Quiche with Bacon and Caramelized Mushrooms
Savory custard.
Psst! Some shortcuts just for you...
About
February 23, 2021
Prep: 2h 0min
Cook: 1h 20min
Serves: 5
The gist.
Successfully making a quiche crust can be tricky. Developing this recipe was a learning experience for me, and I’m happy to now share the final result. Full of caramelized mushrooms, crispy bacon, sauteed shallots, and swiss cheese, a slice of this quiche will look like a real winner on your plate.
Something I really don’t love doing is making a pie crust. I’m optimistic and hope that one day I’ll grin and throw my hands in the air every time I get to make a crust, but that day has yet to come.
In the development process of today’s recipe, the quiche filling has undergone minor modifications, while the crust has been a real piece of work. When I first decided to create a quiche recipe, I did quite a bit of research regarding the ingredient ratios other people use in their quiche crust recipes. I made a chart, found the common ratios, and decided to do what felt right and just go for it. I added a bit too much flour and not quite enough water. The dough was overly-crumbly and split into a jigsaw puzzle when I tried to transfer it to the pie dish. The kitchen was not a happy place in those moments.
I patched together the crust the best I could, added the filling, and threw it in the oven. The flavor was superb and the filling looked great, but that crust. It was dense, undercooked, and just plain weird. I ate it, but I was pouty. I pushed the project to the side and moved on to other (easier?) endeavors.
Eventually I decided to quit being the baby I was being and returned, determined to pull a successful quiche out of my oven. I gathered more reading materials (online recipes, cookbooks, opinion articles) and extended my research. I have to say, there is a lot of contradictory crust-making advice out there. Use the freezer. Actually, stay out of the freezer. Use an egg. Wait, eggs are for the birds. Mix quickly with your fingers. No way, a metal blade in the food processor is way better than a finger. Confusing, you know what I mean?
Anyway, I combined and focused on a few methods that ultimately ended up working for me. I definitely would not call myself a pie crust expert, but what you have today is a crust I am satisfied with that represents my personal learning journey.
I’ll say a few things about the quiche itself and then leave you in peace to cook. A quiche is just a savory custard with extra bits, like meat and vegetables, added to it. Being a custard, the liquid base is naturally a combination of eggs, milk, and cream. As additions to the quiche, I chose to pair bacon, mushroom, shallot, and swiss cheese. All are fairly common in quiche recipes. When cooking the mushrooms, keep them in the pan a bit longer than you maybe normally would. I aimed for caramelized mushrooms. For this to happen, all the water inside of them needs to be cooked out. For me this took about five minutes per side over medium-high heat.
When the quiche is done, serve it warm or at room temperature. Enjoy and don’t hesitate to share any comments below!
Ingredients
- Crust
- Quiche Filling
Steps
(click each step as you go to keep track of your progress)
- Crust
- Quiche Filling
Finished and want to make it again?
Quiche with Bacon and Caramelized Mushrooms
- Prep time: 2h 0min
- Cook time: 1h 20min
- Serving size: 5
INGREDIENTS
- *Crust
- 65 g (4.5 Tbsp) butter, chilled and cut into small cubes
- 150 g (1.25 cup) flour
- 3/4 tsp salt
- 2 tsp sugar
- 25 g (2 Tbsp) shortening, chilled
- 60-75 mL (4-5 Tbsp) ice water
- *Quiche Filling
- 200 g (7 oz) bacon
- 1 large shallot, finely chopped
- 250 g (9 oz) white mushrooms, cleaned and sliced
- 28 g (2 Tbsp) butter
- 3/4 tsp salt
- 200 mL (6.5 oz) heavy cream
- 150 mL (5 oz) milk, 2% if possible
- 4 large eggs
- 1/4 tsp freshly ground nutmeg
- 70 g (2.5 oz) swiss cheese, grated
STEPS
*Crust
Combine butter, flour, salt, and sugar in a food processor. Pulse about times.
Add the shortening and pulse another 4 to 5 times. The mixture should resemble very coarse meal.
Transfer the mixture to a large bowl. Add 60 mL (4 Tbsp) ice water. Use a rubber spatula to smash and combine the dough. If the dough appears dry, add the extra 15 mL (1 Tbsp) of ice water; I usually always use all 75 mL (5 Tbsp) of ice water.
Use your hands to remove the dough from the bowl and press into a cohesive mass. Flatten the dough into a disk and wrap tightly in plastic wrap. Refrigerate the dough for at least two hours.
Remove from the fridge let the dough sit at room temperature for 15-20 minutes. Lightly flour a large surface and use a rolling pint to roll out the dough into a circle of about 33 cm (13 in).
Lightly flour the dough and then gently fold in half once. Turn the dough and fold in half again so you have a folded dough wedge that resembles a slice of pizza. Carefully transfer the wedge to a 22 cm (9 in) pie dish. Unfold the dough. Begin to "drop" the dough into the dish by lifting the overhanging dough and pressing it into the bottom of the dish. However you do it, avoid stretching the dough.
Preheat the oven to 190° C (375° F) with the rack at the middle height. Refrigerate the pie dish uncovered for 40 minutes. Then place in the freezer for 15 minutes. Cover and line the dough with a sheet of foil. Fill the foil with dried beans or pie weights if you have them. Bake for 15 minutes. Remove the foil and weights and bake for an additional 10 minutes.
Remove from oven and allow to cool.
*Quiche Filling
Preheat the oven to 175° C (350° F) with the oven rack at the middle height.
Place a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add the bacon and fry until nearly crisp. Transfer to a paper towel lined plate. Chop the bacon when cool enough to handle.
Return the skillet to medium heat and cook the shallots for 2 minutes in the bacon grease (you can drain some grease beforehand if there is an excess amount).
Heat a different large skillet over medium-high heat. Add the butter. When melted and hot, add the mushrooms. Cook for about 5 minutes, mostly undisturbed, and then flip and cook for another 5 minutes. You want most of the water to be cooked out of the mushrooms so that they begin to caramelize.
Chop the cooked mushrooms when they are cool enough to handle. Transfer to a large bowl and add 1/4 tsp salt. Add the bacon and shallots and stir to combine.
In a medium bowl, combine the cream, milk, and eggs. Whisk to combine until the color is homogeneous and no streaks remain. Add 1/2 tsp salt, the nutmeg, and the swiss cheese. Stir to combine.
Spread the bacon-shallot-mushroom mixture on the bottom of the crust. Pour the liquid mixture on top. Bake in the oven for 40-45 minutes.
Remove from the oven and let cool on a wire rack for at least 15 minutes before cutting and serving.
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