Saturday 23 June 2012

quick & delicious quiches


Quiche is always on sale in the supermarkets and i always used to fall for it because i totally love quiche until i realised i was disappointed every time and in fact found the taste pretty gross. each time i hoped it would taste better and it never did. so i decided to make my own. i found an amazing recipe and cooked it for a visitor - it took hours and we ate dinner at about 10pm. it tasted good but was so involved and complicated that i gave up on home-made quiche.... until i came across Clare's brilliant recipe over at Lovely Things to Make & Bake. It is so quick and easy and totally delicious... it met all my quiche expectations! i made it in a huge hurry in order to take it on a picnic with family. as usual i got the idea in my head to make quiche for our picnic tea for the kids in a National Trust House with beautiful rose gardens. i didn't leave enough time but could not possibly abandon my romantic idea of taking home-made quiche so i ploughed on with gusto - manicly throwing in ingredients. i let the kids help for about 5 minutes and then got too flustered and turned on the tv for them. i picked up my sister very late (she understood - she does the same thing when she gets a good notion) and we set off at high speed - we got lost, almost ran out of petrol in the middle of nowhere, got stuck behind a tractor and both kids fell fast asleep for the whole drive (=bedtime nightmare!). We arrived to find my sister-in-law and kids in an overflow parking field next to the stately home. it had closed half an hour before. ugggh..  we made the most and laid our blankets at the edge of the field as it slowly emptied of cars. there was in fact a sweet river (with face-height barbed wire) and lovely long grass for playing in. as the kids crawled and hid and lept and made paths and rooms in the long grass we reminisced about how much we all adored playing in long grass (when we were young, haven't done it much lately) - there is something magical about it. perhaps the kids will remember the long grass more than they would the beautifully manicured rose gardens. i will remember the quiche. even my kids loved the one i stuffed with sweetcorn and cheddar. 

here's how to make two quiches (this way you can do different fillings or pop one in the freezer. however you will want to eat a whole one yourself when you taste it):

combine and then mix together with your hands to form a dough: 250g plain flour, 100g butter and 3 tbs cold water. divide in to two balls, roll out and put in your quiche dishes


Fill the dishes with whatever vegetables and cheeses take your fancy. I did the following:
Quiche 1: lots of tinned sweetcorn, some crumbled feta cheese, sliced tomato and chunks of cheddar cheese (grate if you have time)
Quiche 2: large handful of spinach, lots of chunks of feta cheese, sliced tomatoes
Whisk 4 eggs and mix with 1/2 pint milk. season with salt & pepper. pour half of the mixture over each quiche filling and bake for about 30mins or until just turning golden.
still warm when we finally arrived
here is our spot - not too bad after all
the river
the long grass

i find it very satisfying packing picnics
cheese & avocado sandwiches (my & the kids favourite)
i hate unpacking picnics when you get home tired and have to scrape soggy smelly leftovers out of tupperware


9 comments:

  1. Great recipes and inspiration. Thanks Becca

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  2. These quiches look so fabulous! I do love your story that accompanies them too. The reality of it all is so messy, and yet, such beauty, art and yumminess can come out of it all (sometimes)! I will try this recipe asap as my kids love quiche, albeit not as adventurous in the filling department.

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  3. they are really easy and delicious i've finally realised. my kids only eat the sweetcorn and cheddar (and a little feta) filled ones. today i had friends for lunch and did half the quiche with mushroom, cherry tomatoes, feta and rocket and the other half with just sweetcorn, tiny bit of feta and loads of cheddar for the kids :)

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  4. These recipes are fabulous. I take so many short cuts in the eve as the kids and i are so tired. I often do slow cooker recipes at lunch or make pizza but they're nowhere near as nice as this! Thanks for the recipes and the lovely stories that go with them....food for the soul too! x

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  5. thanks fiona. this recipe is delicious. i like the slow-cooker idea. i might try to do that more often - good for when you're tired and busy with little ones i bet!? take care, B

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  6. Hi Becca, Wow the quiches look so good! Great idea bringing them for a picnic! And those sandwiches look really good too! Yum!

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    1. they turned out well. thanks for the inspiration!! B

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  7. Replies
    1. thanks for sharing the story ... and the quiche :-)

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thank you. i love your comments x