Quiche is usually made with pie crust and you can certainly make this recipe that way. I wanted to overstuff the quiche and make it a dish of vegetables held together by egg rather than a quivering pie of savory custard dotted with vegetables, so I used 1/3 of a batch of my Go-To dough (the remainder of it will get used in tomorrow's calzone) in order to have a sturdy base that will hold up to my hearty filling.
This is a good recipe for getting rid of bits and bobs in the fridge; use whatever you have in terms of vegetables and cheese. I raided the freezer for 1/4 pack of lima beans that had overstayed its welcome - not quite enough for a recipe - and used up various vegetables that I had used in other dishes (grated carrots, spinach, broccoli rabe and artichoke hearts) as well as 1/2 of a Cotija cheese and the tail-end of a red onion. If you have any herbs that are hanging around, chop them up and add them too.
You can fancify this dish by layering the vegetables and then pouring the custard over the top which looks pretty when you cut and serve it or you can cut your prep time and just bung everything in together like I did.
No matter how many times you make it this quiche will never taste the same but it is always really good. It can be served straight from the oven but L. and I prefer it room temperature.
Recipe:
(you will have a portion left to send your child to school with for lunch)
1/2 portion of Go-To dough or your favorite pie crust or even a ball of pizza dough that your favorite pizza joint will be happy to sell you
3 cups assorted vegetables and herbs
1/4 cup chopped onion or shallot
1 cup grated or crumbled cheese - Swiss is good, goat is yummy, Mozzarella works, basically anything you have in the fridge
4 eggs
1 cup milk (or cream if you want a richer quiche)
Salt
1 tsp olive oil
Preheat the oven to 350.
Find a dish that you can use that is deep enough to make a quiche with higher sides than a pie. I threw my 9" spring form pan away recently which was my go-to pan for this recipe, so improvised by using greased aluminum foil on the outside of a 9" layer cake tin and building my dough up along that.
Put your dough in your pan and, using your fingers, press the dough out along the bottom of the pan and up the sides evenly. Set aside to rest while you get your vegetables organized.
Heat the oil in a large frying pan over medium heat. Add the onion and cook for a minute or so. Add your vegetables based on how long you think they will take to cook and finish up with whatever greens you have. Salt the vegetable mix well. Set aside to cool. The vegetables don't have to be cooked through but a little softening is nice before they get mixed with the custard; I usually cook them for 3-5 minutes before removing from the heat.
While the vegetables are cooling, beat the eggs with the milk. Add the cheese and the vegetables, mix well. Pour into your dough lined pan and bake for 40 minutes or until the top is set but a tiny bit jiggly.
You can finish the dish by sprinkling a tablespoon or so of Parmesan on top and pass the quiche under the broiler for a minute or 2 until it is brown and bubbly, which looks pretty.