Kale & Tomato Crustless Quiche

When I started this blog almost a year ago, my goal was to find ways to make heart-healthy eating fun for our family, despite the huge emotional and physical transition we were undergoing after my husband's diagnosis. It's hard enough trying to cope with the emotional ramifications of your spouse almost dying, but then to realize you have to completely overhaul your family's diet overnight, and cook most everything from scratch....it's daunting!

Our family loves to eat - which is a big part of what got us into this mess - so just because we had to give up the unhealthy foods in life, I refused to be relegated to a bland, flavorless diet. Not only would that make it harder on us to want to stick to it, but also there are too many beautiful spices and fruits and vegetables out there in the world for that kind of a boring diet to be acceptable to me!

So here we are ❤ And listen, I *know* the crust is the best part of a quiche. I know. But I promise this dish still has lots of flavor, even without it! The sweetness of the cherry tomatoes creates a nice contrast to the savory combination of eggs, kale, and onions 😍

Kale & Tomato Crustless Quiche

Serves 4-6

6 eggs, with 3 of the yolks discarded

1 cup milk

1 tbsp avocado or olive oil 

1 small onion, dived

1 medium garlic clove, minced

3 cups chopped kale

1 cup cherry tomatoes, halved

1/2 tsp thyme

Freshly ground pepper, to taste 

Preheat oven to 350, and grease a pie pan.

In a medium bowl, whisk together eggs and milk. Stir in thyme and pepper, and set aside.

In a skillet, heat the oil over medium heat and when it's shiny, add the onions and sauté until translucent. Add kale and garlic, and sauté until kale starts to wilt. 

Pour kale mixture into the bottom of the pie pan, and add egg mixture on top. Arrange cherry tomato halves evenly over the surface.

Bake for 30-40 minutes or until center is firm. 

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Ricotta Spaghetti Squash Bake

There are a few things you should note about this recipe if you're watching your sodium intake like us. Most cheeses are off-limits on a heart diet, but a few are low in sodium like ricotta and fresh mozzarella - but you HAVE to buy fresh mozzarella and grate it yourself, rather than buying the pre-shredded bagged stuff, which is loaded with sodium (trust me, it's worth the extra time - the texture and flavor of freshly grated cheese is *completely* different)

The other thing is that if you decide to substitute another green for the kale, avoid spinach because it's naturally very high in sodium.

We ate this as a side dish with chicken breasts and steamed broccoli, but the next time I make this, I plan on turning it into an entree by cutting up the grilled chicken and stirring it in.

Ricotta Spaghetti Squash Bake
Serves 4-6
1 large spaghetti squash
2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil, divided
1 tsp thyme, divided
4 cloves garlic, 2 minced & 2 crushed with the flat of your knife
1 small onion, diced
2 cups cherry tomatoes, halved
2 cups loosely packed fresh kale
15 oz part-skim ricotta
1/2 cup shredded fresh mozzarella, divided
1/4 cup fresh basil, roughly chopped
Freshly ground black pepper, to taste

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Cut squash in half and scoop out the seeds. Drizzle the insides with 1 tbsp of the olive oil, and place one crushed garlic clove in each cavity. Season with ground pepper and 1/2 tsp of the thyme. Carefully turn halves face down on a rimmed baking tray, and roast for 30-45 minutes or until fork tender.

While squash is baking, add remaining olive oil to a skillet and saute onions until translucent. Add minced garlic and cherry tomatoes and saute for 3 minutes, then add kale and saute for an additional 1-2 minutes until it begins to wilt. Remove from heat and pour into a large bowl. Stir in ricotta cheese and 1/4 cup of the shredded mozzarella.

Once squash has finished cooking, leave the oven on at 400, and shred the insides of the squash with a fork. Scrape out of the skin and add to the ricotta mixture. Stir well, and pour into a greased baking dish. Top with remaining 1/4 cup mozzarella and bake uncovered for 15 minutes.

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