Let’s talk about quiche.

Every now and then I like to have a good quiche and eat it too. Of course.

But not just any quiche. Not one with a soggy bottom, ahem ehhm, or one that is waaay too rich and makes you feel so stuffed and guilty after eating it, or one that…. Oh, let’s just completely forget about those quiches, shall we?

Let’s focus instead on a lovely quiche. One with a flaky bottom crust, a creamy yet light filling, one that is rustic and satisfying – like this one I’m about to share with you, or that Butternut Squash Galette that I have already shared with you.

Yes, I know, some of you might feel lazy about making and rolling a dough, then cleaning your floured surface, Or washing your rolling pin, etc etc. I do too sometimes. But every now and then, everyone should have a slice of quiche with a nice home-made dough which is a totally different story then your average store-bought crust. So now you have a recipe, and no excuse. Yes, there are a few steps to the process, but it’s really easy. So… roll up your sleeves and let’s do it.

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French Onion Quiche 

For a 10-11-inch tart pan

For the dough:
2 cups flour
1 stick + 1 tablespoon (=9 Tbs.) cold unsalted butter, diced
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 egg, lightly beaten
1-2 tablespoons cold water

For the filling:
4 tablespoons butter
2 tablespoons olive oil
3-4 medium size yellow onion, halved and thinly sliced
1 teaspoon sugar
salt and ground black pepper
2 tablespoons flour
1 tablespoon Dijon mustard
1 cup heavy cream
3/4 cup milk
3 eggs
4 oz. grated cheese like gruyere
4 oz. baked ham, diced – optional, for variation

To make the dough:

In a bowl of a food processor fitted with the steel blade, place flour, salt, and butter. Pulse until you get coarse pea size crumbs, then add the egg and 1 tablespoon of water. Pulse until a crumbly ball forms. If the flour mixture still looks dry and doesn’t form into a ball, add another tablespoon of water and pulse a bit more.

Take dough out of the bowl, form into a disk, wrap in plastic, and refrigerate for an hour.

Butter your tart pan.

Roll the dough on a lightly floured surface into a 10-11-inch circle (larger than your pan). Roll it around the rolling pin and transfer to the tart pan. Unroll, and fit it in the pan bottom and sides. Remove excess dough. Wrap in plastic and put back in the fridge for half an hour.* (If you don’t have time, you can skip the chilling).

If you have time, I encourage you to blind bake* the dough. If not, take a short cut and skip this step and move on to making the filling.

* For blind baking:

Place parchment paper over the dough (already organized in the tart pan), add rice/beans on top all the way to the sides, and bake in a 375 F degrees for 20-30 minutes. Remove from oven and let cool for 10 minutes. Remove parchment and beans. Let cool 15 minutes.

To make the filling:

Preheat oven to 350 F degrees.

In a large skillet, melt the butter with the oil. Add the onions and sugar, salt, and pepper, and sauté until the onions are soft and golden. Stir in the flour, and cook for 1 minute. Remove from heat and let cool slightly. Add the rest of the filling ingredients, and more salt and pepper to taste.

Pour the filling onto the tart lined with the dough.

Place the tart pan in a larger baking dish and bake for 45-60 minutes until the filling is cooked and golden.

Remove from oven, cool for 10 minutes before cutting and serving.

Would you like a recipe for Young Onion Tart with Cantal, Applewood-Smoked Bacon? Click here.

Categories : Fall and Winter, Main dishes/entrées, Party Food/Potluck, Recipes, Side dishes and Vegetables, Spring and Summer