Are we our own worst critics? Or is it the other guy? Do we expect more from ourselves because we’re always in search of measuring up? Or is it truly because others expect us to rise to the occasion?
I’m betting it’s all of the above.
Yesterday I received a comment from Caryn who said, “Made these tacos tonight. They were AMAZING! Will definitely make again soon! Thanks for sharing! 
”
Shortly afterward, I received a comment from Amy, a reader reporting that a recipe she made of mine, was in her words, “…one of the worst recipes I’ve ever tried. I’ve followed the recipe directions to the letter, but after 30 minutes, these bars are still not cooked. In fact, the top is crispy, but just underneath it’s still completely liquid. What a mess!!!!”
Because I’ve deemed it my job to deliver recipes that others want to make successfully, I truly appreciate both of their feedback. And oh how I can relate to Amy, and man, I wish the recipe had measured up to her expectations like it did for me and others who have made it.
I can totally relate to Amy because I’ve had the same exact experience: to be inspired to make a recipe, follow it to a T, and be left disheartened because it didn’t turn out as I expected.
What did I do differently—aka wrong—making it so that her version didn’t turn out? Are my recipes good, like Caryn said? Or are they prone to failure, like Amy said?
And thus, the second guessing and self critiquing begins.
It’s ironic that I had both of these comments in a span of 15 minutes, while writing this post, because nothing exemplified Amy’s feelings more than when I was developing this quiche recipe. It nearly did me in but I kept at it because I craved this deep dish quiche pie.
Baking can turn into the evil step-mother in the blink of an eye.
Quiche de Resistance
There are two secrets to a great quiche. 1: The crust, and, 2: the custard. And if you don’t have both, you have a sucky quiche.
See, I know this because I’ve been in search of the best deep-dish quiche recipe for umpteen years. In my search I’ve made it a point to taste test some amazing looking quiches I’ve found along the way. There was my FAVORITE quiche I had from this little French bakery while on vacation in Turks and Caicos. Then, I sampled another tasty version at a local coffee shop where I discovered this fluted pan with a removable bottom.
I bought the pan thinking that might be part of the secret. The removable bottom definitely makes it easier if nothing else. Then I set upon researching and testing recipes so I could create my own.
I tried deep-dish quiche recipes that said they were fool-proof, that said they were the best, and recipes that celeb chefs deemed infallible. Just like my reader above who had issues with one of my recipes, I followed these recipes just as instructed and still had failures that measured from just so-so to disastrous. Tart shells that oozed filling and were unservable to my brunch guests. Insides that were barely cooked but wayyy too browned on top. Pie crusts that simply melted off the sides of the pan into heaping piles of crust.
For example, this beautiful cream cheese based pie dough is a dream to work with. I should know because I made it and 3 other pie dough recipes before deciding this was the winner for this recipe.
But if you don’t blind bake it correctly—aka weighted down with beans that none of the recipes I tried suggested I do—in a mere 15 minutes of baking, it has the potential to shrink like a shy little flower and come out looking like the pie crust below.
Ugh!
How could they all be wrong? How could each of these recipes have failed me? This baker needed practice and to figure out what worked best in my own kitchen. And I’m happy to report that I did. And I sent that evil stepmother packing.
About the recipe
I tested a variety of pie crust recipes. I made them in different combinations of all-butter crusts, with some mixed in the food processor, some by hand and another in the stand mixer. With water, with egg, with cream cheese and with none. I went back to my successful pie crust for Curried Turkey Pot Pie and even consulted the bakery chefs at Deer Valley Resort, and then I merged the ingredients and processes of the two.
What I discovered along the way when making this crust is to make sure it doesn’t slide down the sides of the pan. Blind baking the crust prior to filling it with the custard requires there must be a “filling” to keep the crust in place.
The key to the crust, for me, is freezing it in the pan it’s to be baked in. Then I emptied the contents of a 4 pound bag of uncooked beans placed on parchment paper and filled my pan all the way to the top of the crust. From there it goes straight to the oven. That was the missing instruction in each of the recipes I tried in my recipe development quiche crust quest.
The egg custard for this recipe gets a jolt of healthy thanks to the addition of greek yogurt. It adds a bit of tang to the recipe that we found delicious. In testing the recipe, I tried it with both whole fat greek yogurt and fat free yogurt and didn’t experience a difference in texture between the two.
If you’re not a yogurt fan, substitute with the same amount of half and half or whole milk.
Eat Seasonal
Like every month, my friend Becky of The Vintage Mixer has shared March’s list of what to eat seasonal in March on her site. The flavorful fillings of seasonal spinach and leeks are the added accoutrements that make this quiche a favorite for spring’s favorite meal of the day: Brunch!
Bacon and creamy havarti cheese are added for an extra layer of irresistibility, but if you’re going veg, you could easily omit the pork products.
If you make this recipe, please let me know! Leave a comment below or take a photo and tag me on Instagram or Twitter with #foodiecrusheats.
- For the Cream Cheese Pastry Shell
- 10 ounces unsalted butter, very cold and cut into chunks
- 10 ounces cream cheese, very cold and cut into chunks
- ⅛ teaspoon kosher salt
- 12 ounces all-purpose flour
- 4 pound bag of uncooked beans for baking (these are not to be eaten and can be reused for another time)
- For the Quiche Filling
- 1 pound bacon, cut into large dice
- 1 cup leeks, white parts and light green only (about 1 small leek)
- 6 cups spinach leaves
- 8 ounces havarti cheese, shredded
- 6 large eggs
- 2 cups plain Greek yogurt (fat-free, low fat or whole)
- 1 cup whole milk
- ¼ teaspoon white pepper
- ¼ teaspoon ground nutmeg
- For the Cream Cheese Pastry Shell
- Add the butter and cream cheese to the bowl of a stand mixer and mix with a paddle attachment until combined. Add the flour to the bowl, sprinkle with the kosher salt and combine on low speed until just combined and the flour is in pieces the size of peas. Dump onto a clean surface sprinkled with flour and mold into a disc. Cover with plastic wrap and chill for at least 30 minutes.
- Transfer the dough to a lightly floured surface and roll out into a 15-inch circle, moving the dough in a circular fashion each time you make a pass or two with the rolling pin so it doesn't stick. Add more flour under the dough as needed. Carefully roll the dough around the rolling pin and transfer to a 9-inch pan with a removable bottom. Gently press into the pan and leave at least a ½ inch or more overhang. Prick the bottom of the dough with a fork. Freeze in the pan for 2 hours or overnight.
- For Assembling the Quiche
- Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F and place a baking sheet on the bottom rack of your oven to catch any drippings that may occur.
- In a large skillet cook the bacon over medium heat stirring occasionally until the bacon is lightly browned. With a slotted spoon, transfer the bacon to a plate covered with a paper towel for the bacon to drain and cool.
- Remove all but 2 tablespoons of the bacon drippings and cook the sliced leeks until tender, about 5-7 minutes. Add the spinach in batches and cook until it has wilted and cooked down. Remove from the heat and cool.
- Pull the frozen pie crust from the freezer and line it with parchment paper and fill the entire pan with the uncooked beans to the very top of the pan. Bake for 20 minutes or until the crust is lightly golden brown. Remove the beans and parchment paper and then layer the partly cooked pie crust with the cheese, bacon and the spinach and leek mixture, reserving 1 tablespoon or so of each ingredient.
- Add the eggs, milk, yogurt, white pepper and ground nutmeg to a blender and blend until frothy. Pour the custard over the layered ingredients in the pan. Sprinkle with the reserved ingredients. Reduce the oven temperature to 325 degrees F and bake for 1½ hours or until the top is lightly browned and custard is just set in the middle (165 degrees F). If the top is getting too browned and inside isn't yet cooked, tent with aluminum foil and cook in additional 10 minute increments.
- Cool in the pan for 10 minutes then use a serrated knife to cut the crust flush with the top of the pan. Cool for another 30 minutes in the pan then carefully remove the pan ring. Cut into wedges and serve or refrigerate for up to 2 days.
- ** To reheat the quiche, place on a baking sheet and wrap in aluminum foil. Bake for 10-15 minutes at 350 degrees F or until warmed in the center of the custard.
- Adapted from Williams Sonoma, Sunset magazine and Deer Valley Resort
More Eat Seasonal Food Love
And because I can’t not share more seasonal foodie love, here are a sprinkling of more recipes created by our food blogging #eatseasonal crew to give a go in your own kitchen. We’d love for you to share your own seasonal recipes on Instagram and Twitter by using the hashtag #eatseasonal.
Curried Broccoli Chickpea Hash | Well Plated
Baked Buffalo Chicken Stuffed Artichokes with Blue Cheese | Climbing Grier Mountain
Roasted Asparagus and Avocado Salad with Lemon Vinaigrette | Completely Delicious
Spinach and Mushroom Marinara with (or without) Meatballs | Bless this Mess
Greek Broccoli Salad | Cookie and Kate
Baked Eggs with Asparagus and Peas | Kitchen Confidante
Lemon Ricotta Pancakes | Vintage Mixer
Blood Orange Asparagus Salad with Ginger Miso Dressing | Cafe Johnsonia
Avocado and Mango Salad with Citrus Poppyseed Dressing | Mountain Mama Cooks
Creamy Garlic Lemon Butter Pasta | Oh, Sweet Basil
Whipped Lemon Ricotta Open Faced Sandwich | A Zesty Bite
Hey, thanks for stopping by and visiting FoodieCrush. Have something to say? I’d love to hear from you. Let me know in the comments below.
Make it a great day, friends and cook something seasonal and good.
As always, thank you for reading and for supporting companies I partner with, which allows me to create more unique content and recipes for you. All opinions are always my own. Are you following me on Instagram, Twitter, Facebook and Pinterest?
Thanks for reading and subscribe to FoodieCrush to have each post delivered straight to your e-mail box.
Subscribe and have every FoodieCrush post delivered straight to your e-mail inbox
Ok, insert drool here! This looks delicious Heidi! And I know quiche is all about the pie crust for some people but what I’m super excited about it those leeks. I can’t get enough!! 🙂
I’m a leeky man myself, ok, that came out all wrong. Quiche is a sensitive topic in my family. Originally, I wouldn’t touch it with a 10 foot pole which irritated my Mother-In-Law. Now I eat it and it makes her happy. Man, you got some crazy readers (besides myself).
Ooooooo I’ll take 88 slices.
The deeper the quiche, the closer to God. (that’s how it goes, yes?). This looks divine!
You’ve got some mad baking skills. I’m with Bev, I’ll take 88 slices and slice of bacon, too!
Heidi, I was just having this same conversation with some friends yesterday: baking can yield fantastic and miserable results, even from the same recipe. It is such a challenge! But I know that this quiche is a winner – I just love how it is a mile high, and that crust! Swoon 🙂
I think people just have off days too. Where a good recipe goes wrong? It is always the pits. This quiche looks delicious. I always struggle with the crust though.
What a perfect idea for a mother’s day brunch!
You win some you lose some. It’s frustrating to not have a recipe turn out but it’s par for the course. I try not to worry about the negative comments. They’re far and few between- don’t let them get you down! Gorgeous quiche, BTW.
You know, Heidi, one of the things that you didn’t address in your post about Amy’s comment is that ovens are different – brand to brand, model to model. And, learning the quirks of your oven for baking, especially, is an art (and a science project!) all to itself! I’ve learned, for example, that I can’t bake more than one batch of cookies at a time. Because the top ones are underdone, the middle too crispy and the ones on the bottom, burned! The air needs to circulate around the pan placed in the center of MY oven. And, the same thing applies, for me, with other recipes like pies and quiche, who need to be turned halfway or tented, etc. And, I’ve had similar disasters with bar cookies! So, we have to get to know our ovens. And, when we move or replace them, we have to get to know them all over again! Beautiful quiche recipe and quiche is one of my favorite things, so I’m pinning…
Hi Carole, thanks for the good point. That was actually my reply to her. I just didn’t want it to come off in the post that I was pointing fingers so didn’t mention it 🙂 Baking has so many variances, its best to try and try again.
Three of my favorite ingredients in one dish. I hate eggs, but I love quiche! It’s the perfect anytime meal dish. Love it!
Well you have definitely perfectly the quiche. I know how hard you work on every single recipe to make sure it’s not only beautiful but also delicious with great directions. So, brush it off, like water off a ducks back 🙂 I think you are beyond awesome! And that simple picture of leeks – gorgeous!!
Man, I hate it when one of my recipes doesn’t work out for someone. There are so many variables that go in to cooking. I’ve had nothing but pure success with the few recipes of yours that I’ve made, so I’d guess that you’re batting about 999.
This quiche looks fantastic, btw. I really love leeks in quiche – to me it adds such a buttery flavor. Yum!
So this quiche is one of the best I have had!! But how do you get it out of the pan and have it look perfect like that? I have to leave my quiches in the baking pan. I want prettiness out of the pan!
I’m so glad I got to give you the lions share of my testing. I mean, there’s only so much quiche a girl like me can eat 🙂 I used a pan that has a removable bottom, there’s a link to it up above in the post! XO
I LOVE how stinkin’ deep you went on this dish! Let’s be honest, we love quiche but my kids are really only in it for the eggs, bacon, and cheese. Your recipes leaves them with a whole lot of what they love most. Gorgeous photos too girl.
If at first you don’t succeed, try try again. Your diligence paid big dividends..that quiche is beautiful, I can taste it just by drooling over the photo. I had a person accuse me of leaving out an ingredient in a family recipe, because theirs didn’t taste like mine. Sometimes it works and sometimes it doesn’t, even when it’s something you’ve cooked the same way many times. I loved your post!
I hate it when I struggle and end up with a failure. But my failures sometimes end up being a favorite! This is one beautiful quiche.
Oh Heidi, isn’t it terrible that we remember those negative comments way better than the positive ones? I recognize this so much. What I also recognize is your love for quiche! My mom makes a killer version that I somehow can never recreate, but this deep-dish quiche looks stunning and oh so good. Bookmarking this for sure. Hope you’re doing really well! xoxo
Love the play-by-play of how you perfected this quiche. So frustrating that you had a few failures though, I’m sure. I can’t believe none of the recipes instructed you to use pie weights or freeze the dough – both are musts for me when blind baking and I STILL have problems time to time. Anyway… gorgeous quiche! Love the combo of veggies + bacon + cheese.
Wow, some people really have a way with words! I have been looking and looking for my perfect pie crust, and have been disappointed so many times. I love the looks of your crust, it looks so perfect, I will have to give it a try! Freezer and beans…got it! Thanks for sharing 🙂
I like how you show us the different pie crusts, even a fail. Thanks for posting, I shared this on my May real food meal plan.
Made this quiche last night and my husband told me that it’s the best quiche I’ve ever made and the best that he’s ever had! I think that my 9 inch pie plate was not deep enough as only half the custard fit in the pan along with the filling. The flavor combination is awesome though. While I don’t think this recipe will be on the regular circuit, it’s definitely a keeper.
My husband was dubious at the idea of quiche for dinner. I used your custard recipe (subbing heavy cream for milk & black pepper for white). I hate to say it but i used a store-bought deep dish pie crust and it was AWESOME! Like another comment says, it only held 1/2 the custard mix. I froze the rest in hopes it’ll reconstitute for another quiche 🙂 my 9″ quiche did 60 minutes on convection bake and another 20 covered with foil. It turned out perfectly golden and fully/evenly cooked. I got a rave review: “this is way more flavorful than what my mom always made us!” SUCCESS. Thank you!
Okay, I am officially addicted to this quiche. I followed everything exactly, and it was sheer perfection. Manyvyears ago, nack in the late 1970s, there was a little Bistro in Harvard Square, that served the best quiche I ever ate. When I first discovered it, I was a student at Harvard, and had little extra money to pay for an extravagance like quiche at a Bistro…but it was so good. As the decades passed, I have been on a quest to find that wonderful quiche again. The Bistro location changed many times over the years, and I thought the elusive quiche was gone forever.
The first bits of your quiche brought back every memory of that wonderful quiche. I can’t thank you enough for sharing this, and this will forever be a “go-to” recipe for me. This hits everything just right in it’s flavor profile, and the texture is spot on.
This recipe rocks!
Wow Deb! That is one seriously glowing rec! I’m so glad it fit your memory bill. I think that’s the best part of cooking, creating recipes you remember as being so good. And it’s also the most frustrating when they don’t hit all the same notes. SO GLAD THIS DID! Thank you so much for the comment and your story. LOVE!