One of my favorite breakfast recipes! If you’re not a fan of sausage, check out my Quiche Lorraine recipe instead! https://youtu.be/7iYBZHfm5bM
To put it plainly a quiche is a pie. More specifically it is a tart, which is an open-faced or “no top” pie crust filled with custard. And for those of you who don’t know what a custard is, it’s quite simply a pie filling made from dairy such as milk and cream which then uses eggs to bind it all together. A common custard ratio may be 4:1:1 (4 parts dairy, 1 part egg, to 1 part sugar).
Tarts are popularly used for many desserts, but there are hearty versions which use more egg and contain additional ingredients to become a savory pie, or “quiche.”
And while the French may claim that quiche is French in origin, it is an evolution of savory pies which were popular in Western Germany before the French invented the tart in the 1800’s. The word quiche is a French derivative of the German word kuchen, which means pie. Hailing from what is now known as the Lorraine region of North-Eastern France, the region was once part of Germany before the French annexed it in 1766, three years before the birth of Napoleon as the Royaume de France continued to expand in size.
While the origins of this dish are relatively new on the grand scheme of the evolution of cuisine and its known recipes, it was indeed the French and the English who spent much of the 1800’s perfecting the combination of eggs and dairy in baking.
History aside, the important thing to understand about combining eggs and dairy in baking is the relationship between the two as this will determine the end result of your pie’s consistency. The more dairy you add, the filling thins out and becomes creamy and is best served cold. The more egg you add as opposed to dairy, the filling will firm up when baked and would be served best at room temperature or warm. The more your custard firms up or solidifies, the filling will be capable of supporting additional ingredients which can be layered into the pie before baking.
Now if you research quiche ratios online you’ll see that the ratio of “1 egg to every 1/2 cup of dairy” is what you should use for a quiche. That might work for some recipes but I don’t want this too creamy since I’m layering in meat.
On the other hand I don’t want it to turn out like an Italian Frittata or Spanish Tortilla… I’m not making an omelet. I’m going to just go ahead and say that a good quiche should be “custardy” in consistency. Yes that’s right a “custardy” pie filling which can support additional ingredients. I don’t want it creamy, but I don’t want it dense and fluffy either. We’re gonna shoot for the happy medium.
To get that consistency right we are going to use 1 cup of whole milk and 2 cups of freshly grated cheese for our dairy, and we’ll bind that together with 4 large eggs. With the addition of Neese’s Country Sausage and some chopped green onion (because onions make the world go ’round), we’ll have our hearty southern sausage quiche!
I make this quiche on Christmas day so we only have it once a year at our house, but feel free to make this anytime. Serves 8, so let’s get to it!
Ingredients:
- 1 Refrigerated Pie Crust
- 1 lbs. Neese’s Country Sausage
- 4 Large Eggs
- 8 Ounce block of Colby Jack Cheese (2 Cups once shredded)
- 1 Cup Whole Milk
- 1/2 Cup Chopped Green Onion
- 1/4 teaspoon Salt
- 1/8 teaspoon Pepper
- 1/8 teaspoon Dried Thyme
- 1/8 teaspoon Cayenne Pepper
Nutrition Facts:
- Calories: 527.6
- Cholesterol: 174mg
- Sodium: 881.5mg
- Total Carbohydrates: 17.6g
- Dietary Fiber: 0.4g
- Sugar: 1.7g
- Protein: 22.7g
- Vitamin D: 0%
- Calcium: 24.5%
- Iron: 11.2%
- Potassium: 75.4mg
- Vitamin A: 14.6%
- Vitamin C: 5%
Directions:
- In a large skillet over medium heat cook sausage until no pink remains. Transfer to paper towel to drain, then refrigerate while quiche is prepared.
- Remove pie crust from refrigerator to thaw, at least 25-30 minutes.
- Chop Green Onion in the center portion of the stalks near the bulbs to get lighter green, flavorful onion.
- Cut block of cheese in half then grate each cube, portioned out into two separate bowls.
- In a large mixing bowl whisk eggs, then add in milk and seasoning and combine.
- Gently unroll pie crust which should be thawed by now. If it starts to crack, let it thaw some more before unrolling. Using a 9″ pie dish add pie crust and punch excess around the rim.
- Layer quiche with sausage, green onion, and cheese two times. During the second layer, leave a small amount of cheese and green onion aside for final topping.
- Slowly pour in egg mixture, watching the sides as it fills.
- Sprinkle topping of cheese and green onion then bake at 350° for 30 minutes.
- At 30 minutes remove from oven and cover loosely with a foil dome. Return to oven and bake for 20 more minutes.
- Remove from oven and let it rest for at least 30 minutes before serving. Enjoy!
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