Elizabeth Newlin - Arizona Real Estate Agent

I’m going to let you in on a secret, just between the two of us, and only because you’re a faithful elizabethnewlin.com reader.

Come a little closer… just lean in a bit and keep your voice down. That’s right, you’re cool. Nothing exciting here to see, People, keep moving.

Ok… I’m going to give you the recipe for Party Potatoes. SHHHHHHH! I said keep it down!! Act a little more nonchalant! Good lord, you want the whole world to know?

Party Potatoes is an age-old Disbrow Family recipe. Mom/Grandma Jackie only makes them on holidays and special occasions and gave me the recipe when I got married, with the expressed instructions that I was NOT ALLOWED to bring the dish to any occasion at her house.

They may not look like much, but I regularly bring Party Potatoes to Tolar/Newlin family events, alongside various other ‘gourmet’, billion-ingredient dishes, and the one that is gone first is always: Party Potatoes.

So I’m sharing this recipe with you, because Mom/Grandma Jackie Disbrow does not read blogs. However, you are officially sworn to NEVER BRING THIS DISH TO A DISBROW FAMILY OCCASION. Do you hear me Internet? Because I am not joking. Use this recipe for your own personal taste bud joy, but do NOT upstage the Jackie. Because I will cut you. Don’t cross me.

It’s very simple, People:

1/2 white onion - chopped
1 can condensed cream of celery soup (undiluted)
4 oz cream cheese
3/4 package frozen potatoes O’Brien
1 cup shredded cheddar cheese

Mix the first three ingredients and microwave them for 3ish minutes (until the onions are clear). Stir with frozen potatoes and bake at 350 degrees for approximately 30 minutes. Cover with cheddar and bake until cheese is melted.

Yep, it’s that easy. Take it to Thanksgiving Dinner and let the praise roll in.

I want to a dinner party this weekend. We had this idea that we could mimic the show Iron Chef and pick and ingredient that everyone would have to use in the different courses. We chose lime as our main ingredient.

Debbie made ceviche:

(YUM!)

Laura P. made a yummy salad with a lime vinaigrette and limed veggie skewers. Laura T. made a tomatillio lime salad and a cilantro lime pesto.

I did a Tequila Lime Chicken Pasta:

And we finished it off with four lime desserts made by Danielle, Jessica and Laura P.:

There were, of course, margaritas, limeade, lime sherbet smoothies and even Pepsi with Lime for beverage choices.

It was a totally fun experiment, but I think we learned that there’s a reason why people usually balance the flavors of their meals a little better. By the third bite of the evening, the only thing I could taste was lime. In fact, I may have had my fill of lime for the month.

Next time, Mexican, maybe.

The Lime Gals:

Laura T., Jessica, Debbie, Danielle and Jackie, Laura P. and Me! (Yes, I realize Laura T.’s eyes are closed, but mine are closed in the other one we took and it’s my website, ha!)

Since my last post was so heated and controversial, I thought I’d transition to something calming to everyone: quiche (right? No one has any blood boiling opinions on eggs and crust, do they?).

I made a quiche last weekend for Easter brunch and I thought it turned out well. I was thinking of posting the recipe, but I realized that it’s less of a recipe and more of a map of how to get from A to Quiche. Really, quiche is four parts, and as long as you have those four parts, it’s tough to screw it up. The four parts are: Crust, Filling, Cheese and Eggs. You can interpret these in many different ways and it will still come out yummy. Mine went like this:

Crust - Pillsbury Crescent Rolls dough pressed into a greased pie tin.

Filling - Asparagus, onion and red potato chopped and sauteed in olive oil until tender.

Cheese - Ideally grated Gruyere (a cup or so), but a nice swiss works almost as well.

Eggs - 5 eggs beaten with about 1/4 cup of heavy cream and a 1/4 cup of skim milk.

I put the filling into the pie tin filled with crescent roll dough, top with cheese and then pour the egg over top until it’s full. I don’t always use all of all of the ingredients. Then I bake it at 375ish until the middle isn’t liquid anymore (jiggle it to tell). The top will be a bit brown.

You could do a zillion variations on this. Make it southwestern by using green chilies, red peppers and sausage as the filling and a pepper jack cheese. Maybe toss in a blue cheese and add ham for the filling. You could also use a premade pie crust or make one from scratch. Or if you like your quiche eggier (my version’s on the creamy and cheesy side) omit some of the cheese and cream and add a few more eggs.

Try out a quiche. I find them classic, creative and perfect for brunch!