Day #47589 of quarantine and I’m still trying to perfect my pie dought! Okay, I know it’s not been that many days. The truth is in working from home it feels like I’m working more than I normally do. Grateful to have a job and know this is a really unique time that we’re in. But back to pie dough and this foolproof quiche! Over here trying to perfect it one crust at a time.
The temperature here in Miami plays a critical role in many of my “flub-ups” when it comes to dough. Awhile back I made laminated dough for the first time and talk about a disaster! Chilling the butter block as the recipe said to do, however, butter still oozed out of the dough. Summer is definitely not the best time to experiment with laminated dough, however, factoring the weather in is a must for success!
Dough and rolling out the dough is what you would call my nemesis in the kitchen. I’ve made cinnamon rolls successfully and you have to roll the dough out for those, so I know I can do it. Although come to think of it some of my rolls are bigger than the other ones. At the end of the day it still ends up tasting good, I guess I just want to make sure it looks aesthetically pleasing. And so I will continue to try, try, try – because ithat is the truth, practice makes perfect.
Last week I zoomed with my friends and we did an online cooking class together. We made brownies together because it’s a fairly easy recipe. At the end of the session when requests came in they all wanted something savory vs sweet. We ended up deciding on quiche. I tried pushing for a frittata since you don’t need to have a crust (and with me making less grocery store trips I didn’t want to have to pick one up) but quiche was what the people wanted. So to avoid going to the store for frozen pie dough, I decided I would attempt a homemade version once again. It’s like they knew I struggle with making pie dough in the kitchen. Haha!
Pie Crust – Homemade or Store-Bought
Anyone else struggle to make homemade pie crust? Store bought works just as well, however, by researching ingredients for this foolproof quiche, it allowed me to zone out. Some may call it baking therapy, but there is truth to you channeling your inner creativity and it being a meditative process. Creating recipes is something I’m starting to love. Not to mention, I was able to make a savory recipe that my friends wanted. Coinciding with Mother’s Day is called serendipity!
My encouragement: use a pre-made pie crust for this recipe. Either frozen or refrigerated will work. And the rest will be easy breezy! However, if you want to make a homemade pie crust, this one from Amanda Frederickson works great! In the research, what I noticed was the common theme was a 2 to 1 ratio of eggs to liquid. So for 3 eggs there would be 1 1/2 cups of liquid. Some recipes used just whole milk, some used a mix of whole milk and cream, some used half-n-half, but in the end, what stayed consistent was that ratio of eggs to liquid. You’re in essence making a custard. And the longer after baking the quiche gets to set, the more solid it will be when you cut it. It was beyond creamy delicious!
Ingredients: Foolproof Quiche
For your filling ingredients it really is up to you. That’s part of the beauty of the quiche as you can switch the vegetables so that it tastes different every time!. Using what I had on hand allowed me to have less food waste. My produce box consistently has been sending me onions, so I knew onions were going to be in the quiche. I also had 2 zucchinis and baby peppers from my produce box. Feel free to use mushrooms and spinach, bacon and onion, ham and asparagus. It might boil down to what you have on hand.
These are classic combinations, but from these combos is how you select what cheese you’ll use. Ham, asparagus, and swiss sounds amazing. That is if I had swiss cheese and asparagus. Ha! You get what I’m saying, go with what you have and be flexible. I’m not sure that any combo will taste bad with cheese and all that cream. I promise! That’s one thing this quarantine I’ve been a little more lenient on, flexibility when it comes to my ingredients (if I’m making a recipe from a chef/blogger). If I don’t have rice, I’ll use quinoa. If I don’t have sweet potato I’ll use butternut squash. Being flexible has led me on a few culinary experiences I never would have had before (yes, I am that person that almost always sticks to a recipe to a tee. But not anymore!)
And like I said, I’ll be making this with my friends at our online cooking class, but this is not only a great recipe to learn and master to have in your cooking/baking skills, but also perfect timing for a nice breakfast for Mother’s Day! Pair this with some fruit and a nice green salad to the side and voila, you’re set! And don’t forget a nice mimosa or Bellini, I mean it is Mother’s Day and that’s something to celebrate, quarantine or not!
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Foolproof Quiche
The key to a foolproof quiche is the ratio of eggs to liquid – 2:1. I used 3 eggs and 1 1/2 cups liquid ( a mix of whole milk and heavy cream) – this is enough for a deep dish crust. This is definitely a recipe to have in your repertoire. Consider it a keeper with endless filling possibilities!
- Total Time: 45 minutes
- Yield: 8 1x
Ingredients
- 1 (9-inch) pie crust, deep-dish* (see notes)
- 1 to 2 cups filling ingredients: zucchini, peppers, & onions; spinach and mushrooms, onions and bacon; ham and asparagus
- 1 to 2 cups shredded cheese, divided: Gruyere, Swiss, or Cheddar
- 3 large eggs
- 1 cup milk
- 1/2 cup heavy cream
- 1/4 tsp black pepper
Instructions
- Blind bake your crust – follow the directions on the package. Make sure to pierce the pie crust with a fork (holes all over) so it won’t bubble up. time is ~10 minutes, but again, read the package. The quiche will bake at 350˚F.
- Prepare while the crust is baking your quiche filling. Make sure all the ingredients are cooked through and fairly dry. I sautéed my zucchini, peppers, and onions with a little olive oil and black pepper for ~8-10 minutes.
- Sprinkle half of the cheese over the bottom of the pie crust. Top with fillings. Sprinkle the remaining cheese on top.
- Place the eggs, cream, and black pepper in a medium bowl and whisk until frothy and combined. Pour the custard into the pie crust.
- Bake the quiche until the edges are set but still jiggles a little in the center, ~30-35 minutes.
- Cool for at least 20 minutes, but ideally overnight in the refrigerator.
Notes
*You do you – meaning, choose whatever filling ingredient combos you’d like and that goes for the cheese as well. I think this simply means endless possibilities if you ask me!
*I have not tested the quiche with a frozen pie crust, but my guess (based on the liquid I had) you’d need a deep dish and not just a regular pie crust (it’d be too shallow). If you do only have a regular pie crust, you’ll have extra liquid leftover. I scrambled the little that I had left (my pie crust shrunk, surprise surprise – more pie crust saga).
*I haven’t tested the quiche with just using whole milk – I did use the mix of whole milk and heavy cream. There were lots of recipes that used half-n-half as I mentioned, but with the half-n-half and heavy cream as they do have a higher fat content they will allow for a more creamy taste. If all you have is whole milk, go for it. I just always have heavy cream on hand to make desserts. Let me know if you try it with different liquids, just remember to keep the total at 1 1/2 cups for that 2 to 1 ratio of eggs to liquid.
- Prep Time: 15
- Cook Time: 30
- Category: Breakfast
1 thought on “Foolproof Quiche”
Love having ‘fancy’ recipes ready to go for a special occasion!