As a mother of chickens, I’ve often times found myself with several dozen eggs sitting in my fridge and nothing to do with them. As a pharmacist who typically works long 12 hour shifts, I’m also a huge fan of pre-made breakfasts that I can reheat the next day. Quiche is the perfect solution for both of these problems.
If I am in a big hurry, I will just use a store bought pre-made dough for the crust, but I really enjoy the deliciousness of a made from scratch quiche crust, so often I will opt to make it myself, and its actually pretty simple. Once you get past the fact that the crust will fall apart, and accept that it can easily be pressed back together, its a piece of cake! (Or a piece of quiche?)
I’ve always used a can of evaporated milk because I prefer the consistency of the quiche that it produces, but you can use several different types, such as whole milk, heavy cream, or half and half. The higher the fat content of your milk, the more dense your quiche will be, so play around with different types to determine your favorite.
As far as ingredients go, the possibilities are endless. This particular combo of spinach, mushroom, and gruyere just happens to be one of my favorites.
Easy Mushroom and Spinach Quiche with Gruyere
Ingredients
- 8 oz mushrooms any type will work: criminis, bellas, oysters, etc.
- 4 oz. Gruyere shredded
- 6 oz spinach leafs
- 4 large eggs
- 1 can evaporated milk (or 1 1/4 cup)
- 1 stick cold unsalted butter cubed
- 1 cup all purpose flour
- 1 egg yolk
- 1/2 tsp salt
- 1 tbsp ice cold water
Instructions
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Preheat oven to 350.
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In a food processor, combine butter and flour. Pulse until combined and crumbly.
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Add the egg yolk, salt, and water. Pulse until entirely mixed.
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Turn the dough out on a floured surface. Shape into a 1/2 inch thick disc, wrap in plastic wrap, and refrigerate for 30 minutes.
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Flour a sheet of parchment paper. Place the dough on the parchment and roll it out until it is roughly the same size as your pie pan, plus extra for edges. (It does not have to be in a perfect circle, and it will probably fall apart when you transfer it to the pan, but that's ok, it can easily be pressed back together.)
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Grease the pie pan and press the dough into the pan, pressing any holes or tears together, and forming the edges. Cover with parchment paper and 1 cup dry rice (or baking beads if you have them.) Bake at 350 for 20 minutes, then remove from the oven and allow to cool.
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While crust is baking, heat 1 tbsp olive oil in a large pan over medium heat. Add mushrooms and sauté 5-6 minutes. Season with salt and pepper.
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dd spinach to pan and sauté until wilted. Season with salt and pepper and remove from heat.
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Grate the Gruyere. In a large bowl, whisk together eggs and milk. Season with salt and pepper. Add mushrooms, spinach, and cheese to egg mixture. Stir until combined. Pour mixture into quiche crust.
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Bake at 350 for 45 minutes or until toothpick inserted in center comes out clean and top is lightly browned and bubbly. (If the edges of your crust start to get too dark midway through baking, you can remove the pan from the oven and cover the edges of the crust in foil for the remainder of the baking time.)