Veggie Quiche

This healthy veggie quiche is filled with broccoli, tomatoes, and cheese to create a well-balanced vegetarian quiche complete with protein, fiber, and healthy fats. You can make this quiche on a weekend morning for a hearty and healthy brunch or make it ahead of time for a simple breakfast or light lunch that you can enjoy hot or cold.

Is quiche considered healthy?

Packed with protein, fiber, and healthy fats, quiche is in fact a healthy and well-balanced meal. The high content of eggs in quiche provides a lot of protein, vitamins, and minerals, and including vegetables adds a good boost of fiber and micronutrients. Due to the content of butter, cream, and cheese, quiche does have the potential to be a very high-calorie dish, however, by making quiche at home you can easily control the total calorie content per slice, as I’ve done in this recipe.

What You’ll Need for a Vegetable Quiche Recipe

You’ll need the following ingredients to make this recipe:

• Eggs: The base of any quiche recipe; use large eggs, white or brown, to make the custard filling.
• Milk and Cream: For the best flavor and texture, use a combination of milk and cream in your quiche.
• Cheese: This recipe calls for Gruyère cheese, as I think the sweet but salty taste of this Swiss cheese provides the best flavor, however, you can use any chees you enjoy; cheddar cheese and goat cheese would also work well. Although feta cheese won’t melt the same way it would provide a nice salty taste.
• Broccoli and Tomatoes: This veggie quiche recipe calls for onion, broccoli, and tomatoes, however, you can really use almost any vegetables you enjoy; zucchini, red bell peppers, spinach, and mushrooms would also work well.
• Salt and Pepper: Some seasoning to help balance out the flavor. Feel free to add some additional fresh herbs, such as basil, parsley, and chives, if you like.
• Pie Crust: For the best results, make a homemade pie crust. If you don’t have time to make a homemade pie crust, a frozen pie crust will do. To make it gluten-free, use a frozen gluten-free pie crust.

How to Make It

1. Make the crust. Begin by preparing the pie crust and be sure to blind bake it for the best results. If you don’t have time to make a homemade pie crust, you can use a frozen pie crust.
2. Cook the veggies. Cook the onion, broccoli, and tomatoes before adding them to the filling.
3. Make the filling. Whisk together the eggs, milk, and heavy cream until well combined to make the custard filling for the quiche.
4. Fill the pie crust. Once the pie crust has been blind baked, the veggies are cooked, and the eggs and dairy are mixed, place the veggies in the pie crust and cover with the custard filling.
5. Bake the quiche. Place the filled quiche in the oven at 325°F and bake until set in the middle and the crust golden brown.

Crustless Veggie Quiche Option: If you’d prefer a crustless veggie quiche, you can still use the filling ingredients and instructions but forgo the crust completely. Simply lightly grease the pan dish lightly with oil or melted butter, then layer the cheese, vegetable mixture, and custard mixture into the pan, transfer to the oven and bake until golden brown.

Should I cook veggies before putting in quiche?

Yes, it’s best to cook or partially cook the veggies before putting them in your quiche. Vegetables take longer to cook than eggs, so cooking them before adding them to the quiche, by sautéing, steaming, grilling, or roasting, helps to ensure that the veggies are cooked through and the entire quiche is cooked evenly.

How do I make quiche without soggy crust?

Blind baking is the key to avoiding a soggy crust. Blind baking is the process of pre-baking or partially baking a pie crust before adding the filling. When blind baking, the pie crust is lined with parchment paper and weighed down with pie weights or dry beans, to prevent the crust from puffing up while it bakes, which allows the crust to bake and slightly crisp up to prevent it from becoming too soggy once you add the filling.

Can you use 2% milk instead of heavy cream in a quiche?

For the best results, I recommend using a combination of heavy cream and milk. This combination provides the right thickness for the custard filling and provides the best texture once baked. Using only heavy cream will result in an overly thick filling and, while you can replace the heavy cream with milk, it will create a thinner filling. If you want to reduce the calories or fat content of the quiche, replace the heavy cream with half-and-half or table cream instead.

Storage and Reheating

To Store: Wrap the quiche tightly in plastic wrap or place it in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 4 days.

To Freeze: Place the quiche in an airtight container or tightly wrap it in plastic wrap and place it in a freezer bag and then transfer it to the freezer for up to 3 months.

To Reheat: You can reheat a whole quiche in the oven at 350°F oven for about 25 minutes or individual slices for 10 minutes, or until heated through. Alternatively, you can reheat in the microwave for 1-2 minutes, however, this will impact the texture of the crust and make it a little softer.

More Healthy Quiche Recipes:

• Spinach Mushroom Quiche

Veggie Quiche

Author: Stephanie Kay

A healthy and easy veggie quiche filled with broccoli, tomatoes, and cheese. This quiche works well for breakfast, brunch, lunch, or dinner, and can be served hot or cold.

• Author: Stephanie Kay
• Prep Time: 20 minutes
• Cook Time: 55 minutes
• Total Time: 1 hour 15 minutes
• Yield: 8 slices 1x
• Category: Breakfast
• Method: Baked
• Cuisine: American
• Diet: Vegetarian

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Ingredients

Crust:

• 9“ deep-dish frozen pie crust

OR

• 1 1/4 (150 g) cup all-purpose flour
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 cup (113 g) unsalted butter, very cold, cut into 1/2″ cubes
• 4 to 6 tablespoons ice water

Filling:

• 1 tablespoon olive oil
• 1 shallot or small onion, minced
• 1 cup cherry tomatoes, halved
• 2 cups broccoli florets
• 4 eggs
• 1/2 cup heavy cream
• 1/2 cup milk
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1 cup Gruyère or cheddar cheese, shredded

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Instructions

1. Preheat the oven to 400°F and begin by preparing the pie crust.
2. If you are using a pre-made pie shell, remove it from the freezer and thaw until just soft, about 10 minutes, then prick the bottom all over with a fork.
3. If you are making a homemade pie crust, add flour and salt to a food processor and pulse a few times to combine. (*If you don’t have a food processor, see note below about doing this by hand.) Add the butter and pulse for a few seconds at a time, until coarse crumbs of butter form the size of large peas. Sprinkle the mixture with 4 tablespoons of ice water (make sure there are no ice cubes in the water!) and pulse again. Continue to add water until a dough forms. You know that the mixture is ready if when you pinch some of the crumbly dough together with your fingers, it holds together. Carefully empty the crumbly dough mixture from the food processor onto a floured surface, gather the mixture into a mound and gently form it into a disc with your hand. Wrap the disc in plastic wrap and set it in the fridge to chill for at least 2 hours. Once the dough has chilled, roll out the crust so that it fits a 9″ pie dish and then line the dish with the dough. Fold the excess dough inward, pressing the edges to double the sides. Prick the bottom all over with a fork and then refrigerate again for 30 minutes or freeze for 15 minutes.
4. When the pie shell is ready, transfer it to the oven and blind bake for 20 minutes until partially cooked. (*See note below about blind baking.) Once baked, remove it from the oven, set it aside and turn the oven temperature down to 325°F.
5. While the crust is baking, prepare the filling. In a large skillet or pan on medium heat, warm the olive oil. Add the shallot and cook for 5-6 minutes until tender and slightly translucent.
6. Add the broccoli and tomatoes to the pan, season with a pinch of salt and pepper, and cook for an additional 2 to 3 minutes, until green but still crisp. Remove from the heat and set aside.
7. In a large bowl, add the eggs, milk, cream, and salt and whisk until well combined.
8. Once the pie shell is cooked, layer with the filling ingredients. Add half of the Gruyère cheese, top with broccoli mixture and sliced tomatoes, top with remaining cheese and then pour with the egg mixture over top.
9. Transfer to the oven and bake for 50-55 minutes until the centre is set and the top is lightly golden.
10. Once cooked, remove the quiche from the oven and allow to cool slightly before slicing, 5-10 minutes.
11. The quiche can be served immediately, hot or cold, stored covered in the fridge for 3-4 days or tightly covered in the freezer for up to 3 months.

Notes

MAKING DOUGH BY HAND: If you do not own a food processor, you can make the dough by hand. In a large bowl, mix flour and salt, then add the cubed butter. Using your hands, begin ‘cutting’ the butter into the flour by rubbing the cold butter between your thumbs and fingers until the butter is the size of large peas. Add the water and knead the mixture in the bowl until the dough starts to hold together. See here for additional tips on making pie dough by hand.

BLIND BAKING: It is essential that the dough is chilled before blind baking, do not skip this step. For the best results, fill the pie shell with pie weights or dried beans before baking. Simply carefully line the pie shell with parchment paper, then pour in pie weights or dried beans to help weigh down the crust. See here for additional blind baking tips.

CRUSTLESS OPTION: Simply omit the crust and grease the 9-inch pie dish with a little butter before adding the filling and bake in the oven at 350°F for 30 minutes or until the centre is set.

Nutrition

• Serving Size: 1 slice
• Calories: 291 calories
• Sugar: 3 grams
• Fat: 21 grams
• Carbohydrates: 16 grams
• Fiber: 2 grams
• Protein: 11 grams