to fridge.
6. After the first week, you can incorporate any additional herbs / spice such as dried red chilli, thyme, oregano, bay leaf, coriander, star anise, cinnamon sticks etc. 
7. Lemons are ready after 4 weeks.

Quiche Crust

Since I had two quiches to make, this is a double batch of crust. The key to the crust keeping its shape when baking is to throw it in the fridge for an hour after you form it in your pie pan. If you only need one crust, you can freeze the spare for later use.

INGREDIENTS

2.5c flour
1t salt
1t sugar
2 sticks butter, chilled and cut into cubes
ice water

INSTRUCTIONS

1. Pulse flour, salt, sugar, and butter in a food processor until a coarse meal is achieved.
2. Pulse in ice water in small batches until the dough comes together.
3. Place dough on well-floured surface and divide & form into two round discs.
4. Wrap in plastic wrap and store in fridge for at least an hour.

Quiche Lorraine

Feel free to improvise with this recipe.  Use breakfast sausage, add sautéed mushrooms to the mix, or add in a few more teaspoons of fresh thyme and herbs.

INGREDIENTS

1 chilled crust
6 strips of bacon, cut into 1/4″ strips
4 large eggs
2 egg yolks
1c half & half
4 cloves garlic, minced
1t fresh rosemary, chopped
1/4t salt
1/4t white pepper
1/4t black pepper
1/4t red pepper flakes
pinch of nutmeg
1c grated mozzarella cheese

INSTRUCTIONS

1. An hour before you are planning on starting your quiche, roll out your pie crust on a well, floured surface, transfer & form into your pie pan. Poke holes in the bottom & store in the fridge for an hour.
2. Preheat oven to 375 degrees, and bake the pie crust for 15-20 minutes, or until golden brown. Set aside and let cool slightly.
3. Cook bacon in a large skillet until crispy, then set aside and let cool.
4. Whisk together eggs, yolks, half & half garlic, rosemary, salt, white & black pepper, red pepper flakes, and nutmeg until well combined. Mix in cheese.
5. Sprinkle pie crust with bacon, and fill with your egg mixture. Bake at 375 for about 35 minutes checking regularly for doneness.
6. Be sure to let cool for about 10 minutes before serving.

Carrot Top Pesto

If you are having trouble with the mixture coming together, slowly add a little oil. The one thing you can't compromise on with this recipe is parmesan cheese; get the real stuff. 

INGREDIENTS

2c carrot leaves
(removed from stems, washed & dried)
1⁄2c olive oil
1⁄2c  walnuts
 (toasted & chopped)
3 cloves garlic, crushed
1⁄2t salt
pinch of pepper
1⁄2c grated parmesan cheese

INSTRUCTIONS

1. Roast walnuts on stovetop in a clean, dry skillet over medium heat until slightly brown and fragrant, stirring very frequently. Let cool and chop coarsely. 
2. While walnuts are roasting, remove leaves from carrot tops, rinse of dirt, and dry. A salad spinner makes this task quick and easy. 
3. Combine leaves, oil, roasted walnuts, garlic, salt and pepper into a blender. Blend until smooth
4. When mixture is combined well, add parmesan and pulse until mixture comes together. If not coming together, add oil.

Hummus with Preserved Lemon

Originally from Food & Wine

INGREDIENTS

2 cups dried chickpeas, soaked in cold water overnight and drained
1 small carrot
1 celery rib
1 small onion, halved
1 small fennel bulb, halved
5 garlic cloves
3 thyme sprigs
1 bay leaf
1/2 cup extra-virgin olive oil
Kosher salt and freshly ground pepper
1/2 cup chopped flat-leaf parsley
1 preserved lemon—pulp discarded and peel finely chopped
2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice

Instructions

1. In a saucepan, cover the chickpeas with water. Add the carrot, celery, onion, fennel, garlic, thyme, bay leaf and 1/4 cup of the olive oil.
2. Bring to a simmer, cover and cook over low heat until the chickpeas are tender, about 1-1.5 hours.
3. Let the chickpeas cool in the liquid to room temperature, then drain, reserving 3/4 cup of the cooking liquid. Discard the vegetables and herbs.
4. Set aside 1/2 cup of the chickpeas. In a food processor, puree the remaining chickpeas with the reserved 3/4 cup of cooking liquid and the remaining 1/4 cup of oil. Season with salt and pepper.
5. Scrape the puree into a large bowl, stir in the parsley, preserved lemon peel, lemon juice and the reserved 1/2 cup of chickpeas and serve.

Ingredients

1T preserved lemon, rinsed & diced
1t chopped fresh chives
1t
1/8c white wine vinegar
1/8c rice wine vinegar
2⁄3c extra virgin olive oil
fresh ground black pepper

Instructions

1. Combine all ingredients into blender, or food processor, or into container for immersion blending. Pulse until combined. 
2. Mix with Salad just before serving