Vegetable quiche: the recipe for a colorful and scenographic savory pie

The quiche it’s a savoury cake from French originin particular of the Alsace-Lorraine areamade with a crunchy shell of shortcrust pastry that encloses a soft stuffed with egg and cream, to which you can add different fillings according to your tastes. In fact, there are many quiche recipes that can be prepared: from quiche lorraine to quiche with mushrooms, up to that with peas and bacon.

The Vegetable Quiche it is a simple preparation with rustic flavors, stuffed with a filling of bechamel, zucchini e carrots, without cream. Our version is vegetarianbut if you prefer you can enrich it with baconto make it even tastier.

Once ready, you can serve it as second dish o antipasto: it is excellent both hot and lukewarm. So here are all the steps to prepare a vegetable quiche light and very good.

How to make vegetable quiche

First, prepare the béchamel: melt the butter, add the flour and cook until the mixture comes off the bottom of the pot. Add the milk slowly, continuing to mix with a hand whisk. Cook over low heat, without stopping stirring, until the sauce begins to thicken. Finally, add the salt and nutmeg. The result should be a smooth and compact sauce, not too thick 1.

Roll out the shortcrust pastry with a rolling pin trying to get a regular disc. Make sure the dough is neither too thick nor too thin: the ideal is a thickness of 4 mm 2.

Put the dough in a round pan, using the parchment paper so you can move it more easily 3. Once in place, check that it adheres well to the walls using your fingers or the back of a spoon.

If necessary, trim the excess dough on the edges. Prick the bottom with the tines of a fork, in order to promote uniform cooking and prevent the pasta from swelling due to the heat 4. Refrigerate for 10 minutes.

In the meantime, cut the zucchini and carrots using a potato peeler or a mandolin: you will need to obtain very thin slices, with a thickness of 2-3 mm 5.

Sprinkle the bottom of the dough with two tablespoons of breadcrumbs, which will ensure a dry and perfectly cooked base. Then pour the béchamel 6 and level the surface with the back of a spoon.

To create the spiral pattern, start from the outer edge, placing the courgette slices first. Continue alternating the circles of zucchini and those of carrots, ending with a rolled zucchini 7.

Add a pinch of salt, pepper and a drizzle of oil, then cook in a preheated oven at 200 ° C until the dough is cooked: it will take about 40 minutes. The quiche should have a golden surface and a delicious crust 8.

Wait a few minutes for it to cool, then serve the vegetable quiche by cutting it into slices 9.

Advice

For the filling of the quiche, you can use the vegetables you prefer, even according to the season: try it in estate con eggplant, peppers e spring onionsor prepare it in Winter stuffing it with broccoli, mushrooms o pumpkin. Another ingredient particularly indicated in this preparation is the cheesewhat can be parmigiano, pecorino or another of your choice.

You can choose to add le eggso as to give more body to the filling, or you can replace it with liquid fresh cream.

The vegetable quiche is also excellent with puff pastry, which can be made at home or purchased ready-made. To prevent the base from remaining raw, you can sprinkle the bottom of the pan with some bread crumbs before adding the topping and cooking the quiche on the lowest shelf of the oven.

Variants

Quiche lorraine

Quiche Lorraine is one of the most famous quiche recipes. Prepare the shortcrust pastry, roll it out between two sheets of parchment paper and let it rest in the fridge for 30 minutes. Line a 25cm mold with the dough, cover it with a sheet of parchment paper and place some ceramic balls or dried chickpeas on the bottom, so that it does not swell during cooking. Cook it in the oven at 180 ° C for 10 minutes. Meanwhile, mix the eggs, Parmesan and a pinch of salt and pepper and then add the cream. Put the mixture in the refrigerator. Peel and slice the onions and cook them in a pan with the diced bacon, a drizzle of oil and a pinch of salt. Remove the pasta from the oven and stuff it with diced cheese and the bacon and onion mix. Add the egg mixture and cook in the oven for 35-40 minutes, until the quiche is golden.

Quiche with mushrooms

Mushroom quiche is a perfect variation for the autumn period. First clean the mushrooms and cut them into slices. Prepare a sauté with the poached garlic and cook the mushrooms in a pan for a few minutes. When cooked, add salt, pepper and parsley. Roll out the shortcrust pastry and place it in a round pan. Cover the bottom with the breadcrumbs and then add the sliced ​​sweet provolone. Separately, beat the eggs and add grated Parmesan and cream. Arrange the mushrooms on top of the provolone and pour in the cream and egg mixture. Fold the edges inwards and cook at 180 ° C for about 20 minutes.

Salmon and zucchini quiche

The quiche with salmon and zucchini is light and delicate, ideal for a light but tasty dinner. To prepare it, wash the courgettes, cut them into slices and sauté them in a pan with salt and oil. Separately, cut the smoked salmon into strips. In a bowl, mix the ricotta with the eggs, Parmesan, salt and pepper. Once everything is blended, add the salmon and courgettes. Place the roll of shortcrust pastry on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper and add the filling. Remove the excess dough or fold it over the filling to seal the cake. Bake in the oven at 200 ° C for about 30 minutes.

Quiche empties the fridge

The quiche svuotafrigo is the anti-waste version of the famous French quiche. Wash the courgettes, cut them into cubes and cook them in a pan. In a bowl, mix the eggs, cream, grated Parmesan, salt and pepper. Add the soft cheese and the chopped ham and courgettes. Unroll the shortcrust pastry and lay it on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper. Prick the dough with the tines of a fork, pour the filling inside, level it and bake in the oven at 180 ° C for about 40 minutes.

storage

The vegetable quiche can be preserved for Three days in the refrigerator in an airtight container. Once cooked, freezing is not recommended; When raw, on the other hand, it can be stored in the freezer – better by separating the base from the filling – then letting it defrost at room temperature and cooking it according to the recipe.