Susan Mallery's Fool's Gold Cookbook: A Love Story Told Through 150 Recipes (Fool's Gold #12.1)

1 cup cheddar cheese, shredded or cubed

1. Stir-fry broccoli in a large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat for 1 minute. Add ½ cup water; cover pan and cook 2 minutes, until broccoli is crisp-tender. Drain off any water.

2. Meanwhile, in a large bowl, whisk eggs, half-and-half, scallions, salt and pepper. Add broccoli. Place skillet back over medium heat; add butter until melted. Pour in egg mixture and scramble to desired doneness. Remove from heat; stir in cream cheese and cheddar until melted and blended.

TIP: Make sure the broccoli florets are thinly sliced so they cook through in the short cooking time.

FALL

Breakfast Burritos for Two

Serve these hearty, flavorful burritos for any meal—breakfast, brunch, lunch or dinner.

Serves 2

2 tablespoons olive oil, divided

1 small onion, diced

1 cup canned black beans, drained

½ teaspoon ground cumin

Salt and black pepper

6 large eggs

1 cup Mexican blend cheese, shredded

2 burrito-sized flour tortillas, warmed

Garnishes

Sour cream

Prepared salsa

Tomato, chopped

Avocado, diced

Fresh cilantro, chopped

1. Warm 1 tablespoon of the oil in a large nonstick skillet over medium heat. Add onions; cook 4 minutes, until softened, stirring. Add beans, cumin, salt and pepper; cook 1 minute, until warmed through; transfer to a bowl. Wipe out pan with a paper towel.

2. Warm the remaining tablespoon oil in the same skillet over medium heat. In a large bowl, whisk eggs, salt and pepper. Add eggs to the hot pan; let sit 3 seconds, then scramble to desired doneness. Stir in cheese and remove from heat.

3. Lay tortillas on countertop. Spoon half the eggs in the center of each tortilla. Top with black-bean mixture, then toppings as desired. Roll up.

TIP: Warming the tortillas makes them easier to fill and roll.

FALL

FALL

Heirloom Tomato and Goat Cheese Quiche

Heirloom tomatoes taste fantastic when they’re ripe, but they aren’t always available. Beefsteak or hothouse tomatoes make a fine substitute.

Serves 4

Crust

1¼ cups all-purpose flour

2 tablespoons cornstarch

Pinch of salt

6 tablespoons unsalted butter, diced

1 large egg

Filling

2 large eggs

2/3cup whole milk

Salt and black pepper

4 ounces goat cheese, thinly sliced

2 medium ripe tomatoes, thinly sliced

For crust:

1. Preheat oven to 375°F. In a food processor, pulse flour, cornstarch and salt until combined. Add butter; pulse until dough resembles coarse meal. Add egg; pulse just until dough comes together. Dump dough onto a lightly floured surface. Form dough into a ball; roll the dough out to a 12-inch circle. Place the dough in a 9-inch fluted tart pan (or pie tin); press to fit bottom and up sides of pan. Refrigerate for 30 minutes.

For filling:

1. Remove crust from the refrigerator. In a large glass measuring cup, whisk eggs, milk, salt and pepper. Arrange slices of goat cheese in the crust; top with tomato slices, arranged in a circle. Pour egg filling into crust, filling to the top. Bake 45 minutes, until filling is puffed up and golden.

TIP: This recipe works in a tart pan or a pie tin. The pie tin won’t be as full as the tart pan.

FALL

Spinach and Gruyère Strata

This rich and cheesy make-ahead casserole is perfect for cool-weather entertaining.

Serves 8

2 tablespoons unsalted butter, plus additional for greasing pan

1 medium onion, chopped

½ pound cremini or button mushrooms, sliced

Salt and black pepper

8 cups cubed (¾ inch) challah or brioche bread

2 cups (about 6 ounces) Gruyère or Jarlsberg cheese, shredded

1 cup Parmesan cheese, grated

1 package (10 ounces) frozen spinach, thawed and drained of excess liquid

2½ cups whole milk

9 large eggs

½ teaspoon dry mustard powder

1. Butter a 9-by-13-inch glass baking pan. Melt butter in a large cast-iron or heavy skillet over medium heat. Add onions and mushrooms; season with salt and pepper. Cook 8 minutes, until mushrooms release their liquid, stirring often.

2. Spread about one-third of the bread cubes in the prepared baking pan. Top with half of each cheese, half of the mushroom mixture and half of the spinach leaves. Top with one-third of the bread and the remaining mushrooms, spinach and cheese. Top everything with the remaining one-third of the bread.

3. In a large bowl, whisk milk, eggs, mustard powder, salt and pepper until blended. Pour evenly over casserole. Cover with plastic wrap and chill strata for at least 8 or up to 24 hours.

4. Remove strata from the refrigerator at least 30 minutes before baking. Preheat oven to 350°F. Bake, uncovered, 40 to 45 minutes, until golden and cooked through. Let stand 10 minutes before serving.

TIP: Don’t worry about making the layers perfect—everything bakes together into one pan of creamy deliciousness.

FALL

Denise’s Bacon & Egg Breakfast Casserole