This is another recipe dedicated to my grandfather. Shortly I graduated from college I spent a couple years living in L.A. Finding myself. (And then once I found myself, I said - "Look at you! What are you doing here in L.A.! Go back to school and get your Master's!" So I did.) Well, actually, the way I remember it, there was a lot of dancing to Brit-pop in crowded Hollywood nightclubs, but that's another story.
Anyway, this is not about my wild party days. It's about the day that I invited my grandparents over for lunch at my little West Hollywood apartment. I wanted something that would impress Grandma and would reassure Paga that I was not living on potato chips (Veggie Booty, actually. It was L.A.) and broccoli (which in fact I was). And then I thought - "Quiche!" It's French, and therefore fancy, perfect for lunch, and not too rich for my grandmother. I went on a search for a great quiche recipe, and ended up finding this recipe on the Williams Sonoma website, which I adapted a bit. Needless to say, it was a big hit, and has become a mainstay of my entertaining menu.
There are many ways to modify this recipe to use whatever it is you have on hand - this time, for example, I threw in some red bell pepper for color. I gave the recipe to a friend and she made a delicious mushroom and zucchini version. Bacon, onion, and cheddar is another great combination.
Don't be put off by the small number of eggs in the recipe. It's not a typo. The end result is a very rich, creamy, custardy quiche. It's really important to let the quiche sit and rest for at least 30 minutes before serving; otherwise, you'll end up with a runny mess.
“Impress the Grandparents” Quiche
For the pastry:
1 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
1/4 tsp. salt
8 Tbs. (1 stick) chilled butter, cut into small cubes
1 to 2 Tbs. ice water
For the filling:
8 asparagus stalks
1 bunch leeks (white and pale green parts only), cleaned and chopped 3/4 cup heavy cream, at room temperature
3/4 cup milk, at room temperature
3 eggs, at room temperature
1 Tbs. butter, melted
1 cup shredded Gruyère cheese
Salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste
Dash hot sauce
To make the pastry, in a bowl, stir together the flour and salt. Drop in the butter and, using a pastry blender or your fingertips, work the ingredients together quickly until crumbly and the mixture resembles oatmeal. Add the ice water a little at a time just until the dough begins to hold together. Gather into a ball, wrap in plastic and refrigerate for 30 minutes.
Position a rack in the lower third of an oven and preheat to 425ºF. On a lightly floured work surface, using your hands, flatten the ball of dough into a disk. Dust it with flour and roll out into a round 11 inches in diameter. Fit carefully into a 9-inch glass pie dish. Trim the dough to allow a 1-inch overhang, then fold under the overhang and flute the edges. Prick the dough in several places with fork tines and refrigerate for 10 minutes.
Alternatively, save yourself the trouble, go to the store and buy a pie crust. No one has to know.
Partially bake the pastry shell until it just begins to color, 10 to 12 minutes. If the pastry puffs up during baking, prick again with a fork to release the steam.
Remove from the oven and set aside. Reduce the oven temperature to 375ºF.
Now, prepare the filling: Blanch or steam the asparagus stalks for about 5 minutes, or until just cooked. Plunge into bowl of ice water to stop cooking. Slice into ½ inch lengths and scatter around in pastry shell.
Next, sauté the leeks in butter until they are soft. And smell good…Mmmm... Add these to pie crust as well.
In a bowl, combine the cream, milk, eggs and melted butter. Using a whisk or fork, beat until well blended. Stir in the cheese and season with salt, black pepper and cayenne pepper or just a splash of hot sauce. Pour into the prepared pastry shell and mix around with a fork so that everything is distributed evenly.
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