Broccoli-cheddar quiche

by

Serves 6–8

1 9-inch piecrust (homemade or store-bought)

½ tablespoon olive oil

½ red onion, sliced

2 cups broccoli florets, steamed

1 cup grated cheddar cheese

6 eggs

¾ cup heavy cream

1 tablespoon chopped fresh basil

1 tablespoon chopped fresh tarragon

Kosher salt, to taste

Freshly ground black pepper, to taste

¼ teaspoon red pepper flakes

Preheat oven to 375 F. In a 9-inch pie plate, arrange and crimp piecrust. Cover crust with parchment paper and weight with dried beans or piecrust weights. Bake crust 15 minutes or until edges start to brown. Remove from oven, and lift off parchment paper and beans. Set crust aside.

In a medium skillet, over medium heat, add olive oil and saute onion until caramelized, about 10–12 minutes. Let cool slightly. Layer onion, broccoli and cheese in the piecrust.

In a medium mixing bowl, combine eggs, cream, herbs, salt, pepper and pepper flakes, and beat lightly with a whisk. Pour over broccoli mixture. Bake 30 minutes or until eggs are set. Let rest at least 15 minutes before serving. Serve warm or at room temperature.

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Recipe tips

Why blind bake a crust?

Blind baking the crust before adding the filling helps prevent the moisture in your pie filling from making the crust soggy. This works great for one-crust pies and quiches.

A blind bake is simple: Arrange the crust in your pie pan, and crimp the edges. Lay a sheet of parchment paper over the crust, and fill the crust with pie weights or dried beans. Bake for about 15­–20 minutes until the edge of the crust starts to brown. Remove from oven, and remove the parchment and beans. Let the crust cool completely before adding your filling.

How do you substitute fresh herbs or dried herbs?

You’ve got dried parsley, but your recipe calls for fresh. Or maybe it’s the other way around. Either way, how can you substitute what you’ve got for what you need? Remember, the flavor intensifies when herbs are dried, so dried herbs pack more punch.

Just use this formula:

When the recipe calls for fresh herbs: Use 1/3 the recipe amount of dried instead.

When the recipe calls for dried herbs: Use 3 times the recipe amount of fresh instead.