Savory, Cheesy Bacon Broccoli Quiche

When you’re looking for an easy make ahead brunch recipe, my cheesy bacon broccoli quiche is a winner. It’s savory and smoky with an irresistible seasoned egg custard. This simple broccoli cheese quiche is great for casual weekends and makes a delicious dinner with a salad and chilled glass of white wine.

steps for blind baking a pie shell.

When I think about make ahead recipes for brunch, I naturally lean toward casserole-y egg dishes and when you think about it, that’s exactly what a quiche is. A rich egg custard, baked in a flaky crust and filled with any manner of meats, vegetables and cheeses.

Ingredients:

  • 9″ Pie Pastry (homemade or store-bought)
  • Thick Cut Bacon
  • Broccoli Florets
  • Sharp Cheddar Cheese
  • Eggs
  • Milk
  • Heavy Cream
  • Oregano
  • Crushed Red Pepper Flakes
  • Kosher Salt & Black Pepper

You can see this is a pretty minimal list of ingredients (and you likely have most of them already in your fridge and pantry).

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Though it’s a really simple recipe, it’s important to prep all of the ingredients before you start assembling the quiche. That way it’s a seamless process and not a lot of starts and stops which can be really frustrating. This is the order I like to prep in:

  1. Blind bake the pie crust.
  2. Cook the bacon.
  3. Blanch the broccoli (easy method).
  4. Grate the cheese.
  5. Assemble and bake the quiche.

Blind baking the crust:

I used a store-bought Pillsbury pie pastry for this recipe, just for convenience, but I do take the extra step to blind bake the crust. If you fill a raw pie pastry with egg custard, it tends to stay soft and soggy instead of being flaky.

Blind baking the crust is a simple, preventative measure that’s easy to do and it makes a big difference in the overall dish.

  1. Preheat the oven to 450°. It’s important that the oven is at the proper temperature to start the blind bake. A high heat will activate the fat layers in the pastry, creating the flaky texture you want.
  2. While the oven heats, fit the dough in to a pie plate and press the bottom and sides firmly to the dish, then prick all over with a fork. (That’s to help prevent the dough from bubbling up – it’s not the end of the world if it does, but pricking the dough lets the steam escape). Crimp the edges of the dough into a decorative pattern or simply use the tines of a fork to press the edges down.
  3. Place a large piece of parchment paper over the pastry and fill it with pie weights. (Pie weights are re-usable ceramic weights that will ensure your pie pastry doesn’t puff up while baking.) If you don’t have pie weights, use a bag of dried beans or try one of these pie weight substitutes recommended by Baking Kneads. Just fill the parchment with the beans (take them out of the bag) and spread them in an even layer. (Note: you can save and reuse the dried beans for future blind baking — but once you bake them, they’re no good for eating).
  4. Bake the crust for 10 minutes or until the pastry is set and is just starting to take on a little color. Remove from the oven and set aside to cool.
Cooking and draining bacon.

Best bacon for this recipe:

I recommend thick cut bacon for this make ahead quiche recipe. Here’s why. Thicker cut bacon has more depth and chew than thinner varieties. Usually it’s at least 1/4″ thick, so when you get a bite of the bacon in your quiche, you know it.

If you don’t have thick sliced bacon, use about half a pound of regular bacon, cooked until crispy and drained well on paper towels. Once the bacon is cool enough to handle, crumble or roughly chop it into bite sized pieces and set aside.

A visual on the steps for blanching broccoli for a make ahead brunch recipe.

Quick tips for blanching broccoli

  • I used fresh broccoli in this quiche recipe, though you could use frozen florets. Just be sure to defrost them completely and pat dry with paper towels so the quiche doesn’t become soggy.
  • Trim the fresh broccoli florets into very small, bite-sized pieces.
  • Fresh broccoli needs to be blanched before adding it to the quiche. My quick and easy microwave blanching method (below) is simple and effective. (Note: frozen broccoli has already been blanched).
  • Let the broccoli cool to room temperature or just slightly warm before adding it to the egg custard later in the recipe.

How to blanch broccoli in the microwave

  1. Transfer broccoli florets to a microwaveable glass bowl.
  2. Add 2 tablespoons of water.
  3. Cover with plastic wrap.
  4. Microwave for 90 seconds.
  5. Remove plastic wrap and let cool.
  6. Drain the water completely and pat broccoli florets dry before adding to the quiche custard mixture.
Grating the cheddar cheese for bacon broccoli quiche.

Cheese options for bacon broccoli quiche

I used sharp cheddar cheese in this broccoli quiche, but you can really use any semi-hard cheese variety. Here are a few good options (certainly not an exhaustive list).

  • Extra Sharp Cheddar
  • Colby
  • Monterey Jack
  • Low Moisture Mozzarella
  • Comte
  • Gruyere
  • Reblochon
  • Swiss
  • Emmentaler
  • Gouda
  • Manchego
  • Fontina

I’m not a stickler about a specific type of cheese, but I do recommend grating it yourself instead of using the prepackaged shredded cheeses.

Pre-packed may be “easier”, however, I don’t find them to be as flavorful as freshly grated cheese, because they’re coated with a special agent to prevent the shreds from sticking. That coating diminishes the intensity of the cheese flavor.

Assembling the bacon broccoli quiche custard.

This is where all of the prep work comes in handy… Assembling the quiche is a breeze when everything is ready to go.

Assembling the quiche:

  1. In a large bowl, combine the eggs, milk, cream, salt, pepper, oregano and crushed red pepper flakes.
  2. Break the egg yolks and whisk to thoroughly combine the ingredients.
  3. Add the grated cheese, blanched broccoli florets and bacon and stir.
  4. Transfer the quiche custard to the par-baked pie crust.
  5. Bake for 30 minutes and check on the crust to make sure it’s not getting too dark. If it is, lay a piece of tin foil over the entire top of the quiche and continue to bake for 20-30 minutes or until the egg custard is set.
  6. Remove from the oven and let cool for 10-15 minutes before slicing.
You can make this a day ahead for a make ahead brunch recipe.

A great make ahead brunch recipe

What I love about quiche is that you can make the whole thing the day before you want to serve it. Here’s how:

  1. When the quiche is done baking, let it cool completely to room temperature. Cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate.
  2. The next day, remove the plastic and let the broccoli bacon quiche rest on the counter for about 30 minutes before reheating.
  3. Preheat the oven to 300°.
  4. Warm the quiche in the oven for about 20 minutes, uncovered. Then serve.

This is great if you’re having a casual weekend brunch with friends or family because you and your guests enjoy a nice mimosa or Bloody Mary as the quiche heats up.

A sliced broccoli cheddar quiche.

This bacon, broccoli and cheddar cheese version is loaded with flavor and trust me, it has something for everyone. It’s savory, rich and popping with tongue tingling flavors.

Scott, my husband, went wild for this. He especially liked that the bacon wasn’t crumbled into bits, but still had heft and chew. He could taste the fresh broccoli and the cheese just melted into the custard. That little bit of crushed red pepper added a zip without being too spicy.

He went back for thirds — a good sign, folks.

This recipe makes 6 servings, so if you’re having more people, you may want another bacon broccoli quiche or just bulk up the recipe with extra sides. I love to include a good fruit salad, muffins or scones and some extra type of breakfast meat like sausage links or ham. Be sure to have some brunch time sippers on hand too.

What to serve with bacon broccoli cheddar quiche:

More quiche recipes you might like:

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A slice of quiche with broccoli.
Print Pin
4.72 from 7 votes

Bacon Broccoli Cheddar Quiche

A delicious, flavor-packed quiche for a simple brunch or dinner. Can be made ahead and reheated the next day.
Author: Lisa Lotts
Course Breakfast, Main Course
Cuisine American
Keyword bacon, broccoli, cheddar, quiche
Prep Time 20 minutes
Cook Time 1 hour
Total Time 1 hour 20 minutes
Servings 6

INGREDIENTS:

  • 1 9″ pie pastry store-bought or homemade
  • 4 slices thick cut bacon
  • 1 ½ cups broccoli florets
  • 1 cup grated sharp cheddar cheese
  • 5 large eggs
  • ¾ cup milk
  • ½ cup heavy cream
  • ½ teaspoon kosher salt
  • ¼ teaspoon black pepper
  • 1 teaspoon dried oregano
  • ¼ teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes

DIRECTIONS:

  • Preheat the oven to 450°. Place the pastry into a pie dish and press firmly to the bottom and sides. Prick the bottom of the pastry with a fork multiple times and decoratively crimp the edges of the crust.
  • Lay a piece of parchment paper over the crust and add pie weights. Spread the weights evenly into the bottom of the crust and bake for 10 minutes until the crust is set and lightly browned. Set aside.
  • Reduce the oven temperature to 350°.
  • Cook the bacon in a skillet until browned and crisp. Transfer to a plate lined with paper towels to absorb the excess grease.
  • Trim the broccoli florets to small bite-sized pieces (about 1/2″). Place the broccoli in a microwaveable bowl and add 2 tablespoons of water. Cover with plastic wrap and microwave on high heat for 90 seconds. Remove the plastic wrap and carefully drain away the water. Set the broccoli aside.
  • In a large bowl, combine the eggs, milk, cream, salt, pepper, oregano and crushed red pepper. Whisk thoroughly to combine.
  • Stir in the grated cheese, broccoli florets and bacon. Pour into the prepared crust and bake for 45-60 minutes or until the custard is set. If the crust starts to brown too much, place a piece of foil lightly over the quiche.
  • Remove the quiche from the oven and let rest for 15 to 20 minutes before slicing.

TO MAKE AHEAD AND REHEAT:

  • You can bake the quiche the day before serving and let it cool completely to room temperature. Refrigerate overnight. To reheat, remove the quiche from the refrigerator and let rest on the counter for 30 minutes to come to room temperature.
  • Preheat the oven to 300°. Place the quiche in the oven to warm for 20 minutes. Serve.

RECIPE VIDEO:

YouTube video

NUTRITION:

Calories: 332kcal | Carbohydrates: 5g | Protein: 15g | Fat: 28g | Saturated Fat: 14g | Trans Fat: 1g | Cholesterol: 221mg | Sodium: 559mg | Potassium: 258mg | Fiber: 1g | Sugar: 2g | Vitamin A: 936IU | Vitamin C: 20mg | Calcium: 224mg | Iron: 1mg

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7 Comments

  1. Margaret Thom says:

    5 stars
    Can this quiche be frozen?

  2. 5 stars
    Yum! Such a great breakfast quiche! My family and I loved this for our breakfast this morning! Excited to make this again!

  3. 5 stars
    Aside from the wonderful recipe, I really appreciated the tip on keeping my crust from being soggy. And, as you know, it worked!

  4. 5 stars
    Cheese and bacon is a delicious combination for a quiche. I love the idea of adding broccoli.

  5. Bintu | Budget Delicious says:

    5 stars
    This is such a flavourful and delicious quiche! A winner for lunch or dinner!

  6. Agnieszka says:

    5 stars
    This quiche is truly delicious! I will definitely make it again. Thanks for the recipe.