+ Q U I C H E +
I love making quiche. It's easy and healthy and can be made with about one million different ingredients. But, in the past when I have posted photos or blogged about quiches I have made, people ask me about my crust recipe, how to bake the quiche through and how to spice it. I thought it was about time I shared a few of my simple little secrets to making the perfect quiche.
A quiche is a savory egg pie...an omelet with a crust. This morning I made a broccoli cheddar quiche, a staple in this household. To start, you need a good solid pie crust recipe. Pie dough can be daunting. But don't immediately go for the packaged pie crust when you can just as easily make an amazing pie crust yourself.
+ P I E C R U S T +
For a really flaky pie crust, you only need four ingredients. Sour cream, salt, butter and flour. To make one pie crust:
2.5 cups of all purpose flour
8 oz of sour cream
8 oz (or about 2 sticks) of unsalted , softened butter
1 TSP salt
Put all of your ingredients in your food processor and mix them until they form a ball. Flour your ball and knead briefly to combine all ingredients fully. Gramma says that a few chunks of butter are okay because they will just melt into your crust when you bake it. MOST IMPORTANTLY, chill your pie crust for at least 20 minutes before you roll it out. If you dont, it won't retain it's shape and you will get one melty mess on your hands.
+ I N G R E D I E N T S +
Quiches should be easy!! I know, that is so counter-intuitive to baking and cooking, but really, they should be so gosh darn easy it hurts! A simple throw together meal when you have a hodge podge of ingredients in your fridge and a hungry houseful of skateboarders (usually my case.) This is my go-to quiche recipe is easy, and it's also tip #2!
5 eggs (or 8-9 egg whites)
1.5 cups of heavy whipping cream
About 2 cups of cheese
2 cups of bulk ingredient (today it was broccoli, but this is where you can get creative)
pinch full of salt and pepper. Be generous, it will balance out the sweetness of the cream.
Whisk together well and pour evenly into your already rolled out pie crust. Tip #3, I always add slices of cheese to the top of the quiche to give it that extra oompf with a sprinkle of pepper to the crust. Tip #4; you can make your quiche healthier by using egg whites, but don't skimp on the heavy cream. It is what makes your quiche full and balanced. I suppose you could use half and half, but I don't think it's the same.
Bake at 350 for about 30 minutes. If your quiche is still jiggly in the middle, it needs more time. I like my crust extra crispy so I don't cover it, but you can cover the edges of your pie with tin foil to keep it from getting to crunchy. Tip #5, rotate your quiche from the top rack to the bottom rack after about 15 minutes. Since heat rises, you quiche will bake at a lower temp and be solid all the way through with out drying out.
And lastly, tip #6, if your quiche seems on the edge of being done but your knife just isn't coming out clean, turn your over off, leave the door shut and let your quiche slow bake for 8-10 more minutes! Viola! Quiche!
A few other helpful hints, if you took your quiche out of the oven too soon but didn't check it until it was sitting out for a while, you can always pop it into the microwave (if you used a glass pie pan like me, which I suggest anyways,) and nuke it. The eggs will bind together and you won't get a runny quiche!
A few awesome quiche combos: Chicken sausage, pear and brei // broccoli cheddar // roasted red pepper and feta // mushroom, tomato and swiss // Broccoli, spinach, basil and mozzarella.
Back to work for me, happy baking!
xo,
Beca
