Let them eat quiche! We think of quiche as a classic dish of French cuisine, but quiche actually originated in Germany, in the medieval kingdom of Lothringen, under German rule, which the French later renamed Lorraine. The word‘quiche’ is from the German word ‘Kuchen’, meaning cake.
Did you know, the classic Quiche Lorraine recipe only contains heavy cream, eggs and bacon but no cheese? No cheese! That really surprised me coming from a country that is known for it’s wonderful cheeses. Cheese, wine and a crusty baguette with Edith Piaf singing in the background and you have been transported to a French bistro.
These are my first thoughts of France….Wine and Cheese! When you know what wine and what cheese comes from what part of France and you begin to understand the culinary magic of this country.
The evolution of Quiche Lorraine from it’s humble yet elegant beginnings of cream, eggs and bacon to the addition of cheese – Gruyere, Swiss or Emmental – to the inclusion of chopped ham, onions and leeks says so much about the adventures of cuisine and the art of cookery. Let’s really run a muck and eliminate the crust! Enter the carb conscience and gluten free gang and I can just hear the French saying, This, is not quiche!, and rightly so. But for those of us who can appreciate all that quiche has to offer but can’t quite handle the gluten, all it not lost; there is a quiche for you. It is Crust-less! So rejoice, a Quiche Lorraine, of sorts, has been created for you!
Quiche is extremely versatile in that it’s the perfect base to build on with a wide variety of ingredients and because it can be served as an entrée, for lunch or breakfast or a light evening snack. Add a light and dry white wine like Pinot Blanc or Riesling or perhaps a little bubbly and you have a romantic dinner for two.
Crustless Quiche Lorraine
As the French would say, Mise en Place, which means “putting in place” or to gather and arrange the ingredients and tools needed for cooking before you start. Making this a habit will make cooking so much more enjoyable and sane.
Preheat oven to 375°F with rack in middle. Butter a 10-inch quiche dish or 9 1/2-inch deep-dish pie plate.
Cut off roots and trim dark green tops from leeks, leaving only the white and light green part. Cut each leek lengthwise in half. Always wash your leeks! It only takes a few particles of sand to ruin your dish!
Rinse leeks thoroughly in large bowl of cold water, swishing to remove sand. Transfer leeks to paper towels to drain, leaving sand in bottom of bowl. Repeat process until all leeks are clean, changing water if it is too sandy. These leeks were incredibly clean to start with so very little sand was removed.
Cook onions and leeks in butter in a 12-inch heavy skillet over medium-high heat, stirring occasionally, until pale golden, about 5 minutes.
Add the ham and cook until lightly browned and moisture has been released.
Spread the onion, leek and ham mixture in the bottom of a buttered dish.
Sprinkle grated cheese evenly on top of the veggie ham mixture. I used Jarlsberg instead of Gruyere because the flavor is close and the price difference is huge!
Whisk together eggs, cream, milk, salt and pepper and pour over cheese. This quiche is loaded with amazing flavor in every bite. Savory goodness from the leeks and onions, smokey sweetness from the ham and a mildly salty, creaminess from the cheese!
Bake until top is golden and custard is set in center, 30 to 35 minutes or until knife inserted in center comes out clean.
Cool on wire rack for 5 minutes. Cut into wedges and serve with a green salad for lunch or dinner. The quiche reheats beautifully so add some fresh fruit, yogurt and muffins and have it for breakfast. We did this morning and it carried us all the way through the nail biting football game with energy to spare!
- 1 tablespoon unsalted butter
- 2 medium leeks, white/light green part only - thinly sliced
- 1 cup onions, diced
- 1 cup diced cooked ham
- 2 cups shredded Gruyere cheese (Swiss or Jarlsberg will work too)
- 6 large eggs
- 1 cup heavy cream
- 1 cup whole milk
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1/4 teaspoon pepper
- Preheat oven to 375°F with rack in middle.
- Butter a 10-inch quiche dish or 9 1/2-inch deep-dish pie plate.
- Cut off roots and trim dark green tops from leeks, leaving only the white and light green part. Cut each leek lengthwise in half. Rinse leeks thoroughly in large bowl of cold water, swishing to remove sand. Transfer leeks to paper towels to drain, leaving sand in bottom of bowl. Repeat process until all leeks are clean, changing water if it is too sandy.
- Cook onions and leeks in butter in a 12-inch heavy skillet over medium-high heat, stirring occasionally, until pale golden, about 5 minutes.
- Add the ham and cook until lightly browned.
- Spread in dish and sprinkle cheese evenly on top.
- Whisk together eggs, cream, milk, salt and pepper and pour over cheese.
- Bake until top is golden and custard is set in center, 30 to 35 minutes or until knife inserted in center comes out clean.
- Cool on wire rack for 5 minutes. Cut into wedges and serve.
- Cut into wedges and serve with a green salad for lunch or dinner. The quiche reheats beautifully so add some fresh fruit, yogurt and muffins and have it for breakfast.
Excellent for breakfast, lunch and dinner. How do I know this? Because I ate it for all three over a span of a few days. I do not use leeks very often and was quite curious about their roll in this recipe. The leeks were so yummy, mixed with the onion, ham and cheese. I think it was the leeks that created an undertone of sweetness among all of the savory flavors that were dancing around in my mouth.. This recipe is definitely a keeper, I will probably make a couple of them on Christmas morning, all the slicing and dicing can be done the night before (5 minutes tops) and it just needs to be combined and popped in the oven the next morning.
Donna ~ LOL! We did the same thing at our house! I have started using leeks more in my cooking. They add a mild onion flavor and a texture that onions don’t. They are also a natural diuretic! The sweetness you tasted comes from the smoked ham. So glad you enjoyed the quiche. Sounds perfect for Christmas morning!