Ham, broccoli and tomato quiche revisited

Having made and eaten the quiche described in the previous posting, I have a few comments to make which I forgot in the original.  To ensure that the bottom of the pastry wasn't soggy, I pre-baked it for 10 minutes.  Make sure the watch the time or else it can get quite crispy in the next 35 minutes of baking the quiche.  To make sure that the broccoli and tomatoes didn't contribute too much in the way of extra liquids to the quiche, I defrosted the broccoli on paper towel and kept changing it as it became saturated.  Also, after cutting the tomatoes in half, I laid them cut side down on paper towel to remove some the their juices.  All in all, it worked out very well!

Ham, Broccoli and Tomato Quiche

Ingredients

• 1 pie crust, pre-baked for 10 minutes
• 1 1/2 cups cubed cooked ham
• 1 1/2 cups cheddar cheese
• 1 cup  frozen broccoli florets, thawed, well drained
• 10 to 15 cherry tomatoes, halved and drained on paper towel
• 4 eggs
• 1 cup milk
• 1/2 teaspoon salt(unless the ham is salty!)
• 1/2 teaspoon dijon mustard
• 1/2 teaspoon pepper

Directions

Heat oven to 375 degrees F / 190 degrees C

Make pie crust as directed and pre-bake for 10 minutes at 400 F or 200 C


Layer ham, cheese and thawed broccoli and cherry tomatoes in pie crust-lined pan. In medium bowl, beat all remaining ingredients until well blended. Pour over ingredients.  Bake 35 to 45 minutes or until knife inserted in center comes out clean.

Quiche Lorraine

Though Quiche Lorraine doesn't see like a dish that would be economical, you could feed 6 people with this and a salad.  

Quiche Lorrraine (From the BBC website, The Good Cook programme)

For the pastry

• 60g/2oz butter, cut into small pieces
• 60g/2oz lard, cut into small pieces
• 200g/7oz self-raising flour
• pinch salt
• 2-3 tbsp ice-cold water

For the filling

• 8-10 thin rashers good quality smoked streaky bacon
• 4 free-range egg yolks
• 3 free-range eggs
• 400ml/14fl oz whipping cream
• salt and freshly ground white pepper
• freshly grated nutmeg

Preparation method

1. For the pastry, place the butter, lard, flour and salt into a food processor. Pulse the mixture until it resembles coarse breadcrumbs.
   
2. Place the pastry into a mixing bowl and, using a round-bladed knife, stir in enough water to bind the mixture together. Lightly knead the dough until well amalgamated, dust with flour and slip into a plastic bag. Chill in the fridge for 30 minutes before using.
   
3. Preheat the oven to 180C/350F/Gas 4 and warm a baking sheet.
   
4. Roll out the pastry as thinly as possible. Line a 20cm/8in wide by 4cm/1½in deep tart tin and lightly prick the base of the pastry with a fork all over. Place onto a baking tray, line with greased aluminium foil and baking beans and bake blind for 15-20 minutes.
5. Remove the baking beans and foil. Place the tart case back into the oven and cook for a further 10 minutes, or until it is pale golden, crisp and cooked through.
6. Fry the bacon in a dry, non-stick frying pan for 1-2 minutes, or until crisp. Drain onto kitchen paper and spread out evenly over the base of the cooked tart case.
   
7. Whisk the egg yolks and whole eggs together in a bowl. Stir in the cream and season with salt, pepper and nutmeg. Pour the mixture into the pastry case and cook for 30-40 minutes, or until nicely puffed and the surface of the custard is pale golden and just set.
   
8. Eat warm, or at room temperature.