Hi Aunt Barbara,
I've been meaning to send you this recipe for a while. I've been experimenting with making quiche for while ever since I ended up with an extra pie crust that I didn't know what to do with. My friend Julie recommended this recipe from Epicurious:
http://www.epicurious.com/recipes/food/views/Madame-Quiches-Quiche-au-Fromage-15850
But I've made a lot of modifications because I found out that a lot of things don't turn out the way they say, but the combination of eggs, cream, milk, and cheese make a very light and fluffy quiche that's not hard once you nail down what works. My first quiche was quite burnt.
Madame Quiche's Quiche au Fromage
One pie crust
6 large eggs
2/3 cup heavy cream
1 cup milk (preferably whole)
8 ounces cheese
Preheat the oven to 425 F. Line the pastry with aluminum foil and pastry weights (I use pennies. I didn't even know pastry weights existed before this recipe) and bake in the bottom third of the oven until the pastry is golden at the edges, about 10 minutes. Remove from the oven and remove the aluminum foil and pastry weights. Return the pastry to the oven to bake until the bottom is golden, an additional 5 minutes.
While the crust is cooking, whisk together the eggs, cream, and the milk until thoroughly blended. Season with the salt and pepper, then add the cheese and stir until it is blended, Turn the mixture into the pre-baked pastry, and spread out the cheese evenly over the bottom of the pastry. Now depending on what kind of dish you use it will either take 30 or 40 minutes. Regular pie dish = 40 minutes, 10 inch quiche dish = 30 minutes. I have trouble keeping the quiche from burning so I cover the edges with aluminum foil and take it off for the last 5-10 minutes. To test for doneness, shake the quiche - if it is solid without a pool of uncooked filling in the center, it is done. You may also stick a sharp knife blade into the center of the filling and if it comes out clean, the quiche is baked through.
Combinations I've tried:
Green onion and havarti (the green onion was a little strong for my taste)
Spinach and Tomato with jalapeno havarti or monteray jack cheese (my favorite)
Bell pepper and Onion with jalepeno havarti or monteray jack cheese (I would cook the peppers and onions first)
I'm going to try one soon using havarti with dill... I'll let you know how it turns out.
Emily
PS I have a number of other recipes to send you. I've just been so busy. Don't even time to work on my own blog! =)