Classic French Quiche Lorraine
A perfect way to start your day with a slice of this quiche in the morning
The first time I remember having a proper quiche Lorraine was in Paris, specifically at the Louvre. To this day, I remember it as the best quiche I’ve ever had, well besides my Simple Veggie Quiche or this crustless Easy Mediterranean Quiche of course. It was the perfect balance of flavor from custard to cheese to crust and I just loved it.
To me, a quiche Lorraine is a subtle powerhouse. No one flavor outweighs another yet you still have bold ingredients in the mix. The Swiss and gruyere offer a tangy bite. The bacon gives that salty pork flavoring. The onions and garlic add a delicious savory depth of flavor. Wrap it in some homemade shortcrust pastry and it’s just good. To note, you can use a storebought crust but if you have just a smidge of extra time, go for homemade I beg of you.
Take the flavors from the French, even if you’re not sitting in a museum in Paris, and create this easy quiche. Oh and one last thing I love about a quiche? It’s not strictly breakfast! Have it for brunch, lunch, or dinner paired with a fresh side salad and it rounds a meal out perfectly.
Yields: 6 servings
Ingredients:
CRUST
1 ⅔ cups flour
7 tbsp cold butter, cubed
½ tsp table salt
1 whole egg
FILLING
4 strips bacon
½ medium onion, sliced
2 cloves garlic
8 eggs
½ cup Greek yogurt
½ cup milk
1 tsp salt
½ tsp black pepper
Pinch ground nutmeg
1 tbsp fresh thyme, chopped
¾ cup Swiss cheese, shredded
¾ cup gruyere cheese, shredded
Directions:
Preheat your oven to 320F CONVECTION
Make your crust: In a food processor, add your flour, butter, and salt and pulse to combine. In a separate bowl, beat your egg and then dump it into the flour mixture. Pulse until combined and then dump onto your counter. Use your hands to form into a dough, flatten it into a disk, wrap it or place it in an airtight tub, and refrigerate for at least 30 minutes. Roll the dough out and lay it into your 9-inch pie dish. Prick the bottom with a fork and gently cover with a crinkled piece of parchment paper before pouring in your baking weights. Blind bake with the baking weights for 11 minutes. Remove the weights and parchment paper, and return to the oven, baking until your pastry is just dried through (no moisture), about 2-3 minutes. Remove and cool completely before adding quiche filling
Cook your bacon until crispy - you can do this in a frying pan or, my preferred way, laid out on a baking sheet in the oven. Place your crispy bacon on a plate lined with a paper towel to cool and dry. Add a tablespoon of your bacon grease to a frying pan and cook your onion. As the onion starts to soften, add a pinch of salt and continue to cook until translucent and slightly golden (about 6 minutes) add in your minced garlic halfway through. Cooking down your onion is crucial to removing any excess water from your vegetable so it doesn’t make your quiche soggy as it bakes!
In a bowl, crack in your eggs, salt, pepper, nutmeg, thyme, yogurt, and milk, and whisk. You don’t want any clumps of egg whites or yolks
Combine your cheese in a bowl and stir in ⅔ of your cheese into your egg mixture
Across the base of your cooled crust, crumble your bacon and sprinkle half of it and then half of your onions and garlic evenly on the bottom. Cover with the egg mixture, and top evenly with the remaining ⅓ of cheese and the other half of your cooked bacon, onions, and garlic. Use a fork to shimmy around gently and make sure the cheese is mixed into the egg mixture (not just sitting on top of it)
Bake for 40-45 minutes, until the edges are set and slightly browned and the center of the quiche barely gives a wobble
Cool for 15 minutes and then cut into six slices
Cover and refrigerate for up to four days or freeze* for two to three months
Tag @accentgolden in your quiche posts!
Notes
If you only have shredded Swiss or gruyere cheese you can just use 1 ½ cups of one type (though I’d recommend gruyere)
For my garlic people out there, you know who you are - the ones that a recipe says one clove and we say four - don’t do that here. I say that as a fellow garlic club member. It will overpower in a non-tasty way.
You don’t need to buy baking weights. You can simply fill your parchment-lined dish with dried rice or beans (or a mix of both), then remove them, let them cool, and store them in a sealed container until your next bake!
The pie crust recipe for this quiche comes from Chef Ash, my head chef in pastry school
