Quiche Hints and Tips

Traditionally a winter and autumn dish, and a practical way to make use of ingredients on hand, the quiche is a savoury tart of many flavours.  Once country fare for simple folk, easy, filling and transportable, the quiche has reached sophistication beyond the famous Quiche Lorraine. Here's a few hints and tips to keep in mind when making your next quiche.

• Blind bake the pastry case first in a preheated oven for about 12-15 minutes to avoid a soggy crust.  If you like, paint it lightly with beaten egg white which will seal it.
• Baking the filling no higher than 190°C to prevent it from cracking, drying out on the surface or separating. 
• A quiche should be moist, never dry. 
• Always allow a quiche to rest 5-10 minutes before cutting or removing from the pan.
• As a general suggestion, unless making a mixed vegetable quiche, try to stay within 3 ingredients, plus (or not) cheese. 
• A serious mixed cheese quiche doesn't need other ingredients but may benefit from one savoury addition, such as bacon or ham or herbs. 
• A mixed vegetable quiche with ham, salmon, mushrooms, cheese and curry may solve what to do with left overs, but is a beginners mistake. 
• Have all vegetables sliced or cut into even pieces and either briefly steam then plunge in cold water, or sauté until half done or have them so finely minced that the cooking time for the quiche will be adequate to finish the ingredients. 
• A tablespoon of Parmesan cheese makes a lovely seasoning to most quiches. 
• For a cheese quiche, either use one kind or a blend of mild cheeses or use only one dominant cheese such as blue cheese or Emmentaler in moderate amounts and mix with a bland cheese such as quark or other fresh or cottage cheese.  Use enough strong cheese to delight but not to bite.  Generally cheese is not used with fish or other seafood.
• General egg mass suggestions:  for a 25 diameter normal quiche pan, at least 2 eggs plus 1 yolk for 250ml milk and half again (125 ml) of thickened cream or crème fraîche and 100-200g of cheese if using, or about 1 to 2 good handfuls. Use less if you prefer or reserve a little to garnish the top. 
• You can also lay slices of cheese over the ingredients instead of using grated before pouring over the mass.
• The more eggs the richer and firmer the egg mass will be. With 4 eggs you can reduce the liquid proportionately. 
• Very often, a good grating of nutmeg and white pepper is used and enhances the flavours. 
• The more ingredients, the less egg mass will be needed to bind and fill the base. 
• A spinach quiche is mostly spinach, some cheese and enough egg mass to bind it. 
• A quiche of fresh finely minced herbs (a few handfuls) will need about 650 to 700ml milk or quark/cream using 3 eggs to bind it. 
• In general, 1/3 to 1/2 of the liquid used is cream unless otherwise stated in recipes. 
• Pure cream and egg masses are generally for thinner quiches. 
• Beat the eggs with the cream/soft cheese only enough to loosen, never beat them frothy.