A BLT made with fresh tomatoes, still warm from the garden, is one of life’s best treats. I wanted to combine these flavors in a quiche; here’s what I came up with: Bacon, Broccoli, Leeks and Tomatoes. While mini quiches are great, this is a full size pie. Using a 9” pie pan, you should get 8-10 servings, depending on how large you make the slices. I’ve used a whole wheat crust but feel free to use your usual pie dough.
Crust:
¾ cup whole wheat pastry flour
¼ cup bread flour
1 teaspoon sugar
¼ teaspoon salt
1/8 teaspoon paprika
Pinch of cayenne or a few drops of hot sauce
6 tablespoons freshly grated Parmesan cheese
4 tablespoons cold butter
1 tablespoon orange juice
2 to 3 tablespoons light or heavy cream
Filling:
10 slices cooked and crumbled bacon, reserve grease
1 large leek, cleaned and trimmed, sliced ¾” thick
12 grape tomatoes, halved
½ cup chopped broccoli
Salt and pepper to taste
Custard:
1 cup light cream
2 large eggs
1 tablespoon flour
½ teaspoon salt
1 cup grated Swiss or Gouda cheese
For the crust: Combine the dry ingredients, cut in butter with a pastry blender or fork. Sprinkle in the orange juice, then add the cream a teaspoon at a time. Continue to mix until dough holds together. Pat out the dough until it is about 1 inch thick, wrap in plastic and refrigerate over night.
For the filling: Heat 2 tablespoons of the reserved bacon grease in a skillet. Fry the leeks until they are soft. Set aside. Again, add 2 tablespoons of the bacon fat to the skillet and fry the tomatoes for 2 minutes. Season with salt and sugar to taste. Set aside. Blanche the broccoli in boiling water for 3 minutes and cool in ice water and then drain. Set aside.
To assemble and bake the quiche: Remove crust from fridge. Put the fried leeks on the bottom of the crust. Layer the tomatoes, then the broccoli, over the leeks. Whisk together the cream, eggs, flour, salt, cheese, crumbled bacon in a medium bowl. Pour over vegetables.
Bake the quiche for 10 minutes a in a preheated 425º oven. Reduce the temperature to 350º and put foil around the rim to prevent the crust from over-browning. Bake for an additional 25 minutes. Remove and allow to cool to room temperature before refrigerating or serving.
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