food international: Cowboy Quiche

“Real cowboys eat quiche.” —Aristotle

Oh, do I love this quiche. I included it in my second cookbook and is similar to the quiche I posted here back in the dark ages of 2009, but without the gnarly mushrooms, and with cheddar instead of Swiss. Swiss cheese and mushrooms are not a cowboy’s idea of a good time. I’m sorry about the sweeping generalization, but on this cattle ranch, I have found it to be true.

But really, this quiche recipe is merely a canvas for you. You can add absolutely anything that crosses your mind: asparagus, prosciutto, diced ham, little chunks of cream cheese, herbs, shrimp, sausage…and/or any vegetable you want. My favorite quiche ingredient is sauteed leeks, but I’m crazy weird, unpredictable, and dangerous that way. Yep, that’s me.

The most distinctive thing about this quiche is how big and unapologetically tall it is. I prefer this deep dish approach to just baking the quiche in a regular pie pan, because you wind up with much more eggy cheesy yummy filling compared to the crust. In regular pie pans, they wind up being too crusty for me.

Let’s make quiche, my friends!

First, caramelize some onions by cooking a bunch of sliced onions in butter over medium to medium-low heat. It’ll take at least 15-20 minutes for them to get to this nice deep golden brown color (maybe longer), so make sure the heat is nice and mild…and stir them here and there! When they’re done, set them aside to cool.

Caramelized onions are my life.

 

Next fry up some bacon until it’s cooked but still chewy, then chop up the bacon and let it cool slightly.

Bacon is my life.

Combine a bunch of eggs with some heavy cream (OR half-and-half if you prefer)…

 

Then whisk them together until nice and smooth.

 

Add salt and pepper (you can add a little cayenne or hot sauce, too) and whisk it together.

Eggs give me reason to live.

 

Roll out the pie dough…

Note: You can use this pie crust, which turns out perfect every time, and depending on your preference, you can use all shortening, half butter and half shortening, or half butter. Incorporating some amount of shortening will result in a better texture, but it’s totally up to you! (You’ll use half of the pie crust recipe linked above. Wrap and store the other half in the freezer.)

 

Lay the crust over the tart pan…

 

And press the dough into the grooves. Then (I don’t have a photo of this because I was an airhead when I photographed this recipe and I’m still an airhead now) roll the rolling pin over the top of the pan, pressing lightly to “cut” the excess dough off the edge of the pan. (You can find these pans in lots of cooking stores. I just searched and found some at Sears.)

These tart pans rock my world.

Now, once the onions and bacon have cooled, add them to the egg mixture along with some grated sharp cheddar.

Onion + Bacon + Cheese = Cowboy Friendly.

*Sweeping generalization alert.

Stir it all around to combine…

Then pour the mixture into the pie crust. This is a deep dish quiche, so it should go almost up to the top.

Now just place the quiche pan on a rimmed baking sheet, cover it lightly with foil, and bake it at 400 degrees for 40 to 45 minutes. After that time, remove the foil and continue baking for 10 to 15 minutes until the top and the crust are golden brown. The quiche should be just slightly jiggly, but not much. If you think it needs more baking time, cover it with foil and keep baking until it’s done. (The foil will keep it from getting too brown on top.)

Take it out of the oven and let it sit for a good 15 minutes to make sure everything sets.

This is one of the beautiful things about these tart pans: The bottom totally detaches from the rim…

 

So you’re left with these gorgeous quiches, which are now easy to cut (as long as you have a good, sharp serrated knife.)

Gorgeous!

 

Gorgeous.

Gorgeous.

You will never look at quiche the same way again. This is divine! And you can change it up however you’d like.

Here’s the handy printable!

Recipe

Cowboy Quiche

Prep Time:

30 Minutes

Difficulty:

Easy

Cook Time:

1 Hours

Servings:

10 Servings

Ingredients

• 1 whole Unbaked Pie Crust (enough For A Deep Dish Pan)
• 2 whole Yellow Onions, Sliced
• 2 Tablespoons Butter
• 8 slices Bacon
• 8 whole Large Eggs
• 1-1/2 cup Heavy Cream Or Half-and-Half
• Salt And Pepper, to taste
• 2 cups Grated Sharp Cheddar Cheese

Instructions

Fry the onions in the butter in a large skillet over medium-low heat for at least 15 to 20 minutes (maybe longer), stirring occasionally, until the onions are deep golden brown. Set aside to cool.

Fry the bacon until chewy. Chop into large bite-sized pieces and set aside to cool.

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees. Roll out the pie crust and press it into a large fluted deep tart pan (or a deep dish pie pan).

Whip the eggs, cream, salt and pepper in a large bowl, then mix in the onions, bacon, and cheese. Pour the mixture into the pie crust.

Place the pan on a rimmed baking sheet, cover lightly with aluminum foil, and bake it for about 40 to 45 minutes. Remove the foil and continue baking for 10 to 15 minutes, or until the quiche is set and the crust is golden brown. (The quiche will still seem slightly loose, but will continue to set once remove from the oven.)

Remove from the oven and allow to sit for 10 to 15 minutes. If using a tart pan, remove the quiche from the pan, cut into slices with a sharp serrated knife, and serve!