Thursday 8 August 2013

Potato and spring onion quiche (veggie pie)



Maybe this recipe should be called potatoes with quiche on the side! There are a few potato lovers in this family that I had in mind when putting it together. In my quiche, you will not find 5 eggs and double cream in the filling, and there isn't a mountain of butter in the pastry, in fact, there is none. There is also no need to plastic wrap the dough or blind-bake the pastry with baking beads before adding the filling. Sounds good, right? If you have been using store-bought pastry so far it is time to say goodbye to those and make your own. It's way easier and simpler than you think. Not to mention healthier. If you like potatoes I hope you will enjoy this quiche; other versions will appear on the blog later.

POTATO AND SPRING ONION QUICHE (VEGGIE PIE)

INGREDIENTS
FILLING

  • 4 large potatoes (ca. 600 g / 1.3 lbs), precooked for 20 minutes
  • 2 eggs
  • 250 g cottage cheese (about 1 cup)
  • 2 teaspoons (organic) mustard
  • 1 teaspoon dried parsley or thyme
  • 1 teaspoon garlic salt
  • ¼ teaspoon dried rosemary
  • ¼ teaspoon sea salt
  • 7 cm (2.7 inches) piece of the green part of a bunch of spring onions (scallions), sliced
  • 2 large handfuls (ca. 60 g) salad blend (e.g. endive, radicchio, lettuce) or spinach
  • Topping: 75-100 g (about ¾ cup) of your favourite cheese, grated, and some freshly grated parmesan

PASTRY

  • 1¼ cup spelt flour
  • ½ teaspoon sea salt
  • 2½ tablespoons organic vegetable oil
  • 4 tablespoons water

METHOD

  1. Start with precooking the potatoes maybe one hour before preparing the quiche: Cook them for 20 minutes without a lid. Drain the water and allow the potatoes to cool
  2. In a large bowl combine the eggs (you can lightly beat the eggs first if you prefer), cottage cheese, mustard, herbs, salt and the salad blend/spinach
  3. Take your bunch of spring onions and cut a 7 cm (2.7 inches) piece of the green part. Slice rather finely and add to the bowl. Set the bowl aside while preparing the pastry
  4. For the pastry: Sift the spelt flour and sea salt into another bowl. Add the oil and water and mix gently with a spatula. Use your hands to gently knead the mixture in the bowl to get a feel for the texture. If it crumbles then you need a bit more oil; if it's too oily just add some spelt flour. (If you need to add oil, just put a few drops in the palm of your hands and knead the mixture in your hands until the texture feels right)
  5. On a light spelt-floured surface shape the dough into a ball and then roll it out until you have a circle with about 28 cm diameter (11 inches). Use just a touch of oil to grease a pie dish (24 cm / 9.5 inches) and line it with the pastry. Prick the base with a fork in a few places
  6. Peel the potatoes, dice them and add them to the filling. Then pour the filling into the pastry shell, even out and top with the grated cheese
  7. Bake at 180°C/350°F/gas mark 4 for 50-55 minutes until the cheese turns golden brown
  8. Let the quiche sit for about 5 minutes before serving

Pin It button on image hover