Winter Vegetable Quiche

I love making quiche because the combination of ingredients are endless and I can just throw together whatever I'm in the mood for or when I need to use up a bunch of produce. Also, it's perfect for breakfast, lunch or dinner. It's easy to reheat and tastes so good when you take a little extra time to make your own crust. I used to be really intimidated by my mom's homemade crust but all it takes is making it once and you will always prefer it over something frozen. And as far as quiches go, there are a million recipes out there which vary in the amount of eggs, milk and cheese used. This one uses a modest amount of dairy and lots of tasty vegetables. 

This homemade pie crust looks golden and dreamy in natural light, waiting to be filled with beautiful winter vegetables.

QUICHE
4 eggs
1 cup of milk
1 cup of shredded mozzarella (swiss, provolone, cheddar and gruyere all work fine too)
2 tablespoons of flour
1|2 pound mushrooms
about 2 cups of greens - I used baby kale and spinach
1|2 cup sweet peppers such as red or yellow bell, chopped
1|2 cup diced red onion
3 cloves minced garlic
sliced tomatoes
1|4 cup good sausage or bacon are good in here too - I used soysage to keep it vegetarian
a big pinch of dried mustard
salt + pepper
crushed red pepper flakes for heat
smoked paprika
nutritional yeast (optional)
freshly grated parmesan for the top
olive oil or fresh butter for the saute

DIRECTIONS
Preheat your oven to 375. In a medium sized bowl, whisk the eggs, milk, flour and nutritional yeast together and set aside while you make the saute. Heat a skillet and melt in your oil or butter. Add the onion and cook for about 5 minutes. Add the peppers, mushrooms, garlic, dried mustard and crushed red pepper and cook for another 5 minutes. Add your greens and a splash of water. Cover and turn off the heat for another 5 minutes. The greens will wilt and turn bright green. Stir in your cooked sausage, bacon or soysage if using and season with salt + pepper. Spread the shredded cheese in the bottom of your pie crust. See the highly recommended recipe and directions for my homemade crust below. Spread the vegetable mixture over the cheese. Pour the egg mixture in last. Arrange the sliced tomatoes over the top in a circular pattern. Sprinkle them with black pepper, smoked paprika and parmesan cheese. Bake for 35 - 45 minutes until the pie is firm in the middle and has risen. Allow it to cool for at least 15 -20 before cutting into it. I always serve cooked dishes with something raw. In this case, I made a small avocado salad on top of a handful of the reserved, uncooked greens and drizzled the whole thing with Sriracha! It is so good any time of the day. Hearty, satisfying comfort food that is full of essential nutrients, minerals, fiber and healthy fats and proteins. Of course, there is room for many optional embellishments here. Go crazy with it and make something unique!

HOMEMADE PIE CRUST

6 tablespoons of COLD butter

1 1|2 cups unbleached, organic white or whole grain pastry flour

4 tablespoons cold water, milk or buttermilk

pinch of salt

DIRECTIONS

Whisk the flour and salt together. Using a pastry blender, cut the butter into the flour until it resembles crumbly sand. Mix in the water with a spoon until just combined. Don't overdo this step. If you don't have a pastry blender, you can use a food processor. See photos in my previous post about how to use a pastry blender and what it looks like here. Flour a clean surface that you can roll it out the dough on. Using a rolling pin, start rolling the dough outward in a uniform circle until it's an inch bigger than your pie plate. Gently lift it up and center it in your dish. Press it into the corners gently and crimp the rim with your fingers or shape it around the fluted edge of one. Use scissors to trim the edge neatly. I always roll the extra dough out and put it on a sheet pan for a few minutes to make little pastry chips. You can crumble them up on top of your salad or eat them on the side. Who doesn't love a little extra crust?

ENJOY!!