easy cheesy tuscan quiche

Shout out to the random jar of sundried tomatoes in my pantry for inspiring this quichey iteration.

And, shout out to a pal on Instagram for suggesting a quiche when I was wholly stumped and uninspired regarding my recipe developments this week. Real MVP here, since clearly my brain was malfunctioning on Monday and nothing sounded good. Once I got the wheels turning on my walk, though, I realized I had some rad ingredients I could incorporate into an eggy brunch dish. So, huzzah!

When I lived in Sweden I visited a particular cafe in Uppsala at least four or five times a week for lunch and a study session. Most coffee shops up there don’t have WiFi, since the practice of fika and spending time unplugged with friends and family is cherished, but this one did and served as my study spot for most of the stay. I’d always order a latte of some sort, and either a big veggie sandwich or a broccoli cheddar quiche. I probably blew most of my money at Cafe Linne.

A fun aside: one of the staffers there I think came to recognize me and, blessedly, never converted to English when I tried my lame Swedish when ordering. Most folks there could detect my Americanness and would just automatically switch to English; she, though, seemed to know I was trying in earnest to learn the local tongue. One particular time, though, I totally butchered their pronunciation of the broccoli quiche. I believe it was spelled broccolipaj or similar. Kinda had to go to English to correct that one.

I don’t order quiches often nowadays, especially because they don’t seem particularly common in places I quasi-frequent. They are, however, a rad little brunch idea for Mother’s Day upcoming, and thanks to those aforementioned sundried tomatoes, the Easy Cheesy Tuscan Quiche was born.

Ya’ll, aside from the pain in the fucking ass pie crusts are, this quiche is simple. After blind-baking the crust (no, neither you nor the crust goes blind in this process, don’t worry) all you need to do is whisk some shit, layer some shit, and bake the shit. Then, you eat the shit. Meaty sundried tomatoes, fresh kale, herbs, and a dose of mozzarella cheese along with a silky egg custard make this a filling and delicious savory brunch, lunch, or even a breakfast-for-dinner if you’re so inclined.

Third Pie Blind

FMG doesn’t boast a lot of pie recipes because, well, pie crust is really annoying. I’ll be the first to admit that, and also disclaim that if your crust is ugly, that’s okay. The most important aspect is that it stays mostly intact.

I find that most storebought crusts, weirdly, don’t fit 9-inch pie pans properly, so I suggest finding a good recipe and making your own. I prefer an all-butter pie crust since it has a richer flavor. Whatever route you choose, grab your pie plate and form the crust as you wish/are able. Crimp the edges, press with the tines of a fork, or leave them raw. Doesn’t really matter.

Pop the crust back in the fridge for about 30 minutes as you preheat the oven to 375. This is extremely important to preserving the flakiness of the base.

The next step is to blind-bake the crust. Or par-bake. I don’t really know why it’s called blind baking, you ain’t doing that shit with your eyes closed or anything. If you have pie weights, use these, otherwise use the parchment and dried beans trick: lay parchment over the crust and pour dried beans over top, letting the parchment sink into the body of the crust. Spread the beans around to fill the crannies you may have created when forming your shape.

Bake for 15 minutes pressed down, then carefully lift out the parchment and beans (I spilled some on the floor, oops) and prick the bottom of the crust with a fork. Bake about 5-8 minutes longer until lightly golden.

Custard Flustered

I’d say now the hardest part is over. I wrestled with the damn pie crust for like 30 minutes before I was happy with the fluting. You might be more skilled than I am, though.

Lower the oven heat to 350 and let the crust cool on the counter while you prep the filling. Whisk up a few eggs with some whole milk and heavy cream (or coconut milk, as I did, to lower the lactose quantity) as well as minced shallot, fresh oregano, and garlic powder. I prefer garlic powder to fresh cloves for a more even distribution of garlic essence.

Layering a quiche is nice to ensure an even distribution of components in every slice. Start with half of the shredded mozzarella spread on the bottom, then half of the chopped Tuscan kale (or regular, if that’s what you’ve got) and sundried tomatoes. Pour the custard overtop, then layer the remaining cheese, kale, and tomatoes.

Bake for 45-55 minutes, until the center no longer jiggles aggressively and an inserted skewer or toothpick emerges clean. Cool the quiche about 15 minutes before slicing. This helps the eggs set up a bit more, so it’s important to not overbake the filling.

I love a slice of quiche either warm or at room temp with a crisp salad on the side, dressed in the poppy seed vinaigrette from my strawberry fields salad. A quiche can really be a meal on its own, for any time of day. A toss of lemony arugula is a nice addition too, or just some fresh herbs. Tuscan dishes are quite rich without much more adornment!

Save this for Mother’s Day or whenever you’re hosting a brunch or potluck. Or, as my Instagram cohort said, when you have a shit ton of eggs to use and no real idea what to do with them.

Tried this recipe out? Leave a rating and comment below with your thoughts, and don’t forget to come say hi on Instagram and show me what you made!

Brunch partay!

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