Royal Wedding Extravaganza

Top of the morning to ya!

I'm back! For now, at least. Life is so busy that I barely have time to breathe -- but I'm loving every minute of it! I'm so blessed and grateful to have a loving (and ridiculously hilarious) husband, a wonderful family, amazing friends, two jobs that I adore, and really great co-workers. 

I do miss blogging, though. And what better day to get back to it than on a royal holiday? I love royal weddings. This day was almost as exciting for me as when our beautiful Swedish Crown Princess Victoria wed her beloved Daniel last year. Congratulations to Prince William and Catherine!

In celebration of this joyous occasion, Luke (my hubby) and I decided to throw a Royal Wedding Extravaganza! We decided that a day off would do us both some good (Luke worked two "normal" 13 hour days + two 17 hour days and I've been swamped at work this week -- so we thought we deserved it!) 

I asked one of the loveliest Brits I know what an appropriate British morning treat would be -- she suggested quiche and scones, so that's what we made!

Luke loves spicy food, so we decided to make Chorizo Quiche. Here is the recipe:

Chorizo Quiche

Adapted from The Food Network.

Ingredients:

Butter, for greasing the dish

Crust:

1 1/2 c all-purpose flour

1/4 tsp salt

8 Tbsp chilled unsalted butter, diced

5 Tbsp chilled water, plus extra as needed

Filling:

6 oz chorizo, or spicy Italian sausage, casings removed, and cooked until crisp

4 eggs

1/2 c Mexican crema, or creme fraiche

1 c grated Manchego, Swiss, or Pecorino Romano cheese

1/2 c diced russet potatoes, boiled until tender and cooled

1/4 c whole milk

Salt and freshly ground black pepper

Directions:

Grease 9-inch tart pan or glass pie dish with butter.

Place the flour and salt in a food processor and pulse to combine. Add the chilled butter and process to a coarse meal. With the machine running, add 5 Tbsp of water in a steady stream until the mixture forms a dough. Add additional water, 1 Tbsp at a time, if the dough is too dry.

Shape the dough into a ball and press into the bottom and sides of the prepared tart pan or pie dish. Refrigerate for 15 minutes. Preheat the oven to 425 degrees F. Line the crust with foil and fill with pie weights (or dried beans). Bake for 15 minutes. Cool completely (can be made 1 day ahead).

Mix the chorizo and remaining ingredients. Pour into the prepared crust. Bake until the quiche is puffed and cooked through, or when a knife inserted into the center of the quiches comes out clean, about 45 minutes. Cool slightly. Serve warm or at room temperature.

To top this delicious morning treat off with something sweet, we also made:

Blueberry Scones with Lemon Glaze

Adapted from The Food Network. 

Ingredients:

Blueberry Scones:

2 cups all-purpose flour

1 Tbsp baking powder

1/2 tsp salt

2 Tbsp sugar

5 Tbsp unsalted butter, cold, cut in chunks

1 cup heavy cream, plus more for brushing the scones

1 cup fresh blueberries

Lemon Glaze:

1/2 cup freshly squeezed lemon juice

2 cups confectioners' sugar, sifted

1 lemon, zest finely grated

1 Tbsp unsalted butter

Directions:

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F.

Sift together the dry ingredients; the flour, baking powder, salt, and sugar. Using 2 forks or a pastry blender, cut the batter to coat the pieces with the flour. The mixture should look like coarse crumbs. Make a well in the center and pour in the heavy cream. Fold everything together just to incorporate; do not overwork the dough. Fold the blueberries into the batter. Take care not to mash or bruise the blueberries because their strong color will bleed into the dough.

Press the dough out on a lightly floured surface into a rectangle about 12 by 3 by 1 1/4 inches. Cut the rectangle in 1/2 then cut the pieces in 1/2 again, giving you 4 (3-inch) squares. Cut the squares in 1/2 on a diagonal to give you the classic triangle shape. Place the scones on an ungreased cookie sheet and brush the tops with a little heavy cream. Bake for 15-20 minutes until beautiful and brown. Let the scones cool a bit before you apply the glaze.

Technically you should make this simple lemon glaze in a double boiler (i.e. over a pot of simmering water with a heatproof bowl set on top), but it's even simpler to zap it in the microwave. Mix the lemon juice and confectioners' sugar together in a microwave-safe bowl. Stir until the sugar dissolves. Add the lemon zest and butter. Nuke it for 30 seconds on high. Whisk the glaze to smooth out any lumps, then drizzle the glaze over top of the scones. Let it set a minute before serving.

Add a spot of tea and you're ready to go. Cheers!