My secret to long term success? Knowing what to eat without having to think about it. Don’t discount how important it is to create new habits.

It was all dumb luck, but I created new habits by creating new meals. Beyond sheer determination, the single most important thing I did when I first started was this: I committed to making two new recipes per week. Just two.

One could be as simple as a new salad dressing or as complicated as pizza sculpture made of cauliflower and cheese, but two new recipes each week. 

Why did I do that? My kids were little; David and I worked full time, and I was in the throes of a major work project that would keep life in a frenzy until late October. It was summer, and I wasn’t policing homework or color-coding after school activities on my calendar. I had time, a precious commodity. 

There were exactly two months before school started. If I wasn’t going to reach for frozen lasagna, I had to have something else to reach for. Creating two new recipes per week gave me options. 

Did I trick you?

Without even knowing it, that’s exactly what you all have been doing in these past 10 days of Keto Together. While the coronavirus kept most of us indoors, we took these 10 days to get prepared for the hectic, scattered days ahead. 

Life will be bustling again, and when you come home thinking, “what can we eat?”, I hope that images of simple stir fries, canned meat salads, and quick skillet pizzas flash before your eyes. Easy meals for hard days. Keto meals that keep us healthy.

Keto quiche me! 

We’re closing out the week with a meat-crusted quiche because I wasted 5 years trying to figure out a perfect quiche crust. David liked exactly none of my attempts. 

I switched to making frittatas (no crust) because it was just easier. Each Sunday evening, while cooking dinner, I’d toss together a frittata for breakfast for the week for David and myself. The combinations got creative. 

My favorite was country ham, broccoli, and cheddar, Journey to Health. David favored the southwestern one with chorizo and peppers. 

While I never made the same flavor twice, my Sunday night habit provided us quick and easy breakfasts that took us through the week with David often eating in the car on the way to work. 

That’s why I’ve chosen quiche for our last meal of these 10 days. The sausage crust idea is more recent. When I first made it in summer 2020, David’s eyes lit up with the first bite. Then I took it to a church breakfast and it disappeared in mere minutes. 

The sausage crust makes it hardy enough for dinner and easy enough for weeknights. You can also put this together in advance and then bake it right before serving. Alternately, follow my lead and bake it early and then serve when you’re ready. It’s best warmed, so keep that in mind

Use my Sausage-crusted quiche for inspiration. Here are a few more things to consider as you create your own.

• The crust. I used sausage and add pork rinds and Parmesan to help keep the sausage from shrinking. You can use ground beef (season it?), ground chicken, ground pork, ground lamb, or any combination. Just press it into the pan and up the sides so that it’s no more than ¼ inch thick.

• Find your fillings. I like to add chopped bacon because bacon, but also because it adds texture, protein, and fat. Ham is nice too. Veggies? Ok, twist my arm. Onions, peppers, broccoli, cauliflower, green onions, etc. all have a place in this quiche. You can give them a quick saute first if you want to be sure the veggies are cooked through.

• Observe the egg/ cream ratio! If you look at the Sausage-crusted Quiche recipe, you’ll see the perfect ratio of eggs to heavy cream. Don’t tell anyone, but that’s the key to this luscious filling. Our little secret, right?

• Add cheese and then add a little more. Pick your favorites! Cheddar, smoked gouda, Swiss, Monterey Jack, Pepper jack–they can all pitch in wonderful flavors. I like to mix cheese into the filling, but I also like to sprinkle a bit over top.

• Don’t overbake. The center should be set, but still just barely. Remember that it will continue cooking in the 10 minutes you’re waiting for it to cool before serving.

Quiche keep well in the fridge for several days and can be frozen too. If you have leftovers…

Flood me with #ketotogether quiche photos!  Can’t wait to see your creations

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