Leek, Mushroom, and Bacon Quiche
By: Kristen Krueger
Published: Monday, March 15, 2010 - 7:32pm

Ingredients




Crust (adapted from Julia Child):

1 1/4 cups AP flour
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon sugar
1 stick unsalted butter, chilled and cubed
3 tablespoons ice cold water
Filling:

3 red potatoes, boiled and sliced
6 slices bacon
1 leek, cleaned and chopped
1 pound white or baby portobello mushrooms, sliced
2 teaspoons butter
1 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon ground pepper
4 eggs
2/3 cup milk
1 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon ground pepper

Preparation

1 Preheat your oven to 400. 2 Dump flour, salt, and sugar into a food processor. 3 Pulse to combine. 4 Add cubes of butter straight from the freezer. 5 If your processor has a feed tube, pour the water through while it is running. 6 Chill the dough for an hour or so 7 Roll it out on a floured surface 8 Gently work it into the tart pan. 9 Line it with foil and pierce holes all over with a fork. 10 Place pie weights or dry beans in the foil 11 Blind bake for 8 to 9 minutes. 12 When done, lower the baking temperature to 375. 13 Fry up the bacon until crispy in a large saucepan. 14 Set aside. 15 Saute the leek in melted butter and leftover bacon fat over medium heat. 16 When they are translucent and fragrant, sprinkle in salt and pepper and add sliced mushrooms. 17 Allow the mushrooms to absorb excess fat and heat through. When they are finished, set aside. 18 Now whisk together eggs and milk. 19 Add salt, pepper, and leek and mushroom mixture. 20 Lay the slices of potato on the bottom of the tart pan. 21 Pour into the tart crust and top with parmesan shavings. 22 Bake for 20-35 minutes.

About


My mother had cooking phases during my life. When I was really little, she made vegetarian everything. We filled colorful plates and bowls with vegetable-laden pastas, chilies, stratas, and her super-cinnamon-y coffee cake. When I think back to those days, I wish I had staked my claim then and there on those dishes to use for my kids someday. Eating anything out of a shocking yellow bowl or a vivid orange plate is fun. They would totally eat their vegetables!
During her second marriage there were clear plates and meatloafs. There were STUFFED BELL PEPPERS (ick) and gravy-topped pork chops. But during my early childhood, there were bright melamine dishes. And there were quiches.
One of my favorite fillings for quiche is the rag-tag team of leek, mushroom, and parmesan. Want it to be substantial enough for dinner? Just add potato! Want a boy to eat it? One word: BACON. With enough bacon, my man will eat anything. Armed with this knowledge, I set out to make my first quiche all by myself. I turned to Saint Julia for the crust recipe because I rarely trust myself to stray far from tradition on things like crusts.
The versatility and leftover-friendliness of quiches comes from the freedom to fill them however you want. So if you are missing an egg or are just short on milk, no problem. And if you adore scallions or can’t find good leeks, swap out as you please. If you’re a vegetarian (Hi Mom!), omit the bacon. Trust me, there’s plenty of flavor without it. Tell me your combos in the contents!
You should know that I have a big ole honkin’ tart pan. Like, who am I? Why did I think I needed this? But at the same time it works well for me as I’m not huge on crusts and prefer a larger ratio of filling. Deb at smittenkitchen used this same Julia crust for her leek and port mushroom quiche and apparently wanted a different ratio too. So modify your crust as you see fit.
It smells so good, is healthy, and reminds me of my childhood and my mama. Sigh.
And then my boyfriend put hot sauce on it.