This week I made a quiche. I'm not exactly sure why—maybe I was craving 1970s food, maybe I was scrounging for dinner in an empty-Monday-night fridge. Whatever the reason, it was delicious. And, then I started thinking...somewhere along the way quiche got a bad rap as a soggy-bottomed rubbery pie served to ladies who lunch. The version I made with a buttery crust, carmelized onions, and lots of cheese was anything but. Perfect for brunch, lunch, or dinner, endlessly adaptable...Why aren't you already making one this week?
Crust Ingredients
I made a crust from scratch. I haven't done this in years and forgot how dead easy it is, but it is a little time consuming because it has to rest in the fridge. If you have a good go-to frozen pie crust and you're in a rush, then use that! Just make sure the crust isn't sweet.
145 grams all-purpose flour (about 1 cup)
½ teaspoon kosher salt
113 grams cold unsalted butter cut into small pieces (1/4 pound or 1 US-sized stick)
3 tablespoons ice water
To Make Crust
Put flour and salt in the bowl of a stand mixer or food processor. Add butter and pulse/mix to cut it into flour until mixture resembles coarse meal.
Add ice water and mix briefly, about 30 seconds, to form a soft dough. Remove dough, shape into a thick disk, wrap in plastic and refrigerate for at least 2 hours or overnight. Bring to cool room temperature (about 15 minutes) before rolling.
To roll, lightly flour dough and counter top. Roll out gradually, periodically letting dough rest for a moment before continuing. This makes rolling easier and will keep dough from shrinking back during baking.
Roll dough to a thin round approximately 13 inches in diameter. Lay dough loosely into a lightly oiled 9 1/2 inch fluted tart pan (you can use a pie pan as well), letting it relax a bit. Fold excess dough back inside to make a double thickness, then press firmly against the pan so the finished edge is slightly higher than the pan. Refrigerate or freeze for an hour before pre-baking.
Preheat oven to 180C (350F). Remove dough from refrigerator and prick all over with a fork. Bake chilled dough for about 15 minutes until dried out and slightly golden. Keep an eye on it, if crust starts to rise in pan, prick it gently with a fork to release and flatten.
Remove cooked crust from oven and leave oven on.
Filling Ingredients
3/4 C Shredded Emmental cheese (Swiss cheese)
3/4 C Shredded Parmesan cheese
1 cup carmelized onions
1/4 cup spring onions sliced thinly
6-8 large eggs (depends on size, Asian eggs are smaller than US)
1/2 cup whole milk, cream or buttermilk
Salt & Pepper
To Make Filling & Assemble
Mix both types of cheese together. Sprinkle about 3/4 cup of cheese mixture on bottom of cooked crust. Reserve rest of the cheese mixture. Sprinkle carmelized onions over the cheese.
Mix together eggs and milk with a wire wisk. Season with salt and pepper. Pour egg mixture over onions and cheese. Be careful not overfill. Sprinkle with spring onions.
Carefully place the quiche in the oven and bake for about 10-12 minutes until the top begins to set. Remove quiche from oven and sprinkle the top with remaining cheese. (It's always a good day when you double down on the cheese). Return quiche to oven and bake another 10-15 minutes until the centre is set.
Remove from oven and cool slightly before cutting into wedges.
Tips:
Mix up your filling ingredients...try adding chopped ham, crumbled chorizo, or left over steak for a non-vegetarian option. Place grilled vegetables like zucchini or eggplant on top of the crust before you add egg mixture. Change your cheeses...a smokey gouda is terrific with a ham or steak quiche. Toss in some cooked spinach (drain it well first) or chopped leftover broccoli. There are so many options. Get creative!