Sweet Corn & Zucchini Quiche
This recipe speaks to those foods that you're not actually super into, but somehow transform to something yummy.
My mom made quiche for dinner all the time growing up. We would have a big slice and side salad. In High School, I was completely fine with the potential of missing this specific dinner. If you know me, you know I am not a big breakfast food gal and I felt maybe this gives too much of a “breakfast for dinner” energy that I am not super keen on.
Anyways, now that I’ve totally shit on quiche, I want to share this awesome Sweet Corn and Zucchini Quiche I made upon arriving home in Connecticut. This used our leftover corn from the farmer’s market around the corner, basil from our backyard, and an open bottle of crisp white… Together we created an adaptation of one of my mom’s favorites, that I can definitely get down with. Cheers to reinventing recipes you previously dismissed, and being back in the kitchen with Mom & Dad for a little.
Servings: 1 pie plate worth of quiche (the amount of quiche you want to eat is not my business)
Prep time: 60 minutes
Total bake time: 55-65 minutes
Ingredients:
Pre-made pastry… I know, so sorry. I was not feeling making my own dough. If you want a killer pie crust recipe check out the NYT Recipe
Two cobs of corn
1 medium sized zucchini
1 large heirloom tomato
Bunch of basil
1/2 Tbsp Olive Oil
1 shallot
2 small-ish cloves of garlic / one big one
1/3 cup heavy cream
1/2 cup grated parmesan cheese
4 eggs
Salt & pep to taste
You’ll need to first, preheat your oven to 375 degrees and take your pie crust out so it has some time to soften up.
Pie crust prep:
-Since we took the easy way out with a pre-made pie crust we better not botch the cooking of it. Once your pie crust is just soft enough to be malleable you’re going to pop it into a lightly buttered pie plate, pressing it up against the glass on all sides.
-Be sure that the “bumper” (the sometimes crimped part at the top) is thick enough to keep in all the goodness. Once your crust has lined the pie plate use a fork to poke a few holes along the bottom. And, throw that thing back in the fridge while we move onto step 2.
Vegetable prep:
-Slice zucchini into thin coins (photo below shows shape)
-Tomatoes sliced thin
-Shallots diced, please
-Garlic minced, pretty please
-Cut corn off the cob (like when you had braces in middle school). Set aside, we will be blending this.
-Basil, washed and kept whole
Cooking the veg:
-Oil a frying pan with a 1/2 tablespoon of olive oil (measure with your heart), let that warm up for a minute or two. A tip to testing whether your oil is warm enough: throw in one piece of zucchini or shallot and look for a reaction. Does it start to bubble? Then your oil is hot enough. Does it just sit in the oil with no reaction? Give it a few more minutes. This avoids your vegetables absorbing too much oil, and helps get a better brown.
-Add shallot when oil is ready, cook until softened. Two or Three minutes.
-Add garlic, cook another 3 minutes.
-Add zucchini to pan. This is the step where I salt the mixture (a pinch). Cook down until golden brown and most of the water has been extracted. Turn heat down at this point.
-Add 2 tbsp of unsalted butter. Cook until melted and coated in our butter.
First bake
-Take out your pie crust from the refrigerator. We are going to blind bake the crust. Baking blind is the process of baking a pie crust without your filling (egg mixture in this case). This step is very important to getting a crispy crust, but keep a nice custardy egg filling. Line your crust with parchment paper, and place your pie weights over top to weigh the paper down. If you do not have pie weights, you can use dried beans or uncooked rice. Bake for approximately 10 minutes, until golden.
Filling prep
-For this portion use either a food processor, immersion blender or regular blender… Add corn, cream, parmesan cheese and salt. Blend until thick and creamy, it is okay to have pieces of corn left.
-In a medium mixing bowl whisk 4 whole eggs together, combine the corn mixture.
Assembling
-Pour the mixture you made in step 5 into your pre-baked pie crust. It will not grow drastically, so don’t be worried if it’s filled to the brim. If you want to be cautious you can throw a baking sheet in the oven to catch any spillage and avoid a dirty oven.
-Now disperse your cooked veg around, if they sink a little that is okay! Try and get some zucchini in every bite.
-Lastly add to the top slices of tomatoes, fresh basil, and a sprinkle of salt and pepper.
Second Bake
It is go time… bake this thing for 45-50 minutes. Until you can jiggle it and only the center slightly moves. Use your discretion the same way you do when cooking scrambled eggs… Although, I know some of you sickos enjoy hardly cooked eggs, so the food safety girl in me says to keep it the full 45 and use the jiggle test. Let sit for 5-10 minutes.
Let me know what you think of this recipe, the writing style, if you make it, etc. etc. etc…. Channeling my inner Carrie Bradshaw writing this (if she didn’t use her oven for sweaters).
XOXO