January ABC challenge: crustless spinach quiche II

New year, new source for the Avid Baker's Challenge group:  David Lebovitz.  We started out with a savory dish to counterbalance all the sugar from the previous months.  And who knows, maybe starting the year with a crustless spinach quiche will be a new tradition.

This recipe is pretty straightforward and basic.  David initially called it a "cake", then changed it to "pie."  I must object.  It's not encased in dough, therefore it's not a pie.  I hope he doesn't decide to call things whatever he wants "just because" or I will be very annoyed.  I thought about putting it in a pie crust to make a quiche, but I got too lazy.  I called it quiche anyway.  That is allowed.

I cut this recipe in half, and then made a few minor adjustments.  My changes to a half recipe are in italics and strikeout.  Here's what I used:

1 medium leek 
1 tablespoon butter, salted or unsalted
salt and freshly ground pepper
1 pound fresh spinach, stemmed and triple-washed
pinch of chipotle chile
about 1/8 teaspoon of ground nutmeg
1 3/4 cup whole milk
2 ounces cream cheese, softened
3 4 large small eggs
1½ teaspoon turmeric powder
1/8 teaspoon ground white pepper
Parmesan cheese

Remove the green part of the leeks, slice each lengthwise, rotate them a quarter turn, then slice them lengthwise again, keeping the end intact. Swish the leeks in a bowl of water until they’re grit free, and towel-dry. Cut into small pieces.  Melt the butter in a pan and sauté the leeks with a little salt and pepper, stirring occasionally, until they’re translucent. While they’re cooking, cut the spinach into smaller pieces.  Once the leeks are cooked, begin adding the spinach in batches, putting on the lid until the spinach has cooked down, then you can add more.  Include the nutmeg and chile powder during the final batch.  Allow to cool. 

Preheat the oven to 400ºF (200ºC). Liberally butter a round or rectangular baking dish with high sides, with a capacity of at least 1 quart.  In a food processor, puree the spinach mixture with the milk, cream cheese, eggs, turmeric, and white pepper until almost smooth. Season with salt and pepper, if desired.  Pour the batter into the prepared baking dish.  If desired, grate a layer of Parmesan over the top and bake for 45 minutes, or until a knife inserted into the center comes out clean.

I would have used the cheese on top but I forgot about it as I was seasoning and then was afraid it would end up too salty if I added the cheese.  If I'd remembered there was supposed to be cheese on top, I would have cut back on the salt.  Also, I didn't notice we weren't supposed to puree until smooth, and did.  I'm sure the texture is more interesting if left a little ragged. (Pretty sure you could whip the egg whites separately and fold them in and you'd have spinach soufflé, always a crowd favorite.)  I used a medium-sized, ceramic casserole dish for baking, but I still ended up baking it for 45 minutes, although I did turn the temperature down to 375 after 30 minutes.

Conclusion:  Very good.  Predictable, but a good main stay.  It had a really interesting flavor that I couldn't quite identify.  I really liked the cream cheese; I think it added a little more depth of flavor to the dish.  I would definitely put this in a crust---it needed just a little something extra for fun and to cut some of the intensity of the flavor, and would also mask the unpleasant bitterness where the spinach gets browned.  (In fact, it might be delicious sliced and wrapped in puff pastry.)  I'm also trying to figure out how to add something oystery.  (An oyster cream sauce?  Is there such a thing?)  Lastly, mine had a bit of a wateriness as I chewed, even though it doesn't seep in the pan.  Perhaps I should cut back the milk next time (or use the correct type and quantity of eggs.)

Recipe:  Spinach Pie via David Lebovitz

January ABC challenge: crustless spinach quiche I

It's a new year, and a new source for the Avid Baker's Challenge recipes.  This year we've chosen The Smitten Kitchen.

This first challenge was easy, but really nice for a cold winter morning.  I find traditional quiche too rich with all the pie crust and eggs and cheese and fatty meats, so I usually make this one using tofu and vegetables.  I knew I'd need to modify this recipe to my tastes.  The first thing was to oust the crust, and then substitute milk for the half-and-half.  (I used whole milk, but I suspect I could have gotten away with 2%.)  I'm not a fan of cheesy food, so although I didn't specifically reduce the amount of cheese, I measured the cheddar very lightly in the cup and didn't weigh it, so it was probably less than the recipe intended.  I substituted out some of the black pepper for white, and though I didn't think to add the red pepper, with my first bite I immediately wished I had, so I've listed it in the recipe.  (As an alternative to the heat, I think some herbs would be a nice addition, so I've listed that as well.  It all depends on whether you want a robust flavor or a delicate one.)  The switch to pecorino Romano was simply because I prefer the taste over Parmesan and always have it on hand.

I cut the recipe in half, which fit nicely in 3, 4.5-inch ceramic tart pans.  (I used a large, 1/2-cup spoon to ladle the filling in.  Each tart took one healthy spoonful.)  I also changed up the directions slightly; it seems like it would be easier to emulsify the eggs into the cream cheese before adding the milk.  I added the salt and spices earlier to give the salt a chance to dissolve and fully incorporate (so one didn't get bursts of salt grains) and for the spices to give up their essence.  Although it's probably not necessary to use a bain-marie, since I wasn't using a crust and it happened to be a convenient thing to do at the moment, I figured it wouldn't hurt to have the quiches protected by a water bath.

Here's what I used:

3 ounces (3/8 cup) cream cheese, very soft
3 large eggs
1/3 cup half-and-half whole milk
1/2 1/4 teaspoon kosher sea salt
1/2 1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper 
1/4 teaspoon white pepper
1/8 teaspoon crushed red pepper or chipotle pepper OR 1/4 teaspoon herbes de Provence (optional)
1 10-ounce package frozen chopped spinach, thawed and squeezed dry (see note)
1/2 cup grated medium cheddar
1/4 cup finely grated Parmesan pecorino Romano
3-5 green onions (according to taste), thinly sliced

Preheat the oven to 425F.  Whisk cream cheese in a medium-sized bowl until smooth and fluffy.  Whisk in the eggs, one by one, blending well between each, then add the salt and peppers/herbe.  Continue whisking while adding the milk.  Fold in the remaining ingredients until they are evenly distributed.  Pour into greased tart pans and place them in a small, shallow baking pan.  Add boiling water to the pan to about half way up the sides.  Bake about 20 minutes, checking after 15.  The quiche should look firm but still moist.  Serve warm.

Note:  to fully dry out thawed spinach, I squeeze out as much as I can with my hands, then put it in a cotton kitchen towel and wring out the remaining water.

I had green onions that had been around a while and consequently I'd removed quite a lot of the outer sheaths.  They'd been thin ones to start with, so I relied on weight to get the right quantity.  I really like the freshness green onions bring, so I was going for 1.5 ounces---half the larger quantity in the original recipe.  But getting to that weight took a lot more than 4.  I used all but two of the fresh bunch I'd just bought, plus all the remnants from the old bunch, and still wasn't quite at 1.5 ounces.  As it turned out, I thought the quiche was too oniony; it even left an onion taste in my mouth for a long while.  I recommend being your own judge on the quantity for that.

I tested some nutmeg in one of the quiches (because I think nutmeg belongs in custards), but couldn't really detect what I'd added.  Just as well, as I don't think it would have mixed well with the cheddar.  I normally buy mild cheddar in 2-pound blocks, but last time I accidentally bought medium cheddar.  I found the cheddar flavor a little strong, but by no means excessive.  I think the strong cheese flavor is what demanded some chile heat, but if using mild cheddar either the red pepper or the herbes would be fine.  When I saw the recipe called for kosher salt, I wondered if it were measured for large-grain salt.  (Kosher comes small grain as well.)  Since I wanted the salt fully incorporated, I used small-grained sea salt, but worried the measurement might be off.  It was---the quiche was a little too salty. I've adjusted the recipe above to reduce the salt content.  Lastly, I messed up on the timing and overcooked the quiche slightly.  I initially set the timer for 13 minutes.  They weren't nearly done, so I set it again for 10 minutes... or so I thought.  When it didn't go off after what seemed like 10 minutes, I got up to check and the timer read 9:49.  <insert confused emoticon here>  I guess I accidentally set it for 10 hours.  Oops.  So in total it seems the quiche baked for 24 minutes.  They could have been moister, but otherwise were fine.  I've adjusted the timing in the recipe to what I think would be acceptable.  (See also Crustless Spinach Quiche II.)

Conclusion:  Very good.  Very safe.  Nothing that's going to jar you out of your chair.  I just find quiche a little too fussy for what amounts to scrambled eggs with veggies and cheese, and since you can eat only a small amount, you have to find something else to round out the breakfast anyway.  It's nice to have to gussy up special occasions, though.

Recipe:  Spinach sheet-pan quiche via Smitten Kitchen

Tofu Vegetable Quiche with Nut Crust

My posts are usually for sweet baked goods, but I needed a place to store this recipe for future use.

Tofu makes a much lighter quiche than the traditional version with eggs.  This would be good for breakfast, lunch, or a light dinner served with a crusty roll.  The sunflower seeds in the crust add a nice contrast while the roasted pepper and chipotle give a smokey flavor.

Crust
2 cups almond meal
1/4 cup flax seed meal
1 egg white
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon turmeric 
1/4 cup raw sunflower seeds

Blend all the crust ingredients except the sunflower seeds in a food processor until the mixture is a fine, mealy texture and sticks together when pressed.  Add the sunflower seeds and process briefly to incorporate.  Press tightly into the bottom and up the sides of a 9.5" glass pie pan.  (It helps to use a flat plastic lid -- press in hard.  Be sure to get the corners and don't leave them too thick.) Bake at 350F for 15-20 minutes, until just starting to color.  Allow to cool until warm.

Filling
1 lb. organic, extra-firm tofu (NOT super firm; available at Trader Joe's)
1 16-ounce bag frozen spinach, thawed and squeezed dry
1 14-ounce can light coconut milk (recommended:  Trader Joe's brand)
1 egg yolk
1/4 cup (packed) chopped parsley
2-3 cloves garlic, crushed
1 teaspoon fresh thyme
1/4 teaspoon nutmeg
1/2 teaspoon chipotle chili flakes
1 tablespoon tomato paste
zest of 1/2 lemon
1½ teaspoons salt
1/2 teaspoon black pepper
1 teaspoon turmeric
1 red bell pepper, roasted, peeled, and diced
1/8 cup green onion, thinly sliced (about 2), optional

Blend all the filling ingredients except for the bell pepper and green onion in the food processor until well mixed.  Check for seasoning and adjust according to taste.  Add the bell pepper and onion and process briefly to incorporate.  Pour into baked pie crust, smooth the top, and bake at 350F for 1 hour, or until a knife inserted in the center comes out moist but without wet filling.  Serve warm with a side of spicy kimchi.

Conclusion:  Very tasty and not heavy at all; you can have a large slice and still feel comfortable. Seasonings and vegetables can be adjusted to taste, or different nuts used for the crust.  The kimchi provides a nice spicy side to the mild tofu.