Yummy fun

Cooking with Friends

Anita, Linda Ann, Lorinda, Sharon (Sorry Esther couldn't make it. 

Lorinda Belnap made pie crusts before we arrived

 Anita Otoo, Sharon Kwaw, (also Esther Abuyeh), and I from the OGC office were all invited to come to a cooking class/demonstration at Lorinda Belnap's home. We made quiche!

Anita grating cheese

When I got to her home, Sharon and Anita were busy chopping up ingredients so I took pictures before helping out.....kinda. Mostly I just took pictures. We were serenaded by Nathan and Rebecca Belnap on the piano. Nathan will soon give a concert - I sure hope I can be there to hear it.

Sharon chopping up onion into itty bitty pieces

Ingredients were all assembled, Salt, pepper, onions, ham, bell peppers, thawed spinach with water squished out, cream, milk, cheeses and eggs.

Anita assembled one pie

Sharon assembled another quiche

4 eggs, 1/2 cup of cream and 1/2 cup of whole milk beat up together.

Lorinda divvied up the cream and told the ladies how much of the ingredients were needed for each pie.

3/4 a cup of ham or more, about a 1/4 cup of yellow bells, a generous handful of onions, 
1/2 a package of spinach each, salt and pepper. Then lots of cheese - sorry I didn't watch the amounts.

Anita's pie almost complete

Sharon adding finishing touches

Then while the pies were in the oven for about 45 minutes to an hour at 350 degrees, Lorinda introduced the art of the pie crust, so everyone would have the full experience of making a quiche.

Sharon cutting in the Crisco and flour

A pastry blender and knife and fork were both used.

Anita adding in the water that had ice floating in it.

Lorinda demonstrating how she rolls it into a ball and squishes it flat before rolling.

Anita rolls her dough out flat

Then folds it over to set into the pie dish.

Sharon was very meticulous and learned the art of the rippled crust.

She made sure each side was exact.

She even checked the thicknesses so the pie would not burn too fast on the edges.

One pie is weighted just as you would do for quiche.

The other was 'forked' to vent for air pockets while cooking.

Lorinda put milk and a pudding mix together and whisked it up while it cooked and we chatted.

Cook and Serve pudding mix

Meanwhile......delicious aromas were wafting out of the oven.

The quiche was just right. It rose and it sank just a little - nice!

Lorinda cut each of us generous slices, gave us something to drink while the two pie crusts in the oven were cooking. Yummy deliciousness! It is nice to be with friends making a great treat.

Pie crust cooking......until the heat was turned up and they got a little golden

Lorinda pulled the pie shells out of the oven. The coin crust was perfectly flat on the bottom, the forked crust was only a little bumpy. Both took their time getting brown because the oven had been lowered to a quiche cooking temperature, but quickly got done with the temperature at a higher heat. Most recipes say 375 degrees some are 400 - 425 degrees. Probably depends on the oven. 

I walked home while Anita and Sharon went back to work at the Area office. Lorinda waited for the pie crusts to cool then she added sliced bananas and the pudding mix with whipped cream on top. She brought it over to the office, - sorry no picture. Jeffrey said it was delicious!