Vegetarian Quiches

The warmer weather makes us think of lighter meals and this quiche recipe fits the bill nicely. The custard filling is an unusual one and was a family favourite made by my mother when we were children. The recipe I have given here fits 2 x 16 cm flan tins and each quiche would cut into 4 portions. You could of course reduce or increase the quantities to suit the number of people you are feeding.

To make the pastry:

200g of plain flour

100g of butter, diced

enough very cold water to bind the pastry

in a large bowl, rub the butter into the flour until the mixture resembles breadcrumbs
add 2 tablespoons of water at a time to the dry mix, using a fork to stir it together. (The quantity of water you will need depends on the absorbency of the flour – I used about 4 – 5 tablespoons of water for my pastry)
using your fingers, draw the pastry together to form a ball
turn the pastry onto a lightly floured surface and knead it very lightly for a few seconds until it is smooth then shape it into a ball again
leave the pastry on the work surface and cover it with an upturned bowl whilst you prepare the quiche fillings (if you are making the pastry in advance, wrap it in cling film and store it in the fridge)
preheat the oven to 180°C

For the vegetable fillings:

– for one of my quiches I used some florets of broccoli (steamed for 5 minutes first) with sliced sweet orange pepper and finely chopped onion sautéd in a little butter

– for the other quiche I used sautéd onion and sliced cherry tomatoes layered with grated cheddar cheese

For the egg custard filling:

In a bowl or large jug, mix together:

1 x 200g carton of full fat cream cheese
6 free range eggs
150mls of milk
salt and pepper to season

Beat these ingredients together until they are well blended. You may find it easier to use a hand whisk.

To assemble the quiches:

divide the pastry into two, roll each piece out and line the flan tins

lightly dust the base of each pastry case with a little flour. This helps prevent moisture from the vegetables soaking into the pastry
add your chosen vegetables to each pastry case

pour the egg filling over the vegetables

bake the quiches for about 40 minutes until the egg custard filling is set and the quiches are light golden brown in colour
serve the quiche accompanied by a simple salad