Now if you are daring enough to Tupperware – surely we can pop in those handy plastic boxes some delicious quiche – double retro!
These little bakes of deliciousness are my absolute favourite nibble when out and about – great for picnics and food on the run. You can make it as quickly or healthily as you like.
When in a hurry I admit I sometimes use ready rolled shortcrust pastry and make one big quiche for a kitchen supper but making smaller individual ones are much easier to eat and share, although slightly more fiddly to prepare.
I made these to nibble on at Mollington Point to Point this weekend and they went down a treat – and everyone was grateful to have something nourishing and tasty and managed to avoid processed burgers from the truck.
This recipe makes 36 mini quiches – if you don’t need so many you can always freeze any excess pastry mixture for a later date and reduce filling quantities to suit. You can use a shortcrust pastry recipe but in this we have included a polenta recipe, for a healthier alternative.
Ingredients for Quiche Mix
4 Eggs
½ Pint Double Cream
(you can substitute with semi- skimmed milk as a healthier alternative)
½ Pint Semi- Skimmed Milk
Salt and Pepper
2 Tsp English Mustard
250 g Bacon Lardons
250 g Grated Mature Cheddar
3 Small Red Onions
Glug of Olive Oil
Ingredients for Polenta Pastry
75g plain flour
170g instant polenta
120g Low Fat Cream Cheese
80ml cold water
Line 3 Muffin Tins with a little butter to stop the pastry sticking.
Put the flour, polenta and cream cheese into a food processor and blitz until it looks like a fine crumb. Put crumb mixture in a bowl and add water – small amounts at a time until all of the crumbs make a firm dough. (Don’t worry if you add a little too much water – just add some more plain flour to compensate)
Lightly dust an area with plain flour, roll out the pastry until it is a couple of mm thick and cut into small circles and place in the muffin tins. It doesn’t need to line the whole case.
Place in the oven to bake at 140ºC for 15 minutes whilst you prepare your fillings.
Dice the red onions and fry gently in a glug of olive oil for a few minutes until soft. Add the bacon lardons and fry gently for a further 3 minutes.
Whisk together the eggs, double cream and English mustard – add a pinch of salt and pepper to season.
Take the muffin tins out of the oven and turn the oven up to 180ºC .
Add a generous spoonful of the onion and bacon mix to each pastry base, top with a generous teaspoon of grated cheddar. Add one tbsp of the egg/cream mix to each quiche.
Pop back in the oven for a further 25 minutes.
Take them out of the oven and run a knife round the edge of the quiches to loosen from the tins.
Allow to cool and pop in to a Tupperware box – ready to feed the hungry masses.
Substitute bacon with smoked salmon – just don’t fry it with the onions – just add to the pastry case with the cooked onions and top with a pinch of fresh dill.
For vegetarians – leave out the bacon and cheddar and add a large teaspoon of feta cheese, finely diced peppers (lightly fried with the onions isn’t essential but brings out their natural sweetness) and a pinch of fresh mint from the garden.
Or if you are feeling adventurous make a selection of all 3!
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