City Muse

29 May, 2006

Quiche Florentine

This is one of those dishes that D. tells me never to cook again because it's so good he ends up eating too much.

I have to say the yum to effort ratio is worth it. I make the crust from scratch when I have time but when I want it quick, those frozen pre-made pie shells are good, too.

My quiche florentine varies slightly from the traditional version. I add tomatoes and mushrooms to the usual ingredients of bacon, spinach, onions, cream and cheese. I also saute the spinach in garlic for added flavor before folding it into the custard mixture. Finally, substituting crab meat for the bacon also makes for a delicious, savory quiche.

I usually serve this dish with a vinaigrette salad garnished with fruits in season; oranges, mangoes, strawberries or kiwi are all good choices.

Quiche Florentine

1 9-inch prepared pastry shell, baked
1/2 lb. bacon, chopped
3 cloves garlic, peeled and minced
1 bunch fresh spinach, washed, trimmed and chopped
1 medium tomato, chopped
1 c. mushrooms, sliced
1/4 c. scallions, chopped
4 large eggs
1/2 c. cream
1/2 c. shredded swiss cheese
1/2 c. shredded cheddar cheese
1/4 tsp. ground nutmeg
salt and pepper to taste

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

In a large pan, fry chopped bacon over medium high heat until crispy. Transfer bacon to plate lined with paper towel. Drain all but 1 tbsp. of bacon drippings from the pan.

Saute chopped garlic in bacon drippings until light brown. Add chopped spinach and saute until spinach wilts. Transfer sauteed spinach into a bowl and add tomatoes, mushrooms, scallions, fried bacon and cheese.

In another bowl, beat eggs and cream together until well mixed. Pour custard into first bowl of ingredients and season with nutmeg, salt and pepper. Fold mixture well and pour into pre-baked pie crust.

Place quiche in the middle rack of the oven and bake until the custard is set and the top is brown, about an hour.

Serve hot.

posted at 11:58 AM by City Muse