French Spinach Quiche
The quiche is the quintessential egg casserole that offers unlimited by only your imagination flavor combinations.
This custard like pie is my go-to for deep dish baked casseroles. Fresh sautéed spinach with wine-soaked shallots and mushrooms provide a wonderful compliment to the eggs. Swiss and Gruyere provide the gooey, silky, and mellow flavor and support set-up the dish. Serve with a light green salad lightly dressed to offset the creaminess of the quiche.
For a little variety take the base quiche recipe and incorporate diced Black Forest ham, portobello mushrooms, and scallions.
Whatcha Need
1 tablespoons unsalted butter
¼ cup dry white wine
1 shallot, finely chopped
2 cloves garlic, minced
2 cups baby spinach leaves, sauteed, cooled and liquid squeezed
½ cup button mushrooms, finely chopped
3 large eggs
1 cup heavy cream
½ cup half & half
½ teaspoon lemon juice
2 tablespoons chives, finely diced
pinch nutmeg
⅛ teaspoon cayenne pepper
½ teaspoon kosher salt
1 teaspoon ground black pepper
1 ½ cups swiss cheese, grated
1 ½ cups gruyere cheese, grated
1 pie crust, blind baked for 6 minutes
Did You Know
~ Blind baking helps set the crust before pouring in the liquid. You can invest in pie weights or utilize dry white beans usually on-hand for soups.
~ Fresh spinach is mostly comprised of moisture so be sure to squeeze as much liquid as possible from the wilted leaves or your filling may be too loose.
How It’s Made
Preheat oven to 375℉.
Roll out and place the pie crust in a 9” glass pie pan. Bake for 6 minutes to set the crust and keep it from getting soggy.
In a skillet melt the butter, wine and add in the diced shallot. Cook until soft, about 6 minutes. Add in garlic and mushrooms and cook for 5 minutes until liquid is absorbed and mushrooms are reduced in size by half. Strain residual liquids and transfer to a bowl to cool.
In the same skillet, sauté with a sprinkle of olive oil the spinach in small batches, about 2 minutes. Remove once wilted to a plate and repeat cooking all the leaves. Let cool slightly and squeeze by hand to remove any excess liquid so the egg mixture sets.
In a large bowl, whisk together the eggs, cream, half-and-half, chives or scallions, nutmeg, cayenne, salt, and pepper. Stir in the spinach and mushroom mixture. Add half of cheeses to the pie pan spread evenly over the crust as this will help set the egg mixture and keep crust flaky. Add the cheese to the eggs and fold in. Slowly pour the egg mixture into the blind baked pie shell.
Bake until the quiche is lightly golden and set in the center when the pan is gently pushed, about 40 - 45 minutes. If the crust is browning too quickly, cover with foil to prevent burning.
Remove from the oven and let stand for 20 to 30 minutes before serving. Cut into 6 to 8 slices and serve warm or at room temperature.
Wrap leftovers with plastic wrap and stir in refrigerator for up to 2 days.