Spinach and Ricotta Quiche

Saturday morning found me with a little extra time on my hands...for once! We were all home until the early afternoon, so I wanted to take advantage of that rarity and plan for a meal together. We haven't been home much lately, so I haven't been buying a lot of groceries. I decided to see what I had on hand. We always have eggs and some kind of cheese. I had bought a big box of baby spinach that I needed to use. Everyone loves breakfast, so I decided to make a spinach quiche. I googled a few recipes and combined them to make this yummy dish. It was SERIOUSLY the best quiche I've ever had. (I usually keep the two-pack of quiches from Costco in my freezer since they're freezer to table in 30 minutes. But I won't buy them anymore. They just don't compare!)

Everything good starts with onions. I diced a medium one and began to saute it in two tablespoons of butter over medium heat. By the way - I buy Vidalia onions in the spring and summer when they're available. Otherwise, I only buy sweet yellow onions.

While the onion began to soften, I found some of the sweet baby peppers that come in a bag in my veggie drawer. I keep them on hand to munch on with homemade blue cheese dressing. They are so yummy! I had already washed, seeded, and halved them. I just had to dice them and toss them in with the onions.

I only cooked them about five minutes. I wanted them to soften, but not turn to mush. I added a little salt as they cooked. Remember to season lightly as you go for more depth of flavor.

Since this was baby spinach, I just tossed it in, stems and all. This was about half a box.

I continued with it on medium heat. I stirred it gently as it began to wilt. I added a little more salt.

When it was almost completely wilted, I added a heaping teaspoon of Joe's Stuff. I got this when I took cooking lessons in New Orleans last year. They put it in almost everything! It has no salt, so you don't have to worry about it being too salty. It's not spicy either, although they have a spicier version. It's just a good mix of spices that adds lots of flavor.

I added it and stirred it around to let it bloom in the heat.

When the spinach leaves were wilted, I turned off the heat and covered the skillet. I let it sit for about 30 minutes while I made my pie crust.

TIP - Once you open your spinach or salad greens, place a paper towel inside to absorb moisture. It'll buy you a couple more days before your greens get soggy. Change it daily if needed.

Don't get me wrong, I am definitely not above a refrigerated pie crust. I just didn't have any on hand. I made a quick crust and stuck it in the freezer to firm up.

I rolled it out and placed it in my deep dish pie plate. It ain't pretty, but man was it good. I'll share my recipe soon. I baked my crust for about 10-12 minutes in a preheated 375 degree oven.

For the egg filling, I mixed four eggs (well beaten), 3/4 cup heavy cream, 1/2 cup ricotta (I had bought this a while back planning to make lasagna and hadn't had time, so it needed to be used.), 3/4 cup Monterrey Jack cheese (it was left over from a taco party I had for Brack's friends a couple of weeks ago), a teaspoon of salt and about half a teaspoon of black pepper. Mix well.

I took the spinach mixture and placed it in the bottom of the crust. I patted it down nicely. However, this is the one thing I think I'll do differently next time. It was so tightly packed that I had basically two layers to the quiche. Next time, I'll leave it looser so the egg mixture can find its way down into the veggies.

I baked it on the bottom rack for 30 minutes. I wanted the crust to brown and crisp up on the bottom. Then I added the remaining 1/4 cup or so of Monterrey Jack cheese to the top and turned on the broiler for a couple of minutes until it was brown and bubbly. 

It has to sit for about 10 minutes to set up once you take it out of the oven. I took that time to cook some brown and serve sausage and cut up some apple pears.

The crust didn't get really brown, but it was so light and flaky!

This was delicious! It was a huge hit. Full disclaimer - Brack didn't eat it. He scrambled some eggs to go with his sausage. I cut it into fourths for Gerald, Jewell, and me. Jewell and I split the last quarter for supper Sunday night. It took about 30 seconds on high to heat it in the microwave. This really was not difficult at all. It was definitely worth the little effort it required. Gerald enjoyed it, too. He and Jewell were dressed in camo as they ate. They were on their way to hunt that afternoon, so obviously, real men DO eat quiche! Jewell has already asked me to make it again... 

I'm so glad you stopped by my neck of the woods!

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