before i start describing this delicious quiche, which we’ve made three times in the past month, i have to admit that i had never used phyllo dough before, nor had i made a quiche in my adult life (although i’m sure i helped make some when i was a kid). so you can imagine that i was pretty excited when i saw this recipe in the april 2009 edition of vegetarian times. i figured the recipe would expand my culinary repertoire, and i would finally get to try my hand at utilizing phyllo.
i learned two valuable lessons from testing out this recipe: 1) i love quiche, and it’s easy to make; and 2) phyllo dough is a pain-in-the-you-know what to work with unless you give up trying to keep each sheet whole.
the first time i made the quiche, though, i really wanted to peel each sheet of phyllo off the roll in one solid piece, and as that only happened once out of the six times, i was really worried that the crust wouldn’t be very good, or that quiche juices would drip out of the crust. thankfully, nothing horrible happened despite my issues with the phyllo dough, and i fell in love with the flavors in this dish.
by the third time i made the crust, i simply gave up trying to pry a whole sheet off in one fell swoop, and created a bit of a patchwork crust. this is the way to do it, folks, as the crust tasted exactly the same – crispy, solid, and satisfying – and i didn’t frown once or stamp my foot in the aggravation.
the rest of the components of this quiche are so very easy – you just need to slice up some mushrooms, onions, and tomato, thaw a package of spinach, open the feta, and layer away. oh, and whisk some eggs and (soy) milk. easy as…pie? nope, it’s easier than pie, so i suggest you make it and enjoy it for breakfast, lunch, dinner, or brunch soon!
spinach quiche
adapted from vegetarian times, april 2009
yields 6 servings
- crust
- 6 sheets phyllo dough
- 5T olive oil
- 1½t sesame seeds
- filling
- 4oz crumbled feta cheese
- 10 oz frozen spinach, thawed, liquid squeezed out
- 1/2 onion, diced
- 5 mushrooms, sliced
- 2 roma tomatoes, halved and sliced
- quiche batter
- 3 eggs, beaten
- 1½c (soy) milk
- dash ground nutmeg
- dash+ salt and pepper
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- preheat oven to 350° and grease a 9″ pie pan
- for crust: place 1 phyllo sheet on counter or cutting board, and brush liberally with oil, then sprinkle with 1/2t sesame seeds
- place another phyllo sheet on top of the first and repeat step 2 until all 6 sheets of phyllo dough are used
- press phyllo layers into pie pan and trim the edges with scissors
- for filling: pour feta into crust, then top with spinach, onion, and mushrooms
- for quiche batter: whisk together eggs, milk, nutmeg, salt, and pepper, then pour over filling
- arrange tomatoes on top of filling and batter, then bake 50 minutes, or until the center is set when you give it a little shake
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