Quiche: The Anytime Meal

There are times when the rhythm of everyday meals—those familiar staples we turn to again and again—can start to feel a little monotonous. It’s in those moments that introducing something new to the table makes all the difference. A fresh dish not only breaks the monotony but also brings a sense of excitement and variety to the table, turning dinner into a more enjoyable occasion.

Quiche is one such dish. Warm, comforting, and full of flavor, it makes for a delightful alternative to everyday meals. Served straight from the oven, it offers a satisfying balance of texture and taste. While weeknight dinners often make it challenging for families to gather together, this dish is especially enjoyable when shared at the table, creating a moment of togetherness around something special.

Although quiche is now a classic dish of French cuisine, quiche actually originated in Germany, in the medieval kingdom of Lothringen, under German rule, and which the French later renamed Lorraine. The word ‘quiche’ is from the German ‘Kuchen’, meaning cake. 

The original ‘Quiche Lorraine’ was an open pie with a filling consisting of an egg and cream custard with smoked bacon. It was only later that cheese was added to the quiche Lorraine. Add onions and you have Quiche Alsacienne. There are many variants of quiche, including a wide variety of ingredients. 

Variants may be named descriptively, often in French, e.g. quiche au fromage (quiche with cheese) and quiche aux champignons (quiche with mushrooms) or conventionally, e.g. florentine (spinach) and provençale (tomatoes).

Quiche became popular in England sometime after the Second World War, and in the U.S. during the 1950's. Quiche is one of those perfect dishes that's great in the morning, noon, or night. 

At its core, the ingredients are simple — pie crust, eggs, milk and your favourite fillings.....my mantra of easy cooking. Here, I've made a 9 inch quiche with onions, sausages, olives and basil.....just to keep it simple.

Here's the recipe:

Ingredients:

Basic crust
1 1/2 cups flour
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/2 Cup cold unsalted butter
1 egg yolk
1 tablespoon ice water

Filling
1 Tbsp Olive Oil
1 Onion. chopped
1-2 Chicken Sausages, sliced
5-6 Black Olives, pitted & sliced
1 Cup Mozzarella Cheese, grated
3 Eggs
1 1/2 Cup Milk
1 tsp Dried Basil leaves


Method:
For the crust
Using food processor, pulse the flour, salt to combine thoroughly.  Cut cold butter into small cubes. 
Add the butter into the food processor and pulse until the consistency becomes that of a coarse meal. (Or if you don't have a food processor, you can mix it up with your hand....that's what I did.)
In a small cup, combine the egg yolk, ice water and stir well together. Add the egg mixture to the food processor and pulse to combine.
Dust working surface with a very small amount of flour. Shape the dough into a disk. (dusted slightly with flour). I usually do it with my fingers pushing the dough away from its centre into a round shape.
Bring the tart pan over the tart dough to make sure the round is larger in diameter than a tart pan. Grease the tart pan. Then, ease the round dough into the tart pan, patting it firmly into the bottom and up the sides. 
If some pieces of crust fall off, just gently press them back. Extend the dough slightly above the rim to compensate for any shrinkage during baking.

For the Filling
Heat pan and pour some olive oil. Sauté onions till they are translucent. Add in the sausage. Sauté for some time, till there is no moisture. Add the olives and mix well. 

Here's where we can add more items like mushrooms, bacon, blanched & drained spinach. Remember to sauté till there is no water, else the crust will become soggy.

Set aside to cool. 
Grate 1 cup of mozzarella cheese and 1/2 cup of cheddar cheese.  Mix it up and keep it aside. 

Beat 3 large eggs and 1 1/2 cups of whole milk. Season it well with salt & pepper. Add some dried basil leaves. And mix it and keep aside.

Assembling & Baking the quiche

Once the filling has cooled, put it inside the crust pan. Top it with the filling mixture and grated cheeses. Then pour over the milk and egg custard mixture.
Bake it in the preheated oven for 45 mins at 180°C. 

Quiche is ready!!!

I recommend to have it while it is still warm. The buttery crust and the cheesy filling with the yummy custard....have one mouthful and you'd feel you are in heaven. 

It's a great dish and can be had at any time of the day. It's a pretty heavy meal in itself. There are just so many different fillings you can add into this.

And it need not be a savoury dish all the time...... use the same crust recipe and fill it with your favourite fruits and cream or just plain chocolate....and you can turn it into a fabulous dessert.

Try it soon!!!