My perfect summer meal is just-baked quiche with salad leaves. This has been a staple – summer or otherwise – on the menu at Violet since the day we opened ... roasted tomato and corn; potato, cheddar and caramelised onions; goat’s cheese with kale and leeks, to name a few.
My enthusiasm is not matched by everyone. In the 1980s, a book called Real Men Don’t Eat Quiche by Bruce Feirstein satirised masculinity in a post-bra-burning era of feminism. Truth be told, I’ve never read the book or forgotten its name, even though I was only six when it was published. I was puzzled, because my father, a fabulous cook and a manly man, loved quiche. It’s still often perceived as girly, and I wonder, if it were called pie or pizza, whether more men would find it appealing? Of course, these are stereotypes and we should avoid them, because the real rub with quiche is when it is made badly: overcooked, under-seasoned and served days old.
The secret to delicious quiche is to eat it fresh, and to have plenty of the key flavour (such as chorizo, below) and eggy custard within a super-crisp crust. The filling shouldn’t be overwhelmed by pastry: each bite needs to have a little of the filling (be it ham, cheese, roasted veg, whatever), a little custard, and a little of the crunchy pastry case. As ever, balance is key.
Your pastry has to stand up to the heavy liquid that will be poured into it. Ensure this at pre-baking stage, egg washing it beforehand to seal in the crispiness and baking until golden before the custard filling is added. Then, once the filling is in, be careful not to overbake: never let the eggs reach the stage where they bubble: cooking a quiche to boiling point makes it rubbery and metallic tasting.
Today I have made combinations of fillings and pastries that I think go together well – lemony spinach and wholemeal pastry for example. But you could swap the pastries here and they will all taste great. If you only have time for shop-bought, don’t fret: just be sure to blind-bake the puff pastry enough so that it isn’t soggy.
I suppose the only way to get past the gender stereotypes that have been assigned to certain foods is to make something irresistible to all. Hopefully these recipes can help.
Smoky chorizo quiche (main picture)
This is inspired by Spanish tortillas: golden on the outside with perfectly cooked egg and still slightly runny in the centre – with lots of chorizo and extra-smoky paprika.
Serves 4-6
For the pastry
140g plain flour
A pinch of salt
A pinch of sugar
85g cold butter, cut into 1cm pieces
2-3 tbsp ice water
1 egg, lightly beaten, for the egg wash
For the filling
2 tbsp plain flour
3 eggs
200g double cream
280g chorizo
1 tbsp olive oil
200g manchego cheese, cut into 2cm pieces
1 tsp smoky paprika
Salt and black pepper
1 Combine the flour, salt and sugar in a bowl. Cut in the cold butter with a pastry cutter, or use a mixer. Avoid over-mixing. Leave larger chunks of butter than you would think. This will make the pastry more flaky. Drizzle in the water and bring it all together. Roll into a ball, wrap in clingfilm, then refrigerate for at least 30 minutes.
2 Meanwhile, make the filling. Whisk the flour into one of the eggs to make a paste. Add the remaining eggs and whisk in the cream. Strain the mixture to remove any lumps of flour. Season with the salt and pepper. This can now sit while you pre-bake the pastry, or can be made a day ahead.
3 Preheat the oven to 200C/400F/gas mark 6. I use a deep-dish tart pan around 22cm wide, but you could use a wider one that is more shallow. Roll out the chilled pastry, then press it into your buttered tin. Put a piece of parchment inside the pastry and fill it with dried beans or ceramic weights. Blind bake the case for 25 minutes. Remove the beans and paper. Brush the pastry with a lightly beaten egg. Continue baking for 15-20 minutes, or until golden.
4 Meanwhile, separate the chorizo links and slice in half. Put them cut-side down in a frying pan with the oil and cook over a medium heat until golden, turning occasionally.
5 Turn the oven down to 180C/350F/gas mark 4. Fill the baked pastry with the chorizo and any oil from the pan, add the cheese, then sprinkle with paprika.
6 Pour over the egg mixture. Put the quiche on a baking tray. Bake for about 50-60 minutes, until souffléd and golden. Rest for 15 minutes before slicing into it.
Ricotta, spinach and lemon quiche
I love wholemeal pastry and think it needs to be uplifted from its shady past in healthfood kitchens!
Serves 4-6
For the pastry
140g wholemeal wheat flour
A pinch of salt
A pinch of sugar
85g cold butter, cut into 1cm pieces
2-3 tbsp ice water
1 egg, for glazing
For the filling
3 eggs
2 tbsp plain flour
200g double cream
2 tbsp olive oil
300g spinach leaves, washed
Juice and zest of 1 lemon
A pinch of crushed red chilli
150g fresh ricotta cheese
Salt and black pepper
1 Repeat steps 1-3 in the chorizo quiche recipe above.
2 Meanwhile, heat the oil in a heavy saucepan and add the spinach. Stir periodically until it wilts, shrinking to about half its original size, and most of the water has evaporated.
3 Add the lemon zest and juice, and a pinch of red chilli. Season with salt and black pepper. Turn the oven down to 180C/350F/gas mark 4. Fill the baked pastry with the spinach and scoops of ricotta. Pour over the egg mixture. Transfer to a baking tray. Bake for 50-60 minutes, or until souffléd and golden. Rest for 15 minutes before slicing into it.
Herb and pancetta quiche with puff pastry
Puff pastry from the shop is a great shortcut to making quiche and the crisp, buttery pastry is an ideal match for the eggy filling.
Serves 4-6
230g pre-rolled puff pastry
For the filling
3 eggs
2 tbsp plain flour
200g double cream
2 tbsp olive oil
180g pancetta, cut into small chunks
3 sprigs thyme
30g flat-leaf parsley
20g tarragon
20g chives
2 sprigs oregano or marjoram
Salt and black pepper
1 Preheat the oven to 200C/400F/gas mark 6 and repeat steps 1-3 in the first recipe. I used a shallow tart tin here – about 24cm wide.
2 Meanwhile, heat the oil in a heavy saucepan and add the pancetta. Cook until golden, then remove from the oil and pat dry on a paper towel.
3 Chop the herbs (removing any stems) and put them with the pancetta into the prebaked pastry. Turn the oven down to 180C/350F/gas mark 4. Pour the egg mixture on top. Put the quiche on a baking tray. Bake for about 40-45 minutes, until souffléd and golden. Rest for 15 minutes before slicing.
- Claire Ptak is a pastry chef, author and food stylist and owns Violet Bakery in London. She is the author of the Violet Bakery Cookbook (Square Peg); @violetcakeslondon
