Shelly's Recipe

QUICHE WITH SCALLIONS AND CHEDDAR CHEESE

Category: Quiche and Savory Tarts / Tartlettes

Once the dough is pressed into the pie plate, it can be refrigerated for 2 days or double-wrapped in plastic and frozen for 1 month. After it has baked and cooled, the shell can be wrapped and held at room temperature for 1 day. If making ahead, heat the pie shell in a 350-degree oven for 5 minutes before adding the custard in step Grate the cheddar cheese on the small holes of a box grater for the best texture.

Crust
1 cup flour
1/2 cup finely grated Parmesan cheese
1/4 tsp salt
6 tbsp unsalted butter, softened
2 oz cream cheese softened

Custard and Topping
5 slices bacon, chopped fine
3/4 cup half-and-half
3/4 cup sour cream
2 large eggs plus 1 yolk
1/4 tsp salt
1/4 tsp pepper
Pinch nutmeg
1/2 cup shredded sharp cheddar cheese
2 scallions (1 minced, and 1 thinly sliced)

Make dough Adjust oven rack to lower-middle position and heat oven to 375 degrees. Whisk flour, Parmesan, and salt in bowl. With electric mixer on medium-high speed, beat butter and cream cheese until smooth and creamy, about 1 minute. Reduce speed to low, add flour mixture, and mix until dough forms large clumps, about 1 minute. Reserve 3 tbsp dough. Flatten remaining dough into 6-inch disk and transfer to center of 9-inch pie plate.

Blind-bake: Press dough evenly into bottom and sides of pie plate and use reserved dough to form crimped rim. Refrigerate dough for 20 minutes, and then transfer to freezer until firm, about 10 minutes. Spray two 12-inch-square pieces of foil lightly with cooking spray and arrange greased-side down in chilled pie shell. Top with pie weights and fold excess foil over edges of dough. Bake until surface of dough no longer looks wet, 15 to 20 minutes. Carefully remove foil and weights and continue to bake until crust just begins to brown, about 5 minutes. Transfer to wire rack and cool until just warm, about 15 minutes. Reduce oven temperature to 350 degrees.

Mix custard While crust cools, cook bacon in large skillet over medium heat until crisp, about 8 minutes; transfer to paper towel-lined plate. Whisk half-and-half, sour cream, eggs, yolk, salt pepper, nutmeg, cheddar, minced scallion and 3/4 of bacon in large bowl.

Bake Pour custard mixture into warm pie shell and bake until crust is golden and custard is set around edges, about 25 minutes. Sprinkle remaining bacon and thinly sliced scallion over surface of quiche and continue to bake until center of quiche is barely set, 5 to 10 minutes. Cool on wire rack for 15 minutes. Serve. (Quiche can be refrigerated in airtight container or wrapped in plastic for 3 days)