Now this is my kind of breakfast-for-dinner. Quiche Lorraine may sound lady-like, but this deep-dish version is fit for even the hungriest fella in your life. My Hubby loved it. He even brought leftovers to work for his lunch, and determined that the recipe should have a more manly name since everyone was asking what he was eating that smelled so delicious. Quiche with Bacon, Onions, and Gruyere? That works too. Whatever you want to call it, it's incredible.
Before you decide to whip this up some Saturday morning, I beg of you, read the recipe in its entirety. There is a fair amount of planning involved. It is definitely not labor-intensive, but it is a bit time consuming. I've made this a few times now, and I'll be honest, the first time was a bit frustrating because I miscalculated the time involved. I don't want that to happen to you. Believe me though, the steps are worth it.
If you want to make this Quiche Lorraine recipe for brunch, you will want to make the dough for the crust the night before. The dough requires two periods of chilling time, the first time right after it is mixed, then again after it is rolled into the pan. Following the recipe up to the second chilling time the night before is the best way to make it ahead without sacrificing quality, in my opinion. That way, in the morning you'll just need to start out first thing by baking the crust while you prepare the filling, then baking the quiche. Even with preparing the dough the night before, you still need to allow yourself a few hours for baking in the morning. The crust needs to bake for 1 hour, then once you add the filling to the crust it will need to bake for an additional 1 ½ hours. Or, like me, you can just plan to have this delicious quiche for supper and leisurely work on it throughout the day.
Deep-Dish Quiche Lorraine
- Total Time: 6 hours
- Yield: Serves 8
Ingredients
For the Crust:
- 1 ¾ cups all-purpose flour
- ½ teaspoon salt
- 12 tablespoons (1 ½ sticks) unsalted butter, cut into small cubes and chilled
- 3 tablespoons sour cream
- 4-6 tablespoons ice water
- 1 large egg white, lightly beaten (save the yolk for filling)
- 2-inch deep cake pan (9-inch diameter) or Spring-form pan (This recipe will NOT fit in a pie plate.)
For the Filling:
- 8 slices thick-cut bacon, cut into small pieces
- 2 medium onions, chopped fine
- 1 ½ tablespoons cornstarch
- 1 ½ cups whole milk
- 8 large eggs plus 1 large yolk
- 1 ½ cups heavy cream
- ½ teaspoon salt
- ¼ teaspoon pepper
- pinch nutmeg
- pinch cayenne pepper
- 6 ounces (1 ½ cups) Gruyere cheese, shredded
Instructions
Prepare the Crust:
- In the bowl of a food processor, pulse together the flour and salt. Add butter and pulse until the butter is the size of peas.
- In a small bowl, combine the sour cream and ¼ cup of ice water. Add half of the sour cream mixture to the food processor and pulse a few times. Add remaining sour cream mixture and pulse again.
- Pinch the dough between your fingers. If dough is crumbly and seems too dry, add 1 or 2 tablespoons more ice water and pulse until dough comes together into large lumps and all the dry flour is incorporated.
- Form the dough into a large flat disk, about 6 inches in diameter, and wrap in plastic wrap. Refrigerate until firm, about 1 to 2 hours.
- Line a deep 9-inch diameter cake pan or spring-form pan with 2 long pieces of aluminum foil, allowing a few inches of foil to hang off the sides of the pan.Lightly spray the foil with cooking spray.
- Roll out the dough on a generously floured surface and gently place the dough into the prepared pan, pressing the dough into the bottom of the pan. Trim off any dough that hangs over the edge of the pan more than 1 inch.
- Refrigerate dough-lined pan for 30 minutes, then freeze for 20 minutes. (Make Ahead: If you are planning to bake the quiche the next day, refrigerate the dough overnight at this point, and then continue with the remaining steps in the morning.)
- Preheat oven to 375 degrees F with the rack set in the lower-middle position.
- Line dough with aluminum foil and fill completely with pie weights. (If you don't have enough pie weights, you can use dried beans, or I have even used spare change before.)
- Bake 30-40 minutes, or until the edges of the crust are beginning to brown but the bottom of the crust is still light in color. Carefully remove the foil and pie weights and return the pan to the oven, baking until golden brown, about 15 to 20 minutes longer. (Now is a good time to start preparing the filling.)
- Remove shell from oven and brush immediately with egg white. Set aside while you prepare the filling.
For the Filling:
- Reduce oven temperature to 350 degrees F.
- Cook bacon in a skillet set over medium heat until crisp. Transfer to a paper towel-lined plate and set aside. Discard all but 2 tablespoons of fat from the pan. Return to medium heat and add chopped onion. Cook, stirring frequently, until softened and browned slightly, about 10 minutes. Set aside and allow to cool a bit.
- In a large bowl, whisk together the cornstarch and 3 tablespoons of the milk. Whisk in the remaining milk, eggs, yolk, heavy cream, salt, pepper, nutmeg, and cayenne. Whisk until smooth.
- Sprinkle the cheese, onions, and bacon in the bottom of the crust. Gently pour the egg mixture over the top.
- Bake until top of quiche is golden and a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean, 1 ¼-1 12 hours. Transfer to a wire rack to cool at least 30 minutes. (Do not serve immediately after baking as the quiche needs time to cool and set or your slices won't come out clean.)
- Enjoy!
Notes
Re-heating instructions: For best results, reheat in a 350 degree oven for 10-15 minutes or until warmed through.
Adapted from Cooks Illustrated Baking Book by America's Test Kitchen
chef mimi
Deep dish quiche! Why not?!!! As long as you cook it carefully, like you said. It looks absolutely beautiful!
Mandy
Thanks so much! It's the best quiche I've ever had. Well worth the effort.