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Quite a quiche

By JANET K. KEELER
Published April 25, 2007

ADVERTISEMENT [Times photo: Scott Keeler] Authentic Quiche Lorraine is flavored largely by bacon, but modern versions often include Swiss cheese and onions.

Every now and then, a book comes along with a title so catchy, so provocative that it becomes part of a national conversation.

Such was the case in 1982 with the publication of Bruce Feirstein's stereotype-skewering bestseller, Real Men Don't Eat Quiche: A Guidebook to All That Is Truly Masculine. The book's impact, frivolous though it was, belied its lightweight 92 pages. Comedians, macho men, feminists and politicians used the line in heavy rotation.

Twenty-five years later, the real men in my house gobbled down two quiches last week as if they were double cheeseburgers laden with bacon. For any real man, woman or child, what's not to like about quiche, specifically Quiche Lorraine? It's essentially portable bacon and eggs held together by cream and crust. A husky slice is as good-to-go as anything advertised by a fast food joint. And a dinnertime quiche served with a salad, green or fruit, is a treat any night.

Simple Quiche Lorraine is the jumping-off point for other cheese-egg tarts that can include a variety of ingredients such as tomatoes, onions, ham, fresh herbs, asparagus and broccoli. Once the basic technique and principles are mastered, variations on the theme come easy.

You can bend the recipe to your will. Make your own pastry crust, use a frozen version or roll out thawed puff pastry to fit a pie plate. Pour in whole cream, lighter half-and-half or even nonfat condensed milk. Experiment with egg substitutes and all manner of cheese. One recipe I like calls for white pepper; I use freshly ground black.

It will seem almost impossible, especially to the novice cook, that 2 cups of liquid mixed with eggs will come together firmly when cooked. But heat and eggs are amazing partners, and you can trust that everything will work out.

Quiche is a forgiving dish, something real cooks know.

A French favorite

Quiche Lorraine was born in the town of Nancy in the Lorraine region of eastern France. It is traditionally served on May Day to celebrate spring, so that gives you a few days to perfect your version.

Cookbook author and instructor Georgeanne Brennan describes in Savoring France Williams-Sonoma, 1999 how one summer her son sampled Quiche Lorraine at every outdoor market in their travels through the French countryside.

He was surprised to find how different they were in height and creaminess. The crusts varied, as did the subtle flavor, perhaps owing to what the cows, pigs and chickens were eating on various farms.

The lesson he learned is something all home cooks should take to heart: Each cook and the ingredients they use make a dish unique. Nowhere is this more evident than in a quiche, and that's not a bad thing.

Tasty template

Traditional Quiche Lorraine includes no cheese, but you'll find plenty of recipes that call for grated Swiss. I prefer to use the cheese because it makes the filling more creamy, plus adds flavor. The telling ingredient is bacon, a specialty in Lorraine.

I also toss in a minced scallion and a couple of shakes of red pepper flakes, not authentic but still tasty. Nutmeg is the usual spicing. I bake the bacon (on a rimmed baking pan for 10 minutes at 350 degrees, then flip for another three to five), which results in uniform cooking and prettier-looking pieces, though that's not so crucial in a recipe that calls for bacon to be crumbled.

Here's how a quiche comes together:

- Make a pastry crust or use a frozen version. When you are ready to bake the crust, cover it with aluminum foil and fill with pie weights or dried beans to keep the dough from slipping down the sides. Bake according to recipe directions. (You can use a removable bottom tart pan or a pie plate.)

- While crust is baking, prepare filling. Grate cheese and/or cut the vegetables. Mix together wet ingredients (eggs and cream).

- Let crust sit for 10 minutes to cool slightly, then layer cheese and solid ingredients into the shell. Pour in wet mixture and bake until set. (Follow specific recipe directions for times and temperature.)

Voila! It's as simple as that. The real men will be knocking down the kitchen door.

Janet K. Keeler can be reached at (727) 893-8586 or jkeeler@sptimes.com.

Quiche Lorraine

Pastry:

1 3/4 cups all-purpose flour

Pinch of salt

2/3 cup unsalted butter, chilled and cubed

1 egg yolk

2 to 3 tablespoons cold water

Filling:

1 cup shredded Swiss cheese

12 slices bacon, cooked and crumbled

1 scallion, both green and white, chopped fine

4 large eggs

2 cups half-and-half

1/4 teaspoon salt and white pepper

Pinch of hot pepper flakes

- To make crust, sift the flour and salt into a large bowl, add the butter and rub in with your fingertips until the mixture resembles bread crumbs. Add the egg yolk and a little cold water (about 2 to 3 tablespoons) and mix with a flexible, bladed knife until the dough just starts to come together. Bring the dough together with your hands and shape into a ball. Wrap in plastic wrap and put in the refrigerator to rest for at least 30 minutes. You can also make the dough in a food processor, using the pulse button.

- Once chilled, roll out the pastry into a circle on a lightly floured surface and use to line a 10-inch tart pan. Trim the edge and pinch around the pastry edge to make an even border raised slightly above the rim of the pan. Slide onto a baking sheet and refrigerate for 10 minutes.

- Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Line the pastry shell with parchment paper or aluminum foil and baking beads or dried beans. Bake the pastry for 10 minutes. Remove the paper and weights and bake for about 3 to 5 minutes, or until the pastry is just cooked but still very pale. Let crust cool for 10 minutes before filling.

- Layer shredded cheese, bacon and scallions in pastry shell. Mix together eggs and half-and-half; add salt, pepper and red pepper flakes if using. Pour into pie shell.

- Return to oven on baking sheet and bake for 15 minutes. Reduce heat to 300 degrees and bake for 30 minutes more.

- Allow to sit for 10 minutes before serving.

Source: adapted from The Food of France by Maria Villegas and Sarah Randell (Murdoch Books)

Tried and True

Tried and True is a monthly feature focusing on classic recipes with instruction on how to make them at home. The techniques aren't difficult and once mastered can be used to prepare other recipes. Coming in May: fried chicken

[Last modified April 24, 2007, 21:39:51]