Egg Recipes for a Holiday Party

Chili Relleno Casserole
This casserole works as a meal, or you can slice it into smaller pieces for part of a holiday buffet

24 ounces of green chilies
1 pound of Monterey Jack Cheese
1/2 pound of Cheddar Cheese
5 eggs
1 1/4 cup milk
1/4 cup flour
dash of pepper
1/2 tsp salt
Dash of Tabasco sauce if desired.

Rinse chilies and remove seeds. Place half the chilies in bottom of 9X13 inch baking dish. Place half of grated Monterey jack cheese on top of chilies, then put another layer of green chilies. Top with remainder of Jack and Cheddar Cheeses.

Mix flour, milk, eggs, salt and pepper. Pour over top of chilies and cheese mixture.

Bake at 350 for 45 minutes. Remove when golden around edges and when knife comes out clean.

Serve immediately, or make ahead, bake for only 30 minutes, cover well, and freeze. To serve, thaw, return to oven and bake for 15 to 20 minutes.

Chili Cheese Appetizers:

For 12 appetizers, mix one egg with about 3/4 a cup of grated sharp cheddar cheese. Add one can of diced green chilies.

Put 12 crackers on a pan and top with about 1/2 to 3/4 a Tablespoon of the egg/cheese mixture.

Place under broiler until golden. Eat while hot.

Variations:
Spread over toasted and buttered bread slices (the butter helps keep the bread from getting soggy).

Pizza Cheese Appetizers: Use Mozzarella cheese and oregano, and after broiling top with half a cherry or grape tomato

Crepes with hard-boiled eggs

To make crepes, combine in mixer or blender:
1 1/4 cups of flour
3 beaten eggs
1 1/2 cups of milk
2 Tablespoons melted butter or other fat
dash of salt
one minced garlic clove

Let this stand an hour or more.

Use a small frying pan (or a crepe pan if you have one), either non-stick, or well oiled. Heat to medium-high (about what you would use for pancakes, and ladle about 1/4 cup of batter into the hot pan, turning it to spread the batter as evenly as possible across the surface of the pan.

Cook for about two minutes, then gently loose with spatula, flip, and cook for another minute. Set aside and repeat process.

Crepes can be filled and rolled immediately, or you can layer them between layers of parchment paper or wax paper and freeze them until later.

For egg filling:

6 hardboiled eggs, chopped
1 1/2 cups of cream sauce (below)
1/2 cup Parmesan cheese
fresh tarragon
salt, pepper, mustard

For Cream sauce:
Melt 2 tablespoons of butter over low heat.
Stir in 2 tablespoons of flour, making a paste.

Gradually stir in 1 1/2 cups of milk, stirring slowly between each addition until milk is well blended and sauce is the desired thickness.

Combine sauce with chopped eggs, cheese, a dash of mustard, and salt and pepper to taste.

Spoon sauce into crepes, putting about 1/4 cup of the egg and sauce mixture into a line along the center of the crepe. Fold crepe in half, then fold again (you can also roll the crepes like logs).

Set in a warming dish, top with another batch of cream sauce and fresh tarragon leaves if desired.

Miniature Quiches in Brown Rice Crust

The advantage of this brown rice crust is that the rice crust does not get soggy as pastry crusts can. The complex carbs of brown rice are also healthier for you.

Crust:
2 cups cooked brown rice
1 beaten egg
1 teaspoon soy sauce or Bragg's Liquid Amino Acids

Combine and mix well. Spread evenly to line the cups of a well oiled muffin tin, pressing with oiled fingers or oil the outside of a jar that fits in the cup well, and push down to push the grains of rice together to form an even crust. Bake rice crust at 350 F for five to eight minutes or until lightly golden. Remove pan from oven and let cool.

Filling:
1/2 cup diced peppers and onions (you can find bags of a pepper and onion mix in the freezer in the vegetable section of your grocery store- I use these)
6 eggs, beaten
1 ten ounce package of frozen spinach, thawed and drained well.
1 1/2 cups milk
1 cup grated cheese, Swiss or sharp cheddar
1/8 teaspoon of salt
dash nutmeg or mace

Combine spinach, peppers, and onions.
Divide and spoon into bottom of each crust lined muffin tin.

Combine eggs, milk, salt, pepper, cheese and nutmeg. Pour over vegetables in each muffin cup. Bake at 350 for 15-20 minutes minutes or until set. Remove from oven and let set ten minutes before serving.

Alternatively, you may make these ahead by cooling, wrapping them well, and then freezing them. To serve thaw and reheat at 350 degrees for 10 minutes- you may wish to top with additional cheese.

Or make a triple batch, bake, freeze, and then reheat by piling the thawed individual quiches in a crockpot on high for three or four hours (watch to be sure they don't dry out or turn rubbery- different crockpots have different temperatures for 'high').

Egg Salad Pinwheels

These make ordinary egg salad especially festive

Ingredients:

White bread
Egg Salad (your favorite recipe)

Remove crusts from white bread. Take a rolling pin and roll bread flat and thin. Spread thinly with butter (this keeps the bread from getting soggy). Spread with egg salad, stopping just short of bread edges.

Gently roll the bread (think jelly roll) and filling. Wrap carefully in waxed paper and chill. Slice into pinwheels, place on platter and serve.