Winter Quiche with Mushrooms, Squash, Broccoli (or Kale), and Onions

Staff Recipe from: Leslie

I absolutely love quiche. In fact, it’s one of my favorite foods to make before going camping, hiking, or on a climbing adventure to share with friends. It’s jam-packed with protein and veggies the way I make it and is a great breakfast, lunch, or dinner. Pre-cut and packed into to-go containers or wrapped in beeswax wraps, it travels really well and no-one has ever complained when I pull out the quiche and a bottle of hot sauce or a jar of flake salt from my backpack or cooler at the campsite or before a hard climb.

My quiches are heavy on the veggies, heavy on the eggs, light on the cream or milk, and have a generous portion of cheese. That being said, ratios may seem a bit different than what you’re used to seeing.

This particular quiche is one of my favorite combinations of veggies and it's perfect to use up extra hardy greens, squash, and onions many of us have from week to week right now.

Prep time: about 45 minutes
Cook time: 50 minutes
Resting time: at least 20 minutes but can be eaten hot, cold, or at room temperature.

Ingredients:

Crust:

• Cultured, un-salted butter. Cold, cut into small cubes.
• Organic multipurpose flour
• Organic whole wheat pastry flour
• Salt
• Ice water
• Apple cider vinegar
• Herbs/spices (optional)

Filling:

• 6-8 eggs
• Whole milk or cream (or sub in coconut cream)
• Plain yogurt
• Good melting cheese like monterey jack, shredded
• Gruyere, sharp cheddar, or your favorite, flavorful cheese, shredded
• Butternut squash or pumpkin, 1-2 cups - ½ inch cubes, pre-cooked (try roasting for added flavor)
• Broccoli or kale, 1-2 cups - cut into bite-size pieces (broccoli) or ½ inch wide ribbons, pre-cooked and patted dry (kale)
• Mushrooms, crimini or oyster, 1-2 cups cut in half and sliced ¼ inch thick, pre-cooked
• Onions, 1 cup any color, diced and pre-cooked with mushrooms
• Lemon juice or apple cider vinegar (just a splash)
• Salt, Pepper, Nutmeg, Cayenne
• Optional: feta crumbles or ricotta dollops

Tools:

• 2 large mixing bowls
• 1 saute pan
• 1 pie dish (9 inch round or square)
• 1 knife + 1 cutting board
• 1 spoon or spatula
• Egg beater or whisk
• Dough cutter or 2 forks
• Blind baking beans

Process:

Start with your crust. 

I almost always use a shortcrust pastry for my quiche. For two lovely, gluten-free alternatives I also love using either potato slices or shredded potatoes (red, white, or yellow are my favorite): 

1. Sliced potatoes- (I wash them and leave the skins on) salt, rest, and pat dry, layer in the pie dish with rounds overlapping a bit, and pre-bake.
2. Shredded potatoes- (again, I leave the skins on), squeeze out as much water as you can, toss with salt, press into the pie dish, and pre-bake for something like hash browns.

Use whatever savory pie crust recipe you and your family prefer. Mine is slightly different every time depending on humidity, weather changes, and my current stash of baking supplies so my measurements are approximate.

I start with 1 stick + 2 oz (10 oz total) of cold, cultured, unsalted butter. Always unsalted for baking so I can better measure and control the amount of salt that goes into the food (salted butter makes it hard to track and keep things balanced as you bake). 

Cut the butter into ¼ - ½ inch cubes and place in a cold mixing bowl. I’ve used coconut oil before as well. It works but it also starts melting really fast while you work with it so your crust might not be as flaky in the end.

Add 1 cup multipurpose or all-purpose flour (or your favorite gluten free substitute), ½ cup whole wheat pastry flour, and 1 teaspoon of salt to the butter and start cutting the mixture with a dough blade or 2 forks until you get a nice, even mixture with the texture of crumbs or sand with no large chunks of butter. Add more pastry flour if you need to to achieve the desired texture.

Add any desired spices, herbs, or flavorings at this time - add a little turmeric, grated parmesan, some black pepper, or whatever strikes your fancy!

Add 1 teaspoon of apple cider vinegar and then add ice water 1 tablespoon at a time, cutting it in with a big spoon or spatula until the dough just barely comes together.

When your butter and flour have been mixed into crumbs, they should clump when squeezed but fall apart easily. After adding ice water, your dough should look like large crumbles and should form into a ball with little effort.

Dump your dough out on your clean work surface and just bring it together into a ball, wrap with parchment paper or place in a sealed container (no single use plastic for me but you do you, cling film definitely works) and let it rest in the fridge until you need it.

Prep your veggies:

Dice your onions and set aside. Chop your mushrooms and set aside. Depending on the size of the mushrooms, I usually cut them in half one way and then slice the halves into ¼ inch thick slices. If the mushrooms are small, just slice, no need to halve them first. 

Peel the butternut squash and cut in half. Remove the seeds and guts and set the seeds aside in a bowl of salty water for toasting later. Cut the squash into ½ inch cubes and set aside.

{I used pumpkin here which breaks down a lot more than other squash options but it's still delicious - consider under-cooking it a bit in the preparation stage}

Warm your saute pan over medium heat. Add a splash of olive oil (about a tablespoon is good). When the oil is hot but not smoking, add your onions and give a quick stir. In about 2 minutes, or when the onions are just turning translucent, add the mushrooms and a pinch of salt and stir. Adding a bit of salt now will open up the cell walls of the onions and mushrooms and will allow them to start releasing their moisture so you can get a nice brown color and deep flavor without the rubbery texture mushrooms sometimes get. Be careful not to over-salt here though! Reducing the liquid in the veggies will also concentrate the salt flavor.

Remove the mushrooms and onions from the pan to a waiting mixing bowl. Add the cubed squash to the pan along with a pinch of salt. You can either saute the squash here in a bit more olive oil or add ¼ inch of water to the pan, cover with a lid, and steam it instead if you want to keep it lighter but also pull up all the flavors of the mushrooms and onions. You could also roast the squash in the oven if you’d rather but I like to keep all my flavors building on one another in one pan while also keeping dishes to a minimum.

When the squash is tender, remove it from the pan into the bowl with the waiting onions and mushrooms. Don’t pour in any remaining water from the pan if there is any.

Chop the broccoli. About half an average head or a whole small head will do. Cut off and peel the stem. Cube the heart of the stem into ½ inch or smaller chunks. Cut the rest of the broccoli into rough ½ inch pieces. I like to go fairly small here for an even distribution through the quiche.

You can quickly cook the broccoli the same way you did the other veggies if you wish but I usually just add it to the bowl (uncooked) with the squash, onions, and mushrooms and fold them all together. This will gently soften the broccoli without it turning mushy by the time it’s all done baking.

Note: if using kale instead of broccoli, wash and dry your kale leaves, half or more of the bunch will do. Trim the stem ends then split the stem up the middle, stack your halved leaves and slice them into ribbons. You can either gently cook these with the onions and mushrooms (just add a splash of vinegar to counter that bitterness) or gently fold into the warmed veggies like I suggest for the broccoli.

Taste your veggie mixture and add any salt or seasonings it lacks - remember we’ll be folding this into an egg mixture soon and then baking so raw spices will still get cooked. I like a generous amount of black pepper, a teaspoon of cayenne, and a good sized pinch of freshly grated nutmeg (about ¼ of a nutmeg nut). My other go-to spice mixture for quiche is a simple mix of pepper, salt, and a couple teaspoons each of turmeric and ground mustard.

While the veggies cool in the bowl, preheat the oven to 375 ℉. 

Remove your pie dough from the fridge and roll it out to ¼ inch thick.

Gently lay your dough round across your pie dish and cut away the excess (there should be plenty extra so you could also reserve some before rolling or do what I do and make crackers from the excess trimmings).

Prick the dough all over with a fork, cover with a piece of parchment paper or foil, and fill the pan with about a cup of dried beans. (I just keep a jar of beans labeled in my cupboard as “blind baking beans” and reuse these over and over)

Bake the crust until it just turns golden and remove from the oven. Remove the beans and parchment. 

Drop the oven temperature down to 350 ℉.

While the crust is baking, crack 6-8 eggs into your second mixing bowl. I usually start with 6 and add 1-2 more if they’re on the smaller side. Add a couple tablespoons of plain yogurt to the eggs and about ¼ Cup of whole milk or coconut cream (⅓ Cup if you use just 6 eggs). Add a couple pinches of salt and a squeeze of lemon juice or splash of apple cider vinegar. 

Blend the egg mixture with the egg beater, whisk, or your choice of mixer until everything is incorporated and the custard is bubbly or frothy and looks velvety and uniform (no chunks of yogurt).

Add 2 cups of shredded jack cheese and fold it into the egg mixture. Add 1 cup of shredded gruyere and fold in. Add the veggies a few scoops at a time and fold in. 

When the blind-baked crust has cooled, gently scoop or ladle your veggie and egg mixture into the crust. It should come right up to the top with about ¼ to ⅓ of an inch of room to grow as it bakes. If you have extra, it will cook up just fine in a pan to make a small frittata or mini-quiche if you also have leftover dough.

Alternatively, you can layer your cheese and veggies into the cooled crust and pour the egg mixture over the top but I like to make sure there’s an even distribution of cheese and veg throughout so I usually mix and scoop.

Sprinkle the top with feta cheese or add dollops of ricotta if you choose.

Bake at 350 ℉ for about 45-50 minutes. The egg mixture should rise up and will begin to darken. Don’t let it turn dark brown! If you see browning before the mix is set or if the crust is browning too much, tent it with some foil.

The egg mixture should be set and not slosh about when it’s done baking: to check for doneness, pull the oven rack forward and, leaving the dish on the rack, give it a little shake back and forth. The egg and veggie mixture should have a gentle wobble to it but should not slosh. It should also have a slight dome or flat top. A dip in the middle means your custard has not set!

Let it rest for about 15-20 minutes, covered with a clean tea towel, then cut in and enjoy!

 

Supplementals:

Shortcrust crackers -

Cut your leftover pie crust into long strips, small squares, or fun shapes - whatever you like! Place these on a lined sheet pan, brush with butter or oil, and sprinkle with flaky salt and herbs or a mix of cinnamon and sugar. Bake at 350 ℉ for about 6-8 minutes. 

Toasted squash seeds - 

After soaking your squash seeds in salty water for up to 24 hours, drain and pat dry. Add to a parchment lined baking sheet and toast in the oven on the rack above your quiche for 10-15 minutes. Give a stir at about 8 minutes in and check to make sure they’re not burning but are just steaming from the soaking liquid and then toasting.

You could also add the seeds to a dry pan over medium high heat and constantly stir until you see that they’ve turned opaque and are starting to brown.

Enjoy your toasted snacks!

Veggie scrap stock - 

Save your broccoli or kale stems, onion trimmings, and mushroom stems for use in veggie stock. I usually keep a bag in the freezer that I keep adding to until I have enough for a big batch of stock. Squash skin has a lot of tannins and doesn’t make for good eating or good stock so it’s best to compost that one.