Last updated on October 12th, 2021 at 03:09 pm
Quiche is such a savory dish. Especially in a classic quiche Lorraine recipe. The buttery crust, silky seasoned eggs, salty cheese, and crunchy bacon all combine in perfect harmony.
I haven’t had much experience with quiche – either eating or making. But the one that most sticks in my mind was from on a trip to Sydney, Australia. My wife and I stayed in a boutique hotel that was a little off the beaten path. It just so happened to be within walking distance of a Bourke Street Bakery.
We went there multiple times for breakfast. During one visit we ordered their bacon, gruyere and leek quiche. It was outstanding and I think our favorite item. Except maybe a chocolate croissant, cause, duh. And you will notice that those quiche fillings are quite similar to what I have below. I wonder why…
In general terms, quiche is just a pastry crust tart filled with a savory custard. It will also often include chunks of meat, vegetables, or cheese. For the Lorraine, we include bacon (traditionally it was lardons) and cheese in the quiche.
Ingredients and Layering
So, I call this one the fully loaded quiche Lorraine recipe because I go over the top with the filling. When ready to fill the quiche, we’ll add ingredients in various layers. Once all the solid ingredients are in the crust, pour over the egg mixture to fill in all of the nooks and crannies.
For the cheese, I elected to use gruyere. If you have not had it before, in my opinion, it is like parmesan and cheddar had a baby. It also melts really well and in the quiche, it almost disappears into the egg mixture when cooked. So it adds all of its savory flavors directly into the tart.
If there’s a food with smoky flavor, I tend to love it. Any meats thrown out on the smoker. Chipotles in adobo sauce. And smoked paprika. So I had to use some smoked paprika here. It adds a little color to the dish along with some subtle flavors. I highly recommend this set of smoked paprika that includes hot, sweet, and bittersweet varieties. They are fresh and fragrant and can be used in almost anything.
I like thick-cut bacon. So that’s what I used in this recipe. But you can use whatever kind you like. You can even go super traditional and use lardons if you want to. Those are basically thicker chunks of pork fat. But I have yet to work with them and had bacon in the fridge, so bacon for me.
A Crust for Quiche Lorraine
A pre-made crust can easily be used for this recipe. But you can make your own crust to really take the flavor and flakiness to the next level. Might I suggest you use my recipe for the ultimate pie crust as the base for your quiche?
As you may know from watching the Great British Bake Off, a soggy bottom is our ultimate enemy. So we will blind-bake the crust in the tart tin or pie dish with some weights. And we will also be using an egg wash as a layer of protection between the crust and ingredients because they are so wet.
And if we’ve done everything right we’ll end up with a savory quiche with pockets of bacon and a flaky crust.
Fully Loaded Quiche Lorraine
Course: BreakfastDifficulty: Moderate8
servings40
minutes50
minutes1
hour30
minutesButtery crust, silky seasoned eggs, salty cheese, and crunchy bacon all combine in perfect harmony
Ingredients
2 cups uncooked bacon cut to 1/2-inch pieces, divided
1 cup diced yellow onion
1 and 1/2 cups shredded gruyere cheese
5 large eggs plus 1 egg white
1 and 1/2 cups heavy whipping cream
1/4 teaspoon nutmeg
1/2 teaspoon smoked paprika
1/4 teaspoon black pepper
1/2 teaspoon salt
Directions
- Preheat the oven to 350°F (175°C)
- Roll out the pie crust dough and place it in a 9-inch tart pan or pie dish
- Cut parchment paper to cover the dough, put it on top, and place some pie weights, dry beans, or rice on top of the parchment paper to weigh it down, and place it into the oven to cook for 15 minutes
- When it finishes blind baking, remove it from the oven, take the parchment paper and weights off of the crust, brush it with the egg white, and put it back in the oven for 1 minute
- Remove the crust and set it aside for later
- While the crust is blind baking, cook the cut bacon in a pan over medium heat until it is crispy, and then use a slotted spoon to transfer the cooked bacon to a paper-towel-lined plate
- Add the diced onion to the pan with the rendered bacon fat and cook until the onions are soft and translucent, about 5 minutes, and then transfer to a paper-towel-lined plate with the slotted spoon
- In a large mixing bowl, combine the 5 large eggs, heavy whipping cream, nutmeg, paprika, salt, and pepper and whisk thoroughly to combine
- Spread the cooked onions on top of the crust in an even layer, then spread out half of the bacon, then all of the cheese, and then the rest of the bacon on top
- Pour the egg mixture from step 8 over all of the ingredients
- Place the quiche in the oven and let it cook for 40 to 50 minutes until a knife comes out clean from the center of the quiche
- Let cool, then slice and serve
