Gluten free Onion and Cheese Quiche

In the spirits of trying to stay fit and loose some weight started looking for improvements and changes in my life.

As a resolution, exercise  came as number one, but it was right close by eating healthier.  I spent much time of my day snacking into pita chips, crackers, and sweets.

With so many Jewish holidays and days off work, thought it would be a good idea to go back to the kitchen and spend some valuable time cooking and trying new recipes.

In the menu for today: Cheese and Onion Gluten Free Quiche

After lots of searching found this great recipe by Joy the Baker.

For the Crust:

• 1 1/2 cups Cup4Cup all-purpose gluten-free flour
• 1 teaspoon granulated sugar
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 cup (1 stick) cold unsalted butter, cut into cubes
• 1 large egg yolk
• 1/4 cup buttermilk

For the Filling:

• 5 eggs
• 1 cup of greek yogurt
• 2 onions
• 1 bag of shredded cheese
• 1 cup of ricotta cheese
• 1 tsp of kosher salt
• 1 tsp of pepper

To Make the Crust:
In a bowl, whisk together flour, sugar, and salt.  Add cold, cubed butter and, using your fingers, work the butter into the flour mixture.  Quickly break the butter down into the flour mixture.
 In a small bowl, stir together the egg yolk and buttermilk, and pour in the liquid mixture.  Use your hands to bring to dough together.  Try to moisten all of the flour bits.  On a lightly floured work surface, dump out the dough mixture.  It will be moist and shaggy.  Sprinkle generously with flour.   Allow dough to rest in the fridge while you assemble the filling.  Dough is easiest to roll out when it’s cold and rested.
When you’re ready to roll out the crust, on a well-floured work surface, gently roll out the pie crust into about an 11-inch circle. Carefully lift down and place into the 9-inch pie plate.  Use a pairing knife to trim the edges of pie dough, leaving about 1/2 inch extra dough overhang. 

To Make the Filling:
Place a rack in the center of the oven and preheat oven to 400 degrees F.
In a medium saucepan, over medium heat, warm oil.  Add the onions, stirring occasionally,  until they are almost clear (about 20 minutes)remove from heat, pour into medium bowl.
Add the eggs, ricotta, yogurt, cheese, salt, and pepper. Whisk all together until mix is light yellow.
Place quiche in oven and bake for 45-55 minutes, or until quiche puffs up and does not have a loose giggle when shaken lightly.
Remove from the oven and allow to cool for at least an hour.  Serve warm or cool. 

I chose to wrap the quiche in individual portions and freeze it. 
To warm it up, remove the wrap, place in the oven on 400 degree F for 20 minutes and enjoy with some salad!

Bete Abon! (bon Apetit in Hebrew)

Engagement Party Gift I Champagne Glasses

So, one of my very good friends got engaged and together with the rest of the girls we wanted to give them a creative and different gift, a gift that could last a lifetime, but it will be more than material. With happiness and party mode on...   

Supplies:

• Champagne glasses 
• Mulit-surface Craft Paint in Glitter, your choice of color 
• Sponge 
• Modge Podge 
• Glitter 
• RIbbon 
• Tape 

As a final touch we thought it would be nice to give them a champagne bottle which we also have decorate. Enjoy!

Traveling as a Director

I had always picture and experience to Israel as a pleasure, always came just incharge of myself or a friend... never of 46 teenagers!!! yes you are reading right... 46!!And so we left Miami on Wednesday June 13. It took us 2 hrs to do check-in, why??? because it is a slow process, although 3 people were helping us, more than half of the group had overweight, and well... they are kids.By the time we all were about to do through security one of the kids was left at check in counter with a madrich because a new manager came and said that none of the kids can leave the country without a written authorization of their parents... did we have them?? of course not... some fighting done by our travel agent lady and we were good to go.

The flight to NY was short but hectic... the kids were singing, talking, playing with each other... imagine the excitement they had. the flight attendance hated us, they had no patience for the kids.

Once in NY we had to change terminal and do checkin with ELAL... not an easy kjob and even a harder one when you have venezuelans. It tooks us 2.5 hrs. longs and slow, we did security ate some food, and as we are about to get on the plane a group of religiuos men about to pray decided it was a good idea to open the emergency door. so happy it was not our kids!!! :)

All splitted around the plane, with a middle seat (how much I hate them) the plane took off to the amazing land!!! of course i slept the whole plane!!! no doubts... not like a baby but pretty comfortable.

We got to Israel tire but excited!!! Happy to be in this amazing place. We went straight to ירושלים!!!!!

We did an amazing activity were we blindfold the kids and make them walk and listen to three stories of people who have never been in Israel. The stories are short but moving. After the stories we ask the kids to turn around and take the blindfolds and they are facing the kotel. It was amazing!!!!!!!

We got to the hotel by 1am. Exhausteddd. Im happy that I made the room divisions and they are all happy about it. :) I'm happy I how I know my chanichim.

Chocolate cookies with withe chocolate chips

2 2/3 c of milk chocolate chips
1/4 c of unsalted butter
2 large eggs
1/2 c (packed) golden brown sugar
2 tsps vanilla extract
3/4 c self-rising flour
3 1/2 ounces white chocolate chips

Preheat oven in 350 F.

Stir 2 cups of milk chocolate chips with butter in heavy small saucepan over low heat until melted and smooth; cool for 10 min. Beat eggs and brown sugar in large bowl until well blended. Beat in chocolate mixture and vanilla, then flour. Stir in remaining 2/3 chocolate chips and white chocolate chips; let stand 10 minutes.

Place parchment over baking sheet. Drop cookie dough by a tablespoonfuls. Bake until cookies look puffed and slightly dry on top, about 13 mins. Transfer cookies to cooling rack.

Home made Flan

As for every dinner, I brought dessert. Not just any dessert but one that I make.

I been always curious to learn how to make Flan. Not from the package, but from scratch.

I adopted the recipe from a book:

1 3/4 cup of heavy whipping cream
1 c of whole milk
Pinch of salt
1/2 vanilla bean, cut length wise
1 c & 7 tblsp of sugar
1/3 c of water
3 eggs
2 eggs yolks

In a small stainless steel pot place 1 c of sugar and the water. In low heat until sugar is all dissolve. Bring it to boil in hi heat until it takes a dark maroon color. Remove from heat an place in bowl making sure to spread on the sides. Throw away the excess.

In the meantime, in a medium saucepan combine the heavy whipping cream, the milk and the salt. Remove the seeds from the vanilla bean and place it on the saucepan. In low heat bring it to seemer and remove from heat. Let it cool down for 30 min.

Whisk 7 tbsps of sugar, eggs, and eggs yolk until all blended together. In small additions add the milk without making foam. When all blended, pour it into the bowl.

Fill a Pyrex half way with water, and place the bowl on it. Place it in the oven and let it cook for 40 mins or until center is set. Remove from the oven and place it on a cooling rack. When it cooled down place it in the refrigerator until it gets cold.

Add Dulce de leche and whipping cream and served.

Enjoy!!!

Funny stories/facts

First thing we did when arriving to a coffe shop, restaurant or hostel: ask for wifi.

How many times romi bump into things in the street? 3: a street light, a bench, and a person.

Do we know how to use the car's hand brake? NO. We drove for 30km with the hand brake on. When we arrived to the car rental to return the car it smelled like burnt. A Strong smell.

GPS: I did not want to have a gps. I had driven around Israel before without getting lost. Let's just say that this time we really got to see Haifa!!! Jajaja.

Karla visited and prayed in more churches in the last ten day than in te last 10 years.

We learned that: when you ask an Israeli for directions even If they do not know they will tell to keep going straight.

$$: always always always bargain the price. Start half from what they ask as if not walk away. They will lower the price themselves as you walk away.

We learned that in Israel they use different volts. As teachers we believe that one learn by experience. I used my hair drier the first night and that was it.

Karla learned than visiting a city that you have to walk it is better to wear comfortable walking shoes. :)

If you are smiling and positive people will actually help you and go the extra mile for you.

When you travel you should be open to new foods. Otherwise you will miss really really good food!!! ALL THE MEALS WE HAD WERE AWESOME, even Mc Donald's. Jajajajaja

iPhones are magical. They are like little computers. There are applications for everything. We downloaded the blog app, hotels app, weather, maps. 😉

It is worth to ask to block a middle seat in a 3 seats line. I wish I could take a picture of how we slept on the longest flight ever.

A Romi todo le huele a chivo!!! First thing she does when she gets in an airplane is complain about the smell.

Our third partner in crime: Galgagalgalatz!!! (Israelies will know what this is)

Karla looks like a terrorist!! She got stopped in every checkpoint, including a 45 mins interrogatory in Eilat's airport, searching through her dirty clothes, and questioning the need and precedence of the 235 bottles of holy water she bought in nazareth!!

We look brazilians.... People will look at us and they would immediately shout brazilll!!

Israelis might not know a lot of Spanish but if you don't buy anything from them they will call you "tacaña"

Karla is worth two mules (according to the Jordanian who wanted to buy her)

After extensive research our committee has come up to the conclusion that 99.99% of Israelis guys are HOT

Karla will be AA's newest member after her uncontrollable desire for goldstar

Romi's ability to eat falafel is a little bit concerning... She's an addict

Hostels are only acceptable when you have a private bathroom (according to Karla)

The best blogging happens after you take a 3 hr nap in tiberias.

As much as we love kids, we learned that the furthest we will go with kids within the first five years of life is Disney world!

Day 9: Beautiful and Last day!!!

After sleeping more than 10 hrs like babies, Karla thought it was a good idea to wake me up. She is soooooo policatlly correct. Jajaja.

We got dressed and went downstairs. Probably Nadav (who was sleeping in the room next to us) woke up because of ours laughter. Jajaja.

We had breakfast with the Nadav's parents. We forgot to mention that on Friday they invited us to go to the Israeli Museum with them.

During breakfast Nadav's mom insisted that we should go, but the dad did not wanted to go. He wanted to rest she wanted to go out and do something (this situations sounds familiar, Jajajaja). After breakfast we went to the car to grab all the souvenir bags that we had there and it was that time that we really dreaded: packing.

We went to our room, we put some music, Nadav joined us and while we talked we packed. What a mess!!! So much stuff everywhere.

Once all packed the family invited us to walk around Ein Kerem. It is a little, cozy and beautiful town. It was an Arab village before '48. And later the Jews took over it. There are some churches.

As we walked around they tooked us to see one church but nobody new why it was important. Soooo, I took my iPhone, looked for wifi (luckily there was) we were able to learn about it.

The other church was hugeeeee. It had beautiful paintings.

The last church was so tiny, soooo cute. It had a holly pool inside a cave. It was amazing to get in there. Of course nobody went in, I did step in the stairs for a silly pic.

Such a nice family!!! They brought cookies and tea for the road. Super cute!!

We got home around 4ish. Had lunch with Roni (Nadav's little sister). After that we did Havdallah. Yoni, Nadav's father, gives a blessing one to each member of the family and he even gave us a blessing. It gave me gussbumps. Such a nice experience!!!!!

On Friday for dinner Yoni had made tahina. It was delicious. He was soooooooo nice that he made a jar for me and a jar for Karla!!!

We chill a bit more, and sadly it came time to go.

Nadav is such a nice person that he drove us to the main highway we needed to take. Hugs, kisses on the shoulder and we continued our road to the airport.

Bye bye Israel.
Bye bye amazing friends, it was great to spend time with you, catch up, laugh, walk around, and have so much fun.

I'll be back in June!!!