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Home > Archive > Mar 27, 2008

It’s Brunch Time
By Bev Rankin
Spring is coming, and what could be better than to have a brunch after working out in the yard in the early morning? I have learned since moving here that you do your yard work, patio sweeping, etc., in the early mornings, as it gets too warm later in the day. On these particular days, at our house, we like to serve brunch-type foods and have a variety of finger foods available to snack on during the day. In the spring and summertime, we like this method of eating rather than the traditional three meals a day! One of the recipes I use for an everyday-type dish as well as for company is QUICHE. 
Even though quiche is now a classic dish of French cuisine, quiche originated in Germany, and I’m told is from the German word “kuchen,” meaning cake. The original Quiche Lorraine (the French renamed it Lorraine) was an open pie with an egg and cream custard and a little bacon. The addition of cheese came much later, but what a great addition. The bottom crust was originally made from bread dough rather than a piecrust-type dough or puff pastry crust as you oftentimes see it nowadays. 
Quiche wasn’t known to be very popular in England until sometime after WWII and in the United States not until around the 1950s. I think back then, men considered it an unmanly dish because its ingredients were primarily vegetables. I know my Dad would have likely not eaten it. However, today you can find an abundance of quiche recipes that include broccoli, mushrooms, ham, seafood and even zucchini. Today, quiche is found in restaurants all over the world. It can be served as an entree, for breakfast, lunch, dinner or brunch. It is wonderful served with fresh vegetables and fruits. Give it a try. You likely will be surprised at how easy and tasty it is and how many compliments you receive.

Zucchini Quiche
This recipe is kind of like the old Bisquick Quiche recipes where you put a lot of the ingredients in the blender, poured it into a pie tin and when it was baked, amazingly, the crust ended up exactly where it was supposed to be–on the bottom and sides!
1 cup cornbread/muffin mix
1/2 cup grated Parmesan cheese
1/2 tsp. salt
1/4 tsp. pepper
4 eggs
1 cup half-and-half cream
2 Tbsp. vegetable oil
2 cups sliced zucchini
In a small bowl, combine the muffin mix, Parmesan cheese, salt and pepper. Stir in the eggs, cream and oil until blended. Fold in zucchini. Pour into a 10-inch pie tin coated with cooking spray. Bake at 375 degrees for 40-50 minutes or until a knife inserted near the center comes out clean. Let stand for 10 minutes before cutting. I love the flavor of this quiche. Because it has cornbread mix in it, the taste is somewhat sweeter.

Crab Quiche
I’ve used shrimp and lobster in this quiche together with the crab and called it a Seafood Quiche! Use your imagination and the combination your family will eat.
Crust: One extra-large deep-dish frozen pastry crust, slightly thawed for about 15 minutes or one of your own homemade.
Filling:
8 ounces crabmeat, flaked (you can use imitation and it’s hard to tell the difference)
1-1/2 cups shredded Swiss cheese (I like a blend)
1/4 cup chopped green onion
4 eggs
1-1/2 cups whole milk, half-and-half, or light cream
1/2 tsp. salt
1 tsp. ground hot red pepper (can use black if you prefer)
2 tsp. dried parsley, crushed fine
Preheat oven to 425 degrees. Beginning with the cheese, layer 1/2 of the Swiss cheese, 1/2 of the crabmeat, and 1/2 of the green onions in the bottom of the unbaked pastry crust. Repeat layering with remaining cheese, crabmeat and green onions. In a separate bowl, whisk the eggs together. Add milk, salt, pepper and parsley and whisk until combined. Place your pie crust on a stiff baking sheet. Pour egg mixture into the pastry crust. Do not overfill. If there is any extra egg mixture that won’t fit into the crust, just discard it or bake in a small custard cup. Place your filled piecrust on the baking sheet into pre-heated oven and bake for 15 minutes. Lower oven temperature to 300 degrees. Bake for 30-35 minutes more or until when you insert a knife, it comes out clean and the quiche is set. Let sit for 10-15 minutes before cutting.

Bacon, Cheese and Onion Quiche
12 slices of bacon, thawed and fried crispy and crumbled
1-1/2 cups shredded cheddar cheese
1/3 cup finely chopped sweet onion
2 cups milk
1/2 cup biscuit mix
4 eggs
1/2 tsp. salt
1/4 tsp. pepper
Preheat your oven to 350 degrees. Fry bacon, drain, cool, and crumble. In medium bowl, whisk together the milk, biscuit mix, eggs, salt and pepper. Grease a 9- or 10-inch pie plate or quiche baking dish with cooking spray. Layer half of the crumbled bacon, onion and cheddar cheese evenly over the bottom of the dish. Repeat with the remaining half of bacon, onion and cheese.  Pour the egg mixture evenly over the bacon mixture. Make sure the liquid only comes to within 1/4 inch of the top edge of the baking dish. Bake for 50-60 minutes or until knife inserted in center comes out clean.

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