Quiche Lorraine

I love quiche and just because I have Coeliacs I don’t see why I should miss out!

So, gluten free pastry. Basically forget everything you know about regular pastry, I don’t roll this out, it’s too sticky, think more along the lines of a rustic tart, that way any wonky edges can be explained away! As sticky as this can get it does make lovely “short” pastry, I have given it to friends and nobody picked up on it being gluten free.

If you would rather regular pastry use, 175g flour, 100g butter and 1 egg yolk.

I always double this recipe as these quiches freeze really really well, ideal for lunch boxes and picnics at a later date, I even tend to make the spare quiche in a long rectangular tin, the slices fit more easily in the lunch boxes.

Makes one quiche, I use a 23x 3cm fluted edge tin. Serves 6-8.

Ingredients

Pastry

75g glutinous, sticky, rice flour, plus extra

75g buckwheat flour

75g fine corn polenta

150g butter, salted, cubed

1 egg

1-2 tablespoons water

Filling

3 eggs, beaten

150mls cream

200mls sour cream

150g Gruyere cheese, 125g cubed, 1cm, 25g finely grated

200g speck or bacon, cubed, 0.5cm

a little freshly grated nutmeg

salt and pepper

Method

Process the flours and polenta.

Add the cubed butter and pulse until forming breadcrumbs.

Beat the egg with 1 tablespoon water.

With the motor running, add the egg to the flour.

Give it a minute to come together, if it isn’t, add the remaining water.

Allow the processor to bring the dough together a little.

Take a large piece of plastic wrap, lay it on your work surface, sprinkle with a little more rice flour.

Scoop the pastry onto the prepared plastic wrap, sprinkle with a little more rice flour and top with another large piece of plastic wrap, forming the dough into a large disc.

Pop in the fridge for 30mins.

Cook the cubed meat in a frying pan with no added fat, set aside to cool on some kitchen towel.

Remove the pastry from the fridge, break off small pieces and start pressing them into the tin, I tend to do the base first and then work up the sides.

Return to the fridge for 30mins.

Preheat the oven to 190 degrees Centigrade.

You need to blind bake the pastry first so, line the inside of the pastry, where your filling will go, with a piece of baking parchment and pour on a layer of baking beans or dry rice.

Bake for 15 mins.

Remove from the oven and gently lift out the paper and beans/rice.

Cover the base of the quiche with the cubed cheese followed by the cooked bacon.

In a jug, whisk the eggs, cream and sour cream, add the nutmeg, salt and pepper.

Place the quiche tin on a baking sheet. Move it onto your stove top, so it is nice and close to the oven, less spills!

Fill gently with the egg mixture and top with the grated cheese.

Place in the oven and bake for 25mins.

Remove once golden and puffy, it will sink back down.

Allow to cool a little before serving.