One girl + 18 eggs = time to make a quiche. In addition to the eggs, the quiche was filled with odds and ends that needed to be used soon: half an onion, a small hunk of Jarlsberg cheese, a few handfuls of baby spinach, and a little feta. I added a potato as well, but that was because it sounded good and I wanted something more to round out the dish. The last time I made a quiche I used an awesome recipe for the crust, and I did the same thing this time around with just a few changes. I swapped out a little of the white flour for whole wheat flour, and instead of thyme I used fresh oregano. I love adding herbs to the crust – no more bland, boring crusts here. The only thing I wish I would have done differently is to use whole milk or a little cream instead of skim. I didn’t feel like running to the store to buy more milk when I already had skim, but I think milk with a little more fat would have baked better. The end result had a slightly runny center, even after a lengthy baking time, and I blame it on the milk. Maybe I used a bit too much, but a few recipes I looked at called for fewer eggs and just as much milk, so I don’t think too much milk was the problem. Or at least not entirely. Even with the unset center, it was really good.
Mediterranean-ish Quiche
Crust recipe slightly adapted from Savory Baking
For the crust:
1 cup all-purpose flour
3/4 cup whole wheat flour
2 tsp chopped fresh oregano or 1 tsp dried
3/4 tsp salt
1/2 cup cold, unsalted butter, cut into 1/2-inch cubes
1/3-2/3 cup cold water
For the filling:
A few handfuls of spinach
1/2 white onion, sliced
1 medium potato, cut into 1/2-inch cubes
1-2 ounces feta*, crumbled
3-4 ounces Jarlsberg*, finely grated
5 eggs
1 1/2 cups milk, cream, or a combination of the two
*I chose feta and Jarlsberg because I had a little of both and they needed to be used up. You can use whatever cheese you have on hand.
Add the flours, oregano, salt, and butter to the bowl of a food processor. Pulse until the butter is in pea-sized chunks, and then pulse while drizzling in the water until the dough starts to form a ball.
Turn out the dough on a floured surface, and knead a couple of times until it comes together. I added a bit too much water, which is why this looks a little sticky. Not a huge deal, but not what you should aim for.
Form the dough into a disk about 1″ thick, wrap it in plastic, and refrigerate for at least 15 minutes.
Preheat the oven to 400. Once the dough has chilled, transfer it to a floured surface, dust the top with a little flour, and roll it out into a 12-inch circle. Carefully fold it in half and transfer it to a 9-inch pie plate or cake pan, pressing it into the corners and up the edges. Slice off anything hanging off the edge, and pinch and prod the edges to make them look pretty. I should note that this picture only shows the pretty half of my crust; the other half was not quite as presentable.
Line the crust with foil or parchment paper, fill with pie weights or dried beans, place the pan on a baking sheet, and bake on the bottom rack for 30 minutes, or until the bottom is beginning to brown. Remove from the oven and reduce the oven temperature to 325.
While the crust is baking, you can prepare the filling. Start by cooking the spinach in a bit of oil over medium heat until it wilts. Transfer it to a few paper towels or a kitchen towel, let cool, and then squeeze out any excess moisture.
In the same pan sauté the onion in a little oil for 5-10 minutes, and then add the potato. You may need to add a little more oil before adding the potato – I did. Cook over medium heat until the potatoes are done – maybe 20 minutes? I’m not very good at keeping track of time when cooking. You can cover the pan to speed up the cooking time. Season with salt and pepper. You could stop right here, top off the potatoes with a fried egg, and have a great breakfast, but we’ll keep going.
In a large bowl whisk together the eggs and milk as well as 1/8-1/4 tsp of salt and some freshly cracked pepper.
Spread the potato, onion, and spinach over the bottom of the crust. Sprinkle with a little feta.
Cover with the Jarlsberg.
Pour the egg mixture over the other ingredients.
Bake at 325 until the center jiggles slightly, anywhere from 35-70 minutes. I know that’s a really broad range, but after checking at 35 minutes then resetting the timer a couple of times I kind of lost track. I would go more by the consistency of the quiche than the time.
Set the pan on a cooling rack for 10 minutes before slicing. Serve with the best bacon you can find. Or some mixed greens. Whichever you prefer.
