Quiche Makes Wednesday Feel Like Saturday!

I decided... I'm hungry this morning.  So I whipped up a batch of Denise's Gluten Free Quichey-Custard.  Ooh the house is smelling good this morning as I write this!  

People, yes I love to cook.  But I do not like to be "stuck in the kitchen all day".  It takes me only about 5 minutes longer to prepare a 'batch' of breakfast that will last several days, than it does to make only one quiche for myself.  So why not make a double-batch of quiche to serve 12 people?  Then I will have breakfast for myself and Mike for six days!  No brainer.  Decision made. 

Today, as I pulled out all the ingredients I would need to make my quiche, I realized we do not have any cream.  None.  To make a double-batch of quiche I need 2 cups of heavy cream and 2 cups of whole milk.  I did find about one half of a cup of half and half in the fridge that I needed to use up and a box of Unsweetened Coconut-Almond milk.  (We usually do not have milk products in the house, as my Celiac Disease has caused me to be pretty intolerant to dairy.  We use non-dairy milk alternatives like unsweetened, plain almond milk and coconut-almond milk.)  So I'm trying it in the quiche!  What the hell; that's how we find fantastic new recipes... or we find out what not to do.  I feel confident that I will like the quiche even using 'alternative milk' which is not as creamy traditionally.  I will let you know how the texture turns out; it may turn out a bit less creamy, but nuts and almonds have a good amount of fat in them, so we shall see.

I made one big batch of egg mixture, but kept the 'extras' separate for this double batch.  

Here's the "milk" mixture with pepper & truffle salt, before I added the eggs.  In the photo you can also see the little 4oz. log of goat cheese and the 1/4 pound of prosciutto.  This little bit of cheese was enough to put 3 pinches/clumps of cheese into TWELVE quiches, so a little goes a long way.   As for the prosciutto, be sure to ask the butcher to put a piece of plastic or paper between each slice of prosciutto, as the thin slices are very hard to peel apart if they don't.

Once the eggs are added, the mixture becomes creamy yellow and you barely see the pepper and truffle salt.  The photo above looks like it has lots of pepper, but it really doesn't; it was just floating on top because it wasn't mixed yet.  See how you can't even see the pepper anymore in the photo to the right?

 

I love mushrooms, but Mike doesn't and I had 4 or 5 crimini mushrooms to use up in the fridge.  So I made 6 mushroom & shallot quiches and 6 prosciutto & shallot quiches.  

I just cooked a double batch of shallots and thyme first and set them aside in 2 separate bowls.  Then I cooked the mushrooms separately.  Sometimes the stems of mushrooms can be tough, so I pulled off the stems and minced them very fine before cooking them.  HINT:  When cooking mushrooms, don't crowd them in the pan or they can get rubbery.  Use a pan big enough that they have room between them so they do not steam.  Cook in batches if you need to.  Remember, this is mostly an egg dish so you do not need many mushrooms... 3-5 at the most.  Once the mushrooms were browned, I added them to one of the shallot bowls.
 

This is how I add the prosciutto.  Just wrap it around the edges any old way.  Nothing fancy.  Don't worry if it's crooked or doesn't stick to the sides. 

 Below are the quiches just as I placed them into the oven.  The oven racks are set to keep the quiches in the center of the oven for the most even cooking.  I will turn each tray about 1/2 way through the cooking time to help them cook more evenly.  In my oven they tend to cook faster in the back of the oven.  Careful not to spill water from the top tray into the bottom quiches when you turn them!

These are the quiches fresh out of the oven!  I took them out of the oven a moment ago.

Mmmm... they smell so good.  The fresh thyme gives them a special aroma and flavor.  It is the secret to making these quiches special.

I can't wait to try them!

 

To the right is my breakfast!  I'm so ravenous that I'm treating myself to 2 quiches; one of each flavor!  I cannot wait to taste these.  I always serve these quiches with a simple green salad lightly dressed.  Quiche is rich and flavorful and pairs perfectly with something bitter and/or tangy.  I'm off to eat my late breakfast!  

Oh!  I will let you know how the quiche turned out using the coconut-almond milk instead of heavy cream and milk.

 UPDATE at 12:48pm:

*smiling like a Cheshire cat* Oh, I'm a happy girl... mmm... what a difference a meal makes.  I was so hungry.  I guess that's what happens when I wait until noon to eat breakfast.  Okay, I can report back that the coconut-almond milk was fantastic.  It made very little difference in taste and texture.  A little less rich and still very delicate in texture, not dense at all.

 

GARDENER'S NOTE:  Keep your egg shells for the garden!   

With a big batch of quiche like this, I used a full dozen eggs and of course, had lots of shells.  Egg shells are high in calcium and other minerals.  The more minerals you work into your garden soil, the higher mineral content your harvest will have and the healthier the plant will be throughout the season.  Just put the shells right back into the egg carton and set the carton in the fridge for a week or so. Refrigerators are frost free and have very dry air inside, which helps the eggs get super dry so they will crumble easily into tiny shattered bits of shell.  Or, you can use a compost can like I do that stays right on the counter.  It looks a bit like a miniature trash can, but the lid has a vent on top with a charcoal filter to keep odors down.  Once the shells are dry and are all crumbled up, just toss them into your garden.  Don't worry about working the shells into the topsoil if you don't have time.  The important part is getting them into your garden; Mother Nature will work them into the soil if you don't have time to do it.