soggy and the thinner portions will be more suitable for a first course.
If you’d like to come up with your own combinations of ingredients for a quiche, just keep in mind that you’ll need enough diced ingredients to cover the bottom of the tart shell (about 2 cups).
QUICHE LORRAINE
Quiche Lorraine is the best known of all quiches. It is traditionally made in a deep crust, and one slice can serve as a light meal. I prefer it made with a light and delicate custard in a shallower tart shell and served as a first course. Recipes for this classic quiche vary in a number of ways. Half an onion can be chopped, sautéed, and added to the filling; crumbled bacon can be used instead of ham; and the custard can be made with more eggs and heavy cream.
SERVES 6 TO 8
Tart Pastry ( page 213 )
1 tablespoon Dijon mustard
2 eggs plus
1 egg yolk
1½ cups milk
¼ teaspoon salt
⅛ teaspoon freshly ground pepper Pinch of freshly grated nutmeg
¼ pound ham (boiled, baked, or smoked), diced, or 8 strips of cooked bacon, crumbled
¼ pound Swiss-style cheese, such as Gruyère or Emmentaler, diced, sliced, or grated (about 1⅓ cups)
1. Preheat the oven to 475°F with the rack set in the middle position.
2. Line a 9½- or 10-inch tart pan with removable bottom with the pastry (see “How to Line a Tart Pan,” facing page).
3. Prick the pastry (see Note), line it with aluminum foil, and weight it with 1 pound of dried beans, rice, or aluminum pie weights. Bake until the edges of the pastry begin to color, about 20 minutes. Remove the pan from the oven and remove the foil and beans from the pan. Spread the mustard over the bottom of the pastry. Lower the oven temperature to 425°F.
4. In a bowl, beat the eggs and yolk lightly. Blend in the milk, salt, pepper, and nutmeg.
5. Spread the ham and cheese evenly over the bottom of the tart shell. Pour the custard into the tart shell to within ⅛ inch of the top of the crust. Holding the tart pan by the outer rim (so as not to dislodge the bottom), place the pan in the oven.
6. Bake until the custard puff s, 25 to 30 minutes.
7. Unmold as soon as possible (see “Unmolding a Tart or Quiche,” page 218 ). Allow to cool for at least 10 minutes before cutting into wedges and serving. The quiche is delicious served at any temperature. (The quiche can be made in advance. It will keep well in the refrigerator for several days. Reheat in a 350°F oven for 10 to 15 minutes before serving.)
NOTE
To help prevent the pastry from bubbling up during baking, prick the bottom all over with the sharp point of a paring knife. Do not use a fork for this purpose, for the holes created may be too large and allow liquids to leak out. (At this point the pastry can be covered with plastic wrap and refrigerated or frozen along with any unused pastry.)
H OW TO L INE A T ART P AN
1. Lightly butter your tart pan. You need only a very small amount of butter for this purpose, just enough to hold the pastry in the pan.
2. Dust the pastry and work the surface lightly. Roll out the pastry (keeping it round), lifting and rotating it one quarter turn after each roll. Dust between each roll. Continue rolling in this fashion until the pastry is about ¼ inch thick.
3. Roll the pastry onto the rolling pin, turn it 90 degrees, and unroll it onto your lightly floured work surface. Continue this rolling, lifting, and turning process until the pastry is about ⅛ inch thick. Your pastry should be about 14 inches in diameter. Although, by habit I use this method to roll out tart pastry, I sometimes roll it out between two pieces of plastic wrap. This leaves less flour to clean up.
4. Roll the pastry onto the pin, and unroll it into the tart pan. The pastry will overlap the pan an inch or more.
5. After placing the pastry in the tart pan, place your bent index finger at the upper inside edge of the mold. Push about ½ inch of the overlapping pastry in over your finger and press gently with your thumb. Continue around the
If you’d like to come up with your own combinations of ingredients for a quiche, just keep in mind that you’ll need enough diced ingredients to cover the bottom of the tart shell (about 2 cups).
QUICHE LORRAINE
Quiche Lorraine is the best known of all quiches. It is traditionally made in a deep crust, and one slice can serve as a light meal. I prefer it made with a light and delicate custard in a shallower tart shell and served as a first course. Recipes for this classic quiche vary in a number of ways. Half an onion can be chopped, sautéed, and added to the filling; crumbled bacon can be used instead of ham; and the custard can be made with more eggs and heavy cream.
SERVES 6 TO 8
Tart Pastry ( page 213 )
1 tablespoon Dijon mustard
2 eggs plus
1 egg yolk
1½ cups milk
¼ teaspoon salt
⅛ teaspoon freshly ground pepper Pinch of freshly grated nutmeg
¼ pound ham (boiled, baked, or smoked), diced, or 8 strips of cooked bacon, crumbled
¼ pound Swiss-style cheese, such as Gruyère or Emmentaler, diced, sliced, or grated (about 1⅓ cups)
1. Preheat the oven to 475°F with the rack set in the middle position.
2. Line a 9½- or 10-inch tart pan with removable bottom with the pastry (see “How to Line a Tart Pan,” facing page).
3. Prick the pastry (see Note), line it with aluminum foil, and weight it with 1 pound of dried beans, rice, or aluminum pie weights. Bake until the edges of the pastry begin to color, about 20 minutes. Remove the pan from the oven and remove the foil and beans from the pan. Spread the mustard over the bottom of the pastry. Lower the oven temperature to 425°F.
4. In a bowl, beat the eggs and yolk lightly. Blend in the milk, salt, pepper, and nutmeg.
5. Spread the ham and cheese evenly over the bottom of the tart shell. Pour the custard into the tart shell to within ⅛ inch of the top of the crust. Holding the tart pan by the outer rim (so as not to dislodge the bottom), place the pan in the oven.
6. Bake until the custard puff s, 25 to 30 minutes.
7. Unmold as soon as possible (see “Unmolding a Tart or Quiche,” page 218 ). Allow to cool for at least 10 minutes before cutting into wedges and serving. The quiche is delicious served at any temperature. (The quiche can be made in advance. It will keep well in the refrigerator for several days. Reheat in a 350°F oven for 10 to 15 minutes before serving.)
NOTE
To help prevent the pastry from bubbling up during baking, prick the bottom all over with the sharp point of a paring knife. Do not use a fork for this purpose, for the holes created may be too large and allow liquids to leak out. (At this point the pastry can be covered with plastic wrap and refrigerated or frozen along with any unused pastry.)
H OW TO L INE A T ART P AN
1. Lightly butter your tart pan. You need only a very small amount of butter for this purpose, just enough to hold the pastry in the pan.
2. Dust the pastry and work the surface lightly. Roll out the pastry (keeping it round), lifting and rotating it one quarter turn after each roll. Dust between each roll. Continue rolling in this fashion until the pastry is about ¼ inch thick.
3. Roll the pastry onto the rolling pin, turn it 90 degrees, and unroll it onto your lightly floured work surface. Continue this rolling, lifting, and turning process until the pastry is about ⅛ inch thick. Your pastry should be about 14 inches in diameter. Although, by habit I use this method to roll out tart pastry, I sometimes roll it out between two pieces of plastic wrap. This leaves less flour to clean up.
4. Roll the pastry onto the pin, and unroll it into the tart pan. The pastry will overlap the pan an inch or more.
5. After placing the pastry in the tart pan, place your bent index finger at the upper inside edge of the mold. Push about ½ inch of the overlapping pastry in over your finger and press gently with your thumb. Continue around the
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