Recipe: Quiche

We really like quiche, it is an easy "go to" meal for me because I almost always have a few eggs sitting around and some cheese and can usually find a few more things to put in there. This is also a crust-ess quiche. As much as I love the crust, I figure I save a few calories by leaving the crust off. However, feel free to throw in a crust and bake it a little before you put the quiche in or just use one of thos frozen crusts.

I start out by taking 3-5 eggs, depending on your pie plate. For the one pictures below in the pink glass pie plate, I used 4 eggs. Take the 3 eggs and crack them in a bowl and add one slightly heaping teaspoon of mayonnaise...whisk them all together or use a fork and just beat the tar out of them until it is all well blended. Then add 1/4th to 1/2 cup of milk...or if you are feeling really rich, use cream or half and half...its so good! Anyway, the amount again depends on the size of your plate. Tonight I made 2 quiches and I thought the plates looked the same size, one was glass and one was metal and for the metal one I had to add another egg. Anyway, take the egg mixture and set aside.

Now, spray the pie plate with Pam or some other kind of non-stick spray. Then add your fixins. For this one pictures, I had some leftover ham that I slices up and I sauteed some onions and bell peppers. You really can add whatever you think would be good, I have had all sorts of quiches over the years and have loved almost all of them, even the ones I thought sounded totally bizarre. I put in the bottom of the pan probably about 1/2 cup of chopped up ham and probably 3-4 tablespoons of sauteed vegetables that I chopped up and spread throughout the plate. See below...



Then I added about 3 medium sized handfuls of cheese, in this case I used a Mexican blend but really you can use whatever floats your boat. Sprinkle the cheese over the ham and fixins.

Then take the egg mixture and pour it over the ham and onions and you are ready to bake.
Place the quiche in a 350 degree F oven and cook for about 35 minutes. Basically you want the eggs firm and the edges to be a little browned. If you use a faster melting cheese, the cheese may be brown as well.

Tonight I made 2 quiches and I will freeze one for later, they freeze really well. you can also cut them up into slices and freeze the slices individually and then grab them in the morning on your way to work and just pop them in the microwave for a minute. I actually made quite a bit of the onions and peppers and ham bits so I put the rest back in the saute pan and added some eggs and scrambled them. This mixture went inside some whole wheat tortillas with cheese sprinkled in them and then wrapped up for a breakfast burrito or taco. I have some in the fridge that we will eat for breakfast the next 2 days and then I froze the rest for a quick grab and go breakfast like the quiche slices. I just wrap the burritos up in saran wrap and make sure they are sealed well, then pop them in the freezer. I wrap them up individually so they are easy to grab and warm up.

Some other yummy quiche combinations...

Ham and cheese

Spinach and artichoke with Gruyere

Tomatoe basil

Mushroom and bacon

Sausage and mushroom

Spinach and cheese

I put cheese in all my quiches, so its a given for me.

For breakfast, this is great with some fruit and crusty bread. For lunch or dinner, I would serve it with some crusty bread and probably a soup. This is a great brunch item as well and it also works well for a bridal or baby shower. You can easily double or triple the recipe and make it in a casserole dish, in fact I have a recipe for a fabulous Egg Puff that is really excellent for showers, I will post that recipe later, or email me and I can send it to you. If you make up a 3 egg quiche and after you put it in you think you might need a little more egg (like I did tonight), then all you have to do is beat another egg and just pour it on top and make sure it evens out by moving it around a little with a fork.

If you want it more decadent, then I would use the half and half or cream and use a little more cheese or fancy cheese like Gruyere. Gruyere is a rich nutty Swiss cheese made in Gruyere, Switzerland that is really stinky but tastes so wonderfully delicious. I first had this cheese when my mom and sister brought some back from their trip to Europe and they toured the cheese place in Gruyere...it was so good. I occasionally splurge at the grocery store and get a small hunk (its expensive) and indulge in some fabulous recipes with my Gruyere. I have heard someone say that smelling a good cheese is like smelling the feet of angels...meaning its very smell but also heavenly.

Enjoy!