Quiche Lorraine
When it comes to timeless and sophisticated dishes, Quiche Lorraine reigns supreme. This beloved French pastry dish, renowned for its rich and creamy filling, savory bacon or ham, gruyere cheese and flaky crust, takes a bit of time but the end result is so worth it.
Quiche is the ultimate crowd-pleasing dish that can be made with any of your favourite vegetables, meats, and cheeses. Quiche can be served on its own, or paired with salad, soup, or some fruit or even some hash browns for a nice breakfast or brunch dish. If you are serving a larger crowd you could even use muffin tins or mini muffin tins and make mini quiches.
This quiche recipe is a perfect starting point for making any quiche. It’s all baked in a flaky homemade pie crust. Like most quiches it is made with eggs and a combination of milk and heavy cream for a rich and creamy filling. Add in any of your favorite meats or cheeses if you want to experiment with flavors. Some of my favorites are spinach, bacon, cheddar, asparagus, feta cheese, white cheddar, caramelized onions, crab or shrimp. The possibilities are endless.
Quiche is a perfect brunch dish, but it’s perfect any time really. I love leftover quiche for a quick breakfast, lunch or dinner. And if you want an impressive dish for a crowd, mini quiche are perfect. It is often one of my go to dishes for an easy appetizer when company’s coming. This recipe does not disappoint it is simple and consistently delicious.
Quiche Lorraine is a culinary masterpiece that embodies the essence of French cuisine – simple yet elegant. Its rich history and straightforward preparation make it a timeless favorite for brunches, lunches, or dinners. Whether you enjoy it with a crisp salad, a glass of white wine, or all on its own, Quiche Lorraine is sure to delight your taste buds with its harmonious blend of flavors. So why not try your hand at making this classic dish and savor the taste of French tradition in the comfort of your own home?
What exactly is Quiche?:
Quiche is a savory egg custard pie that is loaded with your favorite filllings and baked into perfection. Even non egg lovers will enjoy this tasty dish. If you are looking to cut carbs or have gluten sensitivity you can actually make a crustless quiche, which is also called a “frittata”. Traditionally a frittata has more eggs and less cream than a quiche, so keep that in mind if you omit the crust. A non-stick or well oiled skillet will allow the frittata to easily release from the pan. Make sure you use an oven safe pan, whichever one you choose.
Although quiche is an “egg custard” pie, it doesn’t really taste eggy at all. What you will taste is whatever savory fillings you decide to add in, enveloped in a rich, creamy and soft egg mixture. The cream and cheese is more of what you will experience than actual egg. The egg is the vehicle..not the highlight of the quiche.
How to make a perfect Quiche:
- Blind Bake Your Pie Crust – This prevents a soggy crust. Add some pie weights or dried beans in parchment or foil on top of the raw crust and bake for 30 minutes. Let cool then proceed with the recipe.
- Add-Ins – prepare your meats, veggies and cheeses of choice. Make sure to partially cook anything needing more time as they will not “cook” in the quiche. These include onion, bacon, veggies (such as asparagus, spinach, mushrooms etc.)
- Combine Eggs & Milk/Cream and seasonings – I use a 4 egg per cup of cream/milk for perfect quiche. Season with pepper, salt and nutmeg.
- Bake – Pour filling into crust and bake until just about set, at least 45 minutes. A little jiggle in the center is fine.
- Cool – Let the quiche cool at least 15 minutes before cutting. It will still be warm.
The basic Ingredients:
- Pie Crust – You cannot beat the flavor and texture of a good homemade pastry crust. My go to recipe is from Tenderflake and it never fails. I usually have a few discs of pie dough in my freezer ready to go. If you’re not into making pie crust, invest in a good quality store bought one…again Tenderflake is my go to if I buy it.
- Heavy Cream and Milk – For the best tasting quiche, use a combination of whole milk and heavy cream. All cream is okay but it will yield a heavier/thicker filling.
- Eggs – Use 4 eggs per 1 cup of milk/cream.
- Salt and Pepper and nutmeg – You can omit the salt if you are adding a salty addition such as bacon or ham. However, if you are making a plain quiche I recommend all three.
Quiche Lorraine
Equipment
- 1 large deep dish pie plate *omit if using store bought crust in aluminum foil pie plate
Ingredients
- 1 pre made pie crust (homemade or storebought)
- 6 lg eggs * see notes
- 1 cup heavy whipping cream
- ½ cup whole milk
- 1 cup shredded gruyere cheese (or swiss)
- 3 slices crispy cooked bacon diced, or ham diced
- ½ large onion, diced
- ⅓ tsp Salt & Pepper (each)
- pinch fresh nutmeg
Instructions
- preheat oven to 350℉ to blind bake your pie crust. This is to prevent the filling from making the crust soggy
- Once preheated, line the crust with parchment paper or foil and fill with pie weights or raw beans of any variety
- Place pie crust in preheated oven and bake for 20 minutes until lightly browned
- While the crust is baking, prepare your filling
- cook and dice the bacon if using, or dice the ham
- dice the onion and precook in a saute pan until translucent, set aside
- In a large bowl combine the 6 lg eggs, 1 cup heavy whipping cream, ½ cup whole milk, ⅓ tsp Salt & Pepper (each), and pinch fresh nutmeg
- Whisk to combine
- Once the crust is baked remove from the oven and let it cool. Add the onions, ham or bacon and cheese, then pour the egg and cream mixture over the fillings, be careful not to overfill as the filling will rise when cooking, then fall again.
- Place the pie plate on a sheet pan and put in the oven and bake for 45 minutes then test for doneness.
- The pie should be a little loose in the center but not too jiggly. If it needs more time (depending on the depth of your pie tin it could take up to an additional 10-15 minutes), give it extra time and check every 5 minutes. Once its golden on top and not too loose, remove and set aside to cool for at least 15 minutes before cutting. You can insert a knife in the center and if it comes out mostly clean it is done.