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A few years ago, my mom started a tradition of doing three different quiches on Christmas morning.  She’s taught me most of what I know about cooking, so its fun to be able to go back home and assist her with this ambitious breakfast. We start with recipes from Thomas Keller’s Bouchon and deviate as we see fit.  This year we did a classic quiche lorraine, a wild mushroom quiche, and a spinach quiche.  I’ll post the recipes at some point, but we’ll start with the photos…

Chopped shallots, criminis, and chanterelles for the wild mushroom quiche:

Bacon and caramelized onion for the quiche lorraine:

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My method for doing mac and cheese is far from a science.  I usually ask the person working the cheese counter at Murray’s for an interesting combination of two cheeses and I always use parmigiano-reggiano.  In this version, I started by rendering some bacon in an deep, oven-proof saute pan.  Then used the rendered fat and a little butter, 2-3 tablespoons of flour, and a few cups of milk to make a roux. Add grated cheeses, a little freshly grated nutmeg, possibly some cayenne pepper for a little spice, and the slightly undercooked noodles to the roux.  In this version I also added a head of roasted garlic and some fresh thyme.  Top with parm and bake until bubbly and toasted on top.

For the stir fry:

• Skirt steak (this can be marinated in the sauce below for 1-24 hours)
• Onion, chopped
• Snow peas
• Broccoli
• Shiitake mushrooms, sliced

For the noodles:

• 1 Carrot, shredded
• 3-4 cloves garlic, minced
• 1-2 T ginger, minced
• Small amount of habanero pepper for spice, finely chopped
• Few tablespoons of rice wine vinegar, soy sauce, and about a half cup stock — to taste
• Ramen or Lo Mein noodles

Saute carrot, garlic, and ginger over medium-low heat for a few minutes.  Add liquids and bring to a boil.  Lower heat and simmer while prepping steak and veggies.

Season steak with salt and pepper and pan fry over high heat until medium-rare to rare.  Remove, cover with foil on cutting board, and let rest while preparing everything else.

Saute onions, broccoli, and snow peas over high heat.  Remove and cover.

Saute mushrooms in butter.  Add everything else back and keep warm until while prepping noodles.

Boil noodles, strain, and add to ginger/garlic sauce.