Broccoli & Cheddar Quiche

I make Quiche often and in so many variations. I find it an excellent and elegant way to use up all the bits of vegetables and cheeses and the couple of eggs left in the fridge at the end of the week. I always seem to have scraps of frozen dough in my freezer as well so I can usually pull this together in very short order.

However, if you're not a baker like me and don't have a freezer full of dough scraps, you can always use a frozen pie crust or even a piece of frozen puff pastry for your crust. This week's quiche features broccoli and cheddar but it could just as easily be any other vegetable (or meat) that you prefer. Just substitute based on your taste in the same quantity as listed below.

You can also vary the texture of the custard by adding more or less milk. Sometimes I don't want a particularly 'custardy' quiche so I cut the milk way back or add the eggs without any milk at all. Doing so makes the quiche more like a fritatta, with a crust. You can however add up to 3/4 cup of milk or cream to the 3 eggs listed here, or any amount in between. The more milk you add, the softer and richer the filling will be.

For the Quiche:

Yields 1, 9" x 1" tart

10 oz Pate Brisee (recipe & instructions here)

1 medium onion, halved and thinly sliced, about 1 cup

2 medium heads broccoli, florets only, about 1.5 cups

1 medium beefsteak tomato, sliced into 5 rounds

1 cup grated sharp white cheddar cheese

3 large eggs

1/4- 3/4 cup whole milk or heavy cream

1 tsp Herbes de Provence

1/4 tsp red chili flakes

sea salt & freshly ground black pepper

1) Heat 1 TB olive oil in a large saute pan. Add the onion and saute until translucent, about 2-3 minutes. Add the broccoli, herbes de provence, red chili flakes, salt & pepper and continue cooking until the broccoli is bright green and just tender. Remove from heat and set aside to cool.

2) Remove the crust from the refrigerator and line the bottom with parchment. Place a sheet of foil over the parchment and press both tightly into the bottom and sides of the tart pan. Bake the crust for 10-12 minutes until just parbaked. Remove the foil and parchment and set aside to cool for 5 minutes.

3) In a small bowl, whisk together the eggs and the milk or cream. Season with salt & pepper, set aside.

4) Sprinkle the bottom of the crust with half of the cheese. Add the cooked vegetables and spread out evenly across the bottom of the crust. Sprinkle the top with the remaining cheese. Pour the custard mixture over the veggies and cheese. Lay the tomato slices on top and nestle them down into the custard, just a bit.

5) Bake at 375 for 25-35 minutes until the custard is set and the quiche is golden brown. Let cool at least 10 minutes before slicing. Serve just warm or at room temperature.