Twice Baked Potatoes With Ham

We had ham for Christmas and I've been using the leftovers all over the place. Last night I came up with a twice baked potato dish that was tasty and easy. If you don't have ham, you can replace it with either bacon or even sausage.

I made more than we could eat in a meal - froze the rest for snacks for the kids. I do this with pancakes and waffles, too. It's very easy. Lay each piece on a cookie sheet so that nothing is overlapping. When frozen, move to a freezer container. See - it's simple.

Twice Baked Potatoes With Ham

6 potatoes, baked, then cut in half

2 cups ham, diced into bite-size pizzas

1 cup cheddar cheese

1 cup montery jack cheese

1/2 cup sour cream

1/4 cup Ranch salad dressing

3 TB dijon mustard

1 tsp granulated garlic

1/2 tsp kosher saltground pepper to taste

Smoked Paprika

Preheat oven to 350 F

*Mix all ingredients except for potatoes.

*Scoop the flesh out of the potato halves, leaving 1/2 inch intact for potato shell stability.

*Add potato flesh, then mash with a potato masher.

*Refill the potato skins with the mixture, then dust lightly with paprika.

*Bake for 20 minutes, then turn the oven up to 400, and bake for an additional 10 minutes.

Makes 6 servings
Image credit: Michelle Smith

Brocoli & Bacon Quiche

My biggest challenge in the kitchen is a pie crust. I think I've made maybe 2 decent crusts in my life. Sometimes they look okay, but the texture sucks. Other times they taste fine, but the crust is ugly. This year, for Thanksgiving, I decided to skip the hassle and pick up some frozen crusts. They were okay, but I think what I really need to do is perfect my own crust. Prepared crusts taste like prepared crusts. Okay, not great.


In the meantime, I had one crust left over in the freezer. I've been craving a quiche, so tonight I took stock of what I already had in the fridge and whipped one up.
Brocoli & Bacon Quiche

1 pie crust2 cups brocoli flowerettes, steamed and drained

5 slices bacon, browned and chopped

3/4 cup grated Swiss Cheese

3/4 cup grated Monterrey Jack Cheese

1/4 cup onions, diced

4 eggs

1/2 cup half and half (I used fat free)

1 TB flour

1 tsp granulated garlic

salt and pepper to taste

Preheat oven to 350 F

Place pie crust in pan, crimp edges. Place brocoli into pie crust, layer onions, bacon, then cheeses over the top. Crack eggs into a bowl, add half and half, garlic, salt and pepper. Mix with a whisk until a just bit frothy. Pour over pie crust contents. Place in oven. Put a piece of aluminum foil over the top (keeps crust from over browning). Set timer for 25 minutes. Remove foil. Set timer for 15 additional minutes. Remove for oven. Let set for 5 minutes, then serve.

Image credit: Michelle Smith

Vosges Chocolate Truffles

Vosges Haut Chocolat sent me a box of their wonderful truffles to try for review. Have you ever tried Vosges chocolates? They are wonderful, fancy-pants chocolates made with flowers, marscarpone, cinnamon, dark chocolate, and peppemint candies. Beautiful!


The sampler that I got contained Peppermint Candy Cane, Holiday Plum Pudding, Mascarpone and Ceylon Cinnamon Snap, and an Eggnog and Jamaican Rum truffle. My favorite was the Eggnog and Rum with white chocolate, but they were all lovely.

You can find Vosges chocolates online or in Chicago, Las Vegas, or New York City.

When faced with a truffle, your impulse will be to scarf it down. Resist that impulse. Instead take the time to savor it. Vosges suggests...

*Read the story of the chocolates, then do some yoga breathing. Meditate on the upcoming chocolate experience.
*See the chocolate. Make a note of the glossy surface.
*Lick the top of the chocolate - it's a "teaser."
*Does the chocolate "snap" when you bite into it? This is the mark of a chocolate at it's peak.
*Savor the taste of the truffle. Yum......

Image credit: Michelle Smith