A crustless quiche is a quiche with no pastry, essentially a low carb version. You still get the lovely milk, egg and cheese filling, (which is the best bit) but with no crust. I'm a big fan of a traditional quiche, but I love this crustless version because it is so much quicker to make and healthier too. I came across the no pastry quiche idea in a book on French cooking, but Australians also love a crustless quiche and call it the 'Impossible Quiche'.
Quiches are very versatile and brilliant for using up leftover bits and reducing foodwaste. You can eat them hot or cold and serve them for lunch or dinner with a side of vegetables or a salad.
Filling Ideas for Quiche
Quiches were created as a way to use up leftovers, so there are loads of filling ideas. See what vegetables you have in your fridge and add them in. The vegetables won't cook in the quiche so you may need to cook them first. Most vegetables can be lightly fried for a few minutes before adding to a quiche. Some common ones to use are onions, peppers, courgette (zucchini), broccoli, carrot, spinach and mushrooms. You can also add bacon or ham or other pieces of cooked meat. Smoked salmon also works well. Don't be afraid to add in different cheeses too. If you need some inspiration, some common quiche ideas are :-
- Quiche Lorraine made with onions bacon and cheese
- Breakfast Quiche with cooked sausages, bacon, mushroom and tomatoes
- Spinach and goats cheese
- Mushroom and asparagus
- Asparagus spring onion and goats cheese
- Courgette or courgette, tomato, onion and aubergine for a 'Ratatouille Quiche'
- Broccoli and Ham or Broccoli and Cheese
- Caramelized onion and spinach
How to make a Crustless Quiche?
A crustless or Impossible quiche is very simple to make.
1. 2. 3. 4.
- Beat the eggs together with the milk
- Stir in your cheese and other quiche ingredients
- Pour into an ovenproof shallow dish about 25cm in diameter
- Bake in the oven at 180C / 360°F / gas 4 for 30 minutes until golden and puffed. Leave it to rest for 5 minutes before serving.
Leaving your quiche to rest will help firm it up and make it easier to slice. It will deflate slightly when it comes out of the oven. This is normal, but it will still taste amazing.
How to Store & Reheat Crustless Quiche
Quiches keep well in the fridge for 3-4 days and can be frozen for for 3-4 months. They are best to reheated in the oven rather than a microwave. To reheat, cover with foil and place in the oven at 180°C / 350F /gas mark 4 for 20 - 25 minutes. You can also reheat from frozen which is very useful. A frozen quiche will take 30 - 45 minutes, depending on your filling. Check it is piping hot in the middle by inserting a fork and then holding the fork gently to your wrist. If the fork is hot, your quiche is ready. Alternatively if you have a food thermometer, the internal temperature should be 74C / 160F.
Crustless Quiche
Ingredients
Filling
- 1 onion peeled, chopped, organic
- 1 red pepper de-seeded, diced, organic
- 50 g spinach organic
- 5 eggs free range, organic
- 200 ml milk semi skimmed or full fat, organic
- 150 g mature cheddar cheese grated, organic
Instructions
- Fry up the vegetables.
- Crack the eggs into a bowl, whisk in the milk and stir in the cheese and the rest of your filling ingredients. Pour into an ovenproof dish about 25cm in diameter
- Place the quiche in the oven at 180°C/360°F/gas 4. and cook for 35 - 40 minutes or until just set. Leave it to cool slightly before serving as this will help it set.
Notes
Nutrition per serving
The Nutritional Values are computer generated estimates based on industry standards and are provided as a helpful guide only.
Liz Welton
Tried this recipe as a result of Climate Sunday and we really enjoyed it for lunch! Quick to get in the oven and then a chance to get a few other chores done while we waited for it to cook.