This book is awesome! My mom and dad got it for me for my birthday, and I've tried out the basic recipe from it. You have to make one batch of dough and it will last in the fridge for up to 2 weeks! Trust me, though, it won't last that long! It really does only take about 5 minutes to actually "pay attention" to the loaf (it doesn't include baking and rising, but you can do other stuff while that is going on), and the resulting bread is fantastic! Slightly sourdough-y, and with a great crispy crust, this bread was a huge hit!

This recipe is actually a remix of one of my mom's, Broccoli & Ham Quiche. Believe it or not, I haven't actually made the original...the first time I made it I made Bacon & Onion Quiche, then the next time we discovered Campbell's Nacho soup instead of the Cheddar Cheese soup and a new idea was born (thanks to Luke!). I'm posting the original recipe and then my revised version, as well as a basic pie dough recipe.

Mom's Broccoli & Ham Quiche
4 eggs
1 can Campbell's Cheddar Cheese Soup
1/2 c. cream
1 c. shredded cheddar or Jack cheese
1/2 c. diced hap
1/2 c. cooked chopped broccoli
1/4 c. chopped onion
Pie crust (recipe below)


Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Beat eggs until foamy. Add soup and cream. Mix in remaining ingredients and pour into pie crust. Bake for about 1 hour, until center is set.

Mexican Chicken Quiche
4 eggs
1 can Campbell's Nacho Soup
1/2 c. cream
1 c. shredded cheddar cheese
1/4 c. chopped onion (optional)
2 chicken breasts, cubed and sauteed in butter and Tapatio hot sauce
Pie crust (recipe below)


Follow the same steps as the above recipe. To saute the chicken, melt a few tablespoons of butter in a skillet over medium heat and when it's hot, drop the cubed chicken pieces in and saute until cooked through. Dash Tapatio hot sauce (or other sauce of choice) over, stir and then turn off the skillet. Mix up the other ingredients while the chicken is cooling and put it in last.

Basic Pie Dough (From Everyday Food Magazine)
2 1/2 c. flour, spooned and leveled, plus more for rolling
1 t. salt
1 t. sugar
1 c. (2 sticks) cold unsalted butter, cut into pieces
1/4-1/2 c. ice water


In a food processor, combine flour, salt and sugar; pulse briefly. Add butter, pulse until mixture resembles coarse meal. Sprinkle with 1/4 c. ice water. Pulse until dough is crumbly but holds together when squeezed. If necessary, add up to 1/4 c. more water, a tablespoon at a time.

By hand, mix dry ingredients, then add butter and use a pastry cutter or your fingers to make into a coarse meal. Sprinkle in the water, mix until crumbly but holds together when squeezed. If necessary, add up to 1/4 c. more water, a tablespoon at a time.

Divide dough in half, turn out onto two large pieces of plastic wrap. Wrap, then press into rounds 3/4" thick. I refrigerate one for the quiche for an hour before using, and freeze the other one in a ziplock freezer bag for later.

This meal isn't just for breakfast! We love it for dinner and we love trying variations of this recipe. It's easy to mix up with different fillers and cheeses! Spinach is always a great companion to quiche...so are meats like ham and bacon. Sausage would be great too! Tell me what you try!




Download both quiche recipes!

Downloadable pie dough recipe

This is one of my favorite cookie recipes, and although I've considered adding chocolate chips, I never have because they are just that good! I originally found this recipe in Martha Stewart magazine a while back. Luke was craving cookies the other night, and these were the result, complete with butterscotch chips added in because Luke wanted those in something.

Chocolate Sugar Cookies
1 1/2 c. flour
1/2 c. cocoa powder
1 t. baking powder
1/2 t. salt
1/2 c. (1 stick) butter, softened
1 1/2 c. sugar
1/2 c. (1 stick) butter, melted and cooled
1 large egg
1 1/2 t. vanilla extract


Preheat oven to 375. Grease cookie sheets, or line with parchment paper.

Whisk together flour, cocoa powder, baking powder and salt, set aside.

Cream softened butter and sugar until pale and fluffy. Mix in melted butter. Add egg and vanilla; mix until creamy. Gradually add flour mixture until just combined.

Spoon out by heaping tablespoons onto prepared baking sheets. Bake for 8-10 minutes. The edges will be firm and the center will be soft when you take them out. Let them cool a few minutes on the pans before removing them, they will finish cooking on the pans without burning. I have dark pans, so I watch them extra carefully and usually take them out at around 7 minutes. And this time, I added a few handfuls of butterscotch chips. This cookie actually would lend itself to add-ins, so feel free to experiment!

Downloadable recipe!

I just wanted to let you all know that the Chocolate Fudge Scone recipe is very adaptable! Switch out the 2/3 c. cocoa for 2/3 c. flour, and you have a great base for a plain scone. My most recent adaptation was Cranberry Orange Scones. Eliminate the chocolate chips and the cocoa, add dried cranberries (about 1 1/2 c.-2 c.) and orange flavoring (2-3 t. to taste) (you could also use orange zest). They turned out really good and Luke wants me to try all kinds of combinations now! Let me know if you've tried any variations on the recipes I've posted!

Scones are some of Luke and my favorite breakfasts. Actually they go with coffee (or tea) any time of the day! I recently tried out a new recipe for Chocolate Fudge Scones, and thought I'd share it will you all, as well as my friend Emily's famous English scone recipe! I don't have a picture of Emily's scones but I can assure you they are absolutely delicious! The chocolate scones are a perfect scone in my opinion, the batter isn't overly sweet but the chocolate chips add just a hint of sweetness. They are moist and creamy inside and a little crumbly toward the outside. You could replace the chocolate chips with any other kind of chip as well, such as peanut butter, white chocolate, etc. I bet these would be delicious with a handful or two of dried cranberries added to the batter!

Chocolate Fudge Scones
4 c. flour
2/3 c. cocoa powder
4 3/4 t. baking powder
1 t. salt
2/3 c. plus 3 T. sugar
12 T. unsalted cold butter, cut into tablespoon-sized pieces
4 large eggs
1 T. plus 1 t. vanilla extract
2/3 c. plus 3 T. heavy cream
2 c. semisweet chocolate chips
Granulated sugar for sprinkling on top (optional, I left this out)


Preheat oven to 400 degrees F. Line 2 cookie sheets with parchment.

Sift flour, cocoa, baking powder, salt & sugar in large mixing bowl. Drop in the chunks of butter and blend using a pastry cutter. Blend until crumbly, then use your fingers to blend into a fine "meal."

In a medium bowl, whisk eggs, vanilla, and heavy cream. Pour egg mixture over the flour mixture, scatter the chocolate chips over and stir to form a dough. Knead lightly in the bowl to finish combining, around 1 minute.

Divide dough in half and form into two 7 or 8-inch disks. Cut each disk into 6 pieces. Place around 3 inches apart on the cookie sheets. If desired, sprinkle a little granulated sugar on top of each scone. Bake 15-19 minutes, or until set. If you are using dark pans, keep a close eye on the scones! Let scones stand on pan 1 minute, then carefully remove to cooling racks.

Emily's English Scones
2 c. flour
1/2 t. salt
4 T. sugar
2 t. baking powder
6 T. butter
1/2 c. sour cream
2 eggs
1/2 t. vanilla extract


Preheat oven to 375 degrees F. Lightly butter a round pan (8 or 9 inches). Sift flour into a bowl with sugar, salt, and baking powder. Cut in butter until the mixture resembles coarse meal. Combine eggs, sour cream and vanilla in a bowl, add to flour mixture and stir until moistened. Flour hands. Working quickly, pat dough into round pan. Score into slices. Bake for about 20 minutes, until the top is golden brown and a toothpick comes out clean.

Variations on the English Scones: Plain or vanilla yogurt may be substituted in place of the sour cream. You can also drop these onto a parchment-lined pan for individual scones; obviously, reduce the baking time! I think I've done them this way and baked for around 8 minutes, although I have dark pans. You can also throw in a handful of add-ins: nuts, chocolate chips, dried cranberries, a drop or two of flavoring. A good combination I've tried before was orange flavoring and dried cranberries.