Before I really got into cooking and baking a few years ago, our dinners were whatever was easiest and didn't take a lot of work. While I don't use it much anymore, Bisquick was a staple - all from one little mix you could get biscuits, fluffy pancakes or even whip up those savory "impossibly easy" pies!
This Broccoli and Cream Cheese Impossible Pie that I made for tonight's dinner was a throwback to that time, except the bisquick is left behind as a homemade version stands in its place.
Chopped sweet red bell peppers and onions start off the base flavors in this savory pie - besides the obligatory salt and pepper for seasoning, chopped fresh dill is sprinkled in with the vegetables. If you don't have access to fresh, you could replace it with a teaspoon of dried - either one would work well in this as you are looking for that unique essence it has. Bite-sized pieces of broccoli florets are added and the mixture is spooned into a large pie pan.
Next came small dollops of herbed cream cheese that were dropped all over the broccoli mixture - we used a chive and onion flavored cheese, but use whichever flavor sounds good to you. An uncomplicated mixture of flour, baking powder and a dash of salt, along with a few cubes of cold butter worked in, is the Bisquick-esque replacement for this dish. Milk and a few eggs are added and the viscous mixture is poured in.
As the pie baked, that biscuit topping wiggled its way down through the cream cheese and vegetables to form a crust-like bottom that sealed everything together in a tidy package. The biscuit was moist and tender, yet sturdy - while those pockets of cheese firmed up slightly, they were still quite luscious and smooth. Jeff commented that it was reminiscent of a quiche, just not nearly as egg-y. We don't usually have savory cream cheese on hand, but you'll always find those wedges of Laughing Cow cheese in our fridge - I wonder if I plunked them into a bowl and whipped them for a minute to use instead since we typically have everything else on hand to make this... their French onion or garlic and herb might be quite tasty in this!
Yum. That sounds great! If only Christopher would eat broccoli. Maybe if I added a bunch of bacon...
ReplyDeleteOh, this sounds and looks really good! And we love broccoli around here!!
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Robert - Bacon and broccoli work for me ;-)
ReplyDeleteAna - And it is pretty easy to boot!
I thought to myself that this sounded like something Robin would like and then I saw it came from Canadian Living. Too funny. She'd love it if I made " an impossible taco pie". LOL.
ReplyDeleteRandi - hee hee! Hmm... I think I'd love an impossible taco pie too!
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