April 11, 2011: Cheese & tomato quiche

It wasn't too long before I was making pastry again, this time with my recipe calendar as an excuse.  It's a straight-up quiche arrangement; full of tomato, lined with a little mustard and topped with extra cheese in the form of brie slices.  Actually the brie centre melted right into the quiche filling within the first few minutes that it spent in the oven, the rind sticking around in lazy stripes on top.

It was lovely fresh out of the oven and nearly as good when gently reheated for lunch later.  I reckon home-made shortcrust is the one pastry that still holds up convincingly as leftovers.

Cheese and tomato quiche
(recipe slightly adapted from Quick Vegetarian Recipes)

175g plain flour
salt and pepper
75g butter, diced
2 tablespoons cold water
1 tablespoon wholegrain mustard
50g mature cheddar, grated
4 tomatoes, sliced
125g brie, thinly sliced
1 cup milk
2 egg yolks
1 clove garlic, crushed

In a food processor, pulse together the flour, salt and pepper. Add the butter and blend until the mixture resembles breadcrumbs.  Pour in the cold water and blend the mixture until it comes together as a dough.  Bring it together into a balls, wrap it in plastic wrap, and refrigerate for at least 20 minutes.

Roll out the dough between two sheets of plastic wrap and ease it into a pie dish.  Refrigerate the pie crust for another 10 minutes or so.  Preheat the oven to 180°C.

Blind bake the pie crust for 10 minutes, then remove any weights and paper and bake it for a further 5 minutes.  Spread the base with the mustard and sprinkle over the grated cheddar.  Layer the tomato and brie slices on top.

Whisk together the milk, egg yolks and garlic, then pour them over the tomatoes and cheese.  Bake the quiche for at least 30 minutes, until the eggs have set and the top is golden.