It’s been a while since I’ve had a quiche and I don’t know why. Last year, I did a spinach and goat cheese variety and there was a roasted red pepper and artichoke in the beginning of the year, but since then — nothing.
Weird — because they’re simple to make and you can add any number of ingredients that you have on hand.
In fact, I would say that quiche has been my default, catch-all dish for a long time. Maybe I’ve been so busy trying to impress you with my vast cooking repertoire that I’ve ignored the simple, basic goodness of what is arguably one of my favorite and most comforting meals.
What finally prompted me to action was a lunch date that I made with my grandparents. I usually visit with them every week, taking my grandfather on errands to the market, etc. This week, I had a little extra time before heading to their house and I decided to surprise them with lunch.
Growing up, Madou (my grandmother) and Bem Bem (my pet name for my grandfather) always welcomed me with their home-cooked dishes, like his court-bouillon or her bread pudding. (I also have a memory of Madou serving calves brains — with a tomato sauce, but I choose to block that from my mind.)
Now that they aren’t as active in the kitchen, it’s my turn to cook for them. This quiche went over big! It’s vegetarian – I used lots of kale and mushrooms and of course, cheese. Normally, I would add ham, pancetta or bacon but my grandmother is having trouble chewing these days and I figured this would be easier on her.
She inhaled it. Actually, we all did. I served it with a fall salad and nary a crumb was left. It was like old times. Good times!
Kale and Mushroom Quiche
Quiche is a great way to entertain for weekend brunches and they're portable, so when they ask you to bring something... it's quiche to the rescue!
Ingredients
- 1 9-inch pie crust
- 8 ounces button mushrooms thinly sliced
- 1/2 yellow onion thinly sliced
- 3 cups kale stems removed, very finely chopped
- 2 tablespoons olive oil divided
- 3 tablespoons water
- 4 eggs
- 1/2 cup milk
- 1/2 cup heavy cream
- 1/2 teaspoon nutmeg freshly grated
- 1/2 teaspoon + 1 pinch kosher salt divided
- 1/2 teaspoon black pepper freshly ground
- 1 cup grated fontina cheese
- 1/4 cup parmesan cheese grated
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 450 degrees.
- Place pie pastry into glass or ceramic pie plate. Press bottom and sides into plate and finish the edges of the crust by pressing the tines of a fork against the rim of the crust, or by pursing the edges together between your thumb and forefinger. Refrigerate crust until oven has heated completely. Place pie plate into the oven and bake for 6-7 minutes until set and just starting to brown. Remove crust from oven and set aside.
- Reduce oven temperature to 325 degrees.
- In a large skillet, heat one tablespoon olive oil over medium heat. Add onions to skillet and sauté for 2-3 minutes. Add mushrooms and pinch of salt. Cook 5-7 minutes, until vegetables are tender and mushrooms have given off their liquid, stirring occasionally. Transfer onion mixture to a small bowl.
- Add remaining oil to the skillet and add chopped kale. Cook 1 minute, stirring. Add water and cook until kale is wilted and water has evaporated, stirring occasionally, 2-3 minutes. Add kale to onion mixture. Set aside.
- In a medium bowl add eggs, milk, cream, nutmeg, remaining salt and pepper. Whisk to combine.
- Add kale mixture, parmesan and fontina to eggs. Stir to combine.
- Pour filling into pie crust and bake for 45 minutes, until filling is set. Remove from oven. Let quiche cool for half an hour before serving.
More Quiche Recipes:
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- Ratatouille Quiche
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- Loaded Baked Potato Quiche
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- Tomato Bacon and Onion Quiche
This is a fantastic recipe. I’ve made it twice as two quiches with added ingredients and it worked great for big brunches. To make it more substantial, I added veggie breakfast sausage and fine diced red bell pepper. I also used smoked gouda and cheddar for the cheese. So yum! Thank you for the inspiration!
I’m so glad you enjoy this recipe — and love your twists and add-ins! To me, cooking is very personal, so I love that you’ve made this your own!
Could you freeze this quiche and if so, would you freeze the quiche before you baked it or after?
Thanks
I would freeze it after baking. Defrost the quiche before reheating it. I would reheat at 300° for 15-20 minutes.
Hi Barb! Yes, you can freeze the quiche. I would do it after you’ve baked it. Thaw the quiche before reheating it. I would set the oven at 300° and warm it for 15-20 minutes.
Made it for dinner tonight and it was an absolute hit. We loved it.
I’m so glad you enjoyed it Karen! Quiche is a go-to meal for me because everyone loves them! Thanks for letting me know!
Such a gorgeous quiche. My only suggestion, is instead of discarding kale stems, chop them and sauté starting with the onions. They are a fantastic addition, and no waste! Cool all the way through with onions and mushrooms if started right away.
I’m all for the waste not, want not philosophy! Great suggestion!
The quiche turned out wonderfully, and everybody at the brunch was asking for the recipe! For anyone in a similar position of working with what’s in the fridge, here were my substitutions: I altered the mix of cheeses—half mozzarella, half cheddar—instead of fontina, used Trader Joe’s “coconut beverage” in place of the milk, but did use heavy cream since I had that available. I used a slightly-rounded 1/4 teaspoon of pre-ground nutmeg, since it’s stronger than freshly ground. A full 1/2 teaspoon of pre-ground nutmeg would have been really overpowering (and I like nutmeg!), so keep that in mind. (Probably just time to buy a real nutmeg…)
I used a grain-free, nut-free crust from the book _My Paleo Patisserie_ and highly recommend it.
I love how you made this your own, Nicole!
Wow the pictures are great! I love that there is kale and mushrooms (two of my faves) in this quiche.
I’ve been on a major mushroom kick lately so I would LOVE this! Perfect for any meal of the day.
I have a confession: I’ve never tried to make quiche! You’ve hit all of my happy spots with this recipe, though—especially mushrooms, onions, kale, and fontina—so it has now become my mission. My mom has issues chewing too, so she’ll appreciate this dish when I make it for her on Mother’s Day!
Such a fantastic story Lisa. My grandparents passed away a couple of years ago and I must say that I am quite envious that you get to take your grandpa shopping every weekend. I would have loved to see their faces when you showed up with this beauty in hand. It looks absolutely delicious. It’s no surprise that not even a crumb could be found as evidence of it’s existence.
Oh my, this quiche looks so good. I would love to have a few slices right now!
We had it for dinner tonight. I wanted to use up my heavy cream. I didn’t have fontina or a pie crust, but it was great with Mexican style cheese and no crust.
Judy
I love your rift on this — and I’m so glad you enjoyed it!
This sounds absolutely fantastic!
It’s a great combo, Suzy!
It is always great feeling to cook for somebody we love especially grandparents as they always given best food in the world. You made best kale mushroom quiche. I wish you can send some for me too.
LOL! – Grandparents deserve the best, don’t they?!!
Aw, that’s such a great story! I love that you cooked this for your grandparents after their years of cooking for you. Quiche really is such a great dish, but it’s one I haven’t made in ages either. Yours looks so golden and perfect, too — it’s inspired me! I definitely need to make a quiche soon!
I like to bring my grandparents homemade dishes as often as I can. They always appreciate it and quiche is one of their faves!
I love quiche – it’s one of those dishes that is appropriate any time of day and in just about every situation. I’ve been working on a cauliflower crust for mine, since as much as I love pie crust – it doesn’t really fit into my everyday eating plan. I haven’t made one in a while, though – glad I came across this post as a great reminder. I’ll try your kale and mushroom variety for dinner next week!
You’ll have to send me your cauliflower crust recipe! That sounds great — especially for a healthier eating plan!
I love making quiche and you can’t go wrong with mushrooms and kale in it.
Hi Lisa!.
Looks so refreshing and what a great flavor!
Thank for sharing
Given fresh kale from garden and farm fresh eggs.
Baking this up right now!
Do you have a farmer for a neighbor? I’m jealous!
I made it without the crust because I didn’t have one at the moment and had to replace two eggs with egg whites because I didn’t have enough–it turned out fantastic anyways! What a wonderful recipe. Thanks!
I love your ingenuity! Glad you enjoyed, it’s one of my favorites too!
Made this and realized at the last minute that I didn’t have a pie plate (still moving things to new abode). Used a slope-sided oven-proof skillet instead… A funny presentation but still delicious!
Inventive! You’re like MacGyver in the kitchen!
This sounds so great! I love putting kale in eggs – the mushrooms must make it even more fab!
Quiche is one of my favorite meals with a salad for dinner during the week and then we enjoy the left overs for a quick brunch on the weekend. My favorite is spinach and mushroom but I will be giving kale and mushroom a try here in the near future.
I think I like this better than spinach – because the kale is a little chewier – it gives a nice texture! Enjoy!
wow what a delicious quiche…I can see it from the pictures:-). This is great way to eat veggie :-).
It really is good! Thanks amallia!