Truth to be told, most Asians are not familiar with Quiche, much less pronounce it. :)

Although I knew of a dish called Quiche, I never bothered to make it nor learn about it until a German missionary friend introduced me to this dish more than a year ago. She brought a quiche dish with bacon and cauliflower to our Couples@Work fellowship and it was an instant hit! I loved the flaky crust. I loved the texture and the flavorful filling. It was yummy!

She gave me her recipe, and then I also combed the internet for more recipes. I found out that a quiche is basically a dish made with egg and milk (or cream) baked with a pastry crust. Although some quiche can be made without the crust (for those on low carb diets). However, I thought a good quiche should have the crust because it provides the nice crunch and flavor to the dish. A variety of ingredients can be added; usually a combination of meat and vegetables.

I bought a 27 cm quiche dish just specially to make quiche. I remember I made one before I started blogging. It was a bacon and spinach quiche. It was a big hit with my family! But for one thing or another, I never made it again. Until last Tuesday... This is because my Tuesday group has been asking me to bake one for them ever since they found out that I knew how to make one!

And so, last Monday, I started preparing the crust...

2 1/2 C all-purpose flour
1/2 t salt
1 C cold butter
1/3 C cold water

1. In a bowl, mix together the flour and salt. using a pastry cutter, or a large-tinned fork, cut the chilled butter into the flour until it resembles coarse sand with a few pea-sized pieces of butter still visible.

2. Sprinkle water evenly over the mixture and toss gently a few times, just until a ball holds together.

3. Separate the dough into 2 balls. Flatten it slightly into thick disc shapes. Wrap in plastic and chill overnight (or a few hours before working on it.)

4. When ready to use, prepare the table, clean and dust with flour. Roll the dough to flatten it, into 1/8 inch thick round crust. Place the dough in the quiche dish. Pat down with clean fingers to follow the mold of the dish. Cut off the excess dough and crimp the edges.

5. Prick the dough with a fork. Bake for 15 minutes at 350F.



I have read these tips from the internet, which I followed to the letter, and the resulting crust is flaky and buttery (which we like):

1) The secret to a flaky crust is to handle it as little as possible. When mixing the dough, stop once it sticks together to form a cohesive dough.

2) Run your hands under cold water for a few minutes and pat dry before handling the dough. This prevents the dough from melting together and being 'processed' by body heat.


On baking day, I assembled my ingredients. I wanted to make a prawn and spinach quiche. But probably in haste, or excitement, (or is it forgetfulness?) I was not able to buy spinach at the grocery! (Huh? How can one forget a major ingredient???) What to do? I then spied my pot of onion leeks... hmmm...

I am quite proud of my leeks. They are a product of my being a cheapskate. One day when I bought some leeks, I just thought of cutting off the roots with a little part of the stem - probably an inch of the white stem, and just planted them in a big pot. It was just an experiment. I was not even sure if leeks can re-grow themselves or if they have to grow from seeds... I was so happy they started to slowwwwwly grow new leaves. Admittedly, these new leaves were scrawny, but tall. Yes, they were not photogenic. But, they are still leeks! Edible and organic!

So, here is the recipe for Prawns and Mushrooms and Leeks Quiche. With this recipe, I was able to make one 27-inch quiche, which I brought to my Tuesday Bible Study group (no picture was taken because everybody was so hungry then) and a small 12-inch quiche (photo above).

8 eggs
1 C all-purpose cream
1 C cheddar cheese
20pcs medium sized prawns, shelled, deveined
1/2 C white onions, chopped
5 T garlic, mined
1 C chopped leeks
1/2 C fresh Shiitake mushrooms, sliced
1/2 t freshly ground pepper
1/2 t salt

1. Preheat oven to 350 F

2. Whisk all the eggs, cream and cheese together. Add salt and pepper. You may set aside some cheese for the topping later.

3. Distribute and spread the prawns, onions, garlic, leeks, and mushrooms into the prepared quiche crust. Pour the egg-cream mixture into the dish. It will be enough to cover the prawns and mushrooms, etc.

4. Bake in the preheated oven for around 60 minutes, until it tests done in the center. After around 45 minutes of baking, sprinkle the cheese (you have set aside earlier) on top of the nearly-done quiche. Continue cooking until done.







This is my entry to Andrea's Grow Your Own, a monthly foodie event that celebrates the foods we grow or raise ourselves and the dishes we make using our own homegrown products. Please check out Andrea's Recipes for her round-up in a few days!