Fresh Corn and Chive Quiche
So quiche is definitely one of favorite foods. I love when eggs are delivered with veggies. I am a veggie scramble or frittata kinda girl. But quiche is the elevated Sunday best version of those. It has a crust and requires a bit more preparation. It says, “I love you”. “I care enough to make crust ahead of time for you.” It is also great to make ahead, leftover and for taking over to someone’s house you want to impress. This quiche is delicious. I would say this version really should be reserved for when you can get fresh corn. I think you could use cooked frozen corn as long as you drained it well but it is more or less a seasonal quiche. The Chives are mild and the cheddar cheese is classic. If you want more of a punch, use scallions or substitute goat cheese for cheddar cheese. If you sub in goat cheese, I would make it as directed but don’t put the cheese in until after you pour the egg mixture into the pie. Then dollop the goat cheese on top. This crust is crazy flaky and dare I say so delicious! But you may find it hard to roll out and transfer into the pie dish. It’s ok. Just do your best to patch work it together once you get most of it in the dish. It will turn out just fine. I like to add the extra 2 tbsp of coconut oil so that you don’t have to use more than 1 stick of butter, but if you don’t have coconut oil, don’t go out to buy it, just use butter. Or if you want to use vegetable shortening for those 2 tbsp, go ahead. I just hate having to open a new stick of butter for only 2 tbsp. I have used vegan or non dairy butter for this as well and it works just as well. You may need to adjust the amount of water if using vegan butter because they are usually softer than regular butter. I have never tested it with a vegan egg substitute like Just Egg, but I imagine it would also work so if you are vegan but are also a lover of quiche. I think you can make this work given all the new vegan substitutes out there.
Ingredients for the Crust:
1 1/4 cup AP flour
1/4 tsp salt
8 tbsp or 1 stick of butter- if you use salted butter, omit the salt from the recipe. Vegan or non dairy butter works here as well.
2 tbsp coconut oil, I prefer refined but use what you have. You could also use vegetable shortening if that is what you have.
2-4 tbsp cold water.
Recipe:
Combine the flour and salt together in a bowl. Cut the cold butter into slices or cubes.
Add the cold butter into the flour and use a pastry cutter (or just use your hands) to cut the butter into the four. I use the pastry cutter and then switch to my hands. The consistency should be like wet sand. No large chunks of butter left and you can kinda stick the flour together when you squeeze it in your fists.
Add in 2 tbsp cold water then work it in with your hands. If it is still dry and not coming together into a ball, add 1 more, etc. It should be pretty dry, not sticky.
Wrap it up with plastic wrap or parchment paper and let it rest in the fridge for at least an hour. However, a couple hours to overnight it better.
Ingredients for the fIlling:
6 medium eggs or 8 small eggs
1/2 cup milk (whole milk, 2%, unsweetened soy all work)
Fresh corn from 2 ears of corn
1/2 tsp salt (another place where herbs salt works well)
big handful of fresh chives or 1 package of store bought chives finely chopped
1/3 cup shredded cheddar cheese (I prefer to shred it myself both for cost and flavor purposes. If you are using vegan cheese I still recommend trying to buy a block and shred it yourself.)
Recipe:
Preheat the oven to 375 F.
Combine the eggs, milk, salt, finely chopped chives into a large bowl and whisk briskly for a least a minute. You want to incorporate some air into the mixture and make sure the eggs and milk are completely homogeneous. Add in the cheese and mix again briefly.
Set the egg mixture aside and roll out the crust. Flour your surface and start from the center of the dough ball. It will fall apart. Just press it back together with your hands and keep rotating it around and rolling. When it is a rough circle, transfer it to the pie dish. I use a basic 9 inch pyrex pie dish. I like to roll my crust onto my rolling pin to transfer it. It will likely fall apart. It’s ok, just press it back together in the dish and make sure the edges are pretty much all equal in thickness and height.
Pour the egg mixture into the crust. Place into the oven for 45-50 minutes. Check it at 40 minutes. I don’t want the crust to burn or turn dark brown. If you see your crust starting to get too brown and the center is not set, put some foil around the edges of the pie. At 375 F it should not be a problem but everyone’s oven is a bit different.
Remove the pie when the crust is browned, the pie is set, and the top is starting to turn golden.
Let cool for a few minutes before serving. My favorite way to have quiche is with a side salad of greens dressed with a vinaigrette. I think it looks so elegant.
Enjoy!
