Spinach & Chevre Quiche

 

I love our herb & vegetable garden. A couple of vegies that seem to grow extremely well here are spinach/rainbow chard and leeks (they tend to self seed & take care of themselves). My children don't particularly like rainbow chard, spinach they like a little better, so this quiche is a good way of using some of the produce from our garden.

This recipe was designed specifically to be made with Bakers' Magic gluten free flour. The finished baked product will not be the same if you use another gluten free flour and you will need to adjust the recipe, particularly if the flour you're using contains rice flour. 

 

Ingredients

Pastry

250 g Bakers' Magic Gluten free flour

40 g Maize starch

~1/2 tsp Salt

150 - 225 g Butter (melted)

1 Egg

45 g Warm water

extra Bakers' Magic Gluten free flour

 

Filling

125 g Frozen spinach *

1 Onion

175 g Bacon

300 ml Thickened cream

 A couple of sprigs of Lemon thyme

4 Eggs

75 g Chevre (a soft goats cheese)~

25 g Pine nuts - optional

Knob of butter or oil for frying

 

Butter Update November 2017 I have given a range for the butter as some members of my family prefer it shorter (225 g) while others like it less short & a bit dryer (150 g). To substitute another fat into this recipe decrease the amount of fat/oil to ~120 - 195 g and increase the amount of water to ~60 g. The actual amounts will vary depending on what is being added.

* Fresh spinach, rainbow chard, silverbeet can be used. They contain a lot of water that needs to be evaporated before using in the filling.

~ I used Meredith Dairy's Chevre

Method

Pastry 

Mix together the Bakers' Magic Gluten free flour, maize starch & salt. I usually whizz them together in a food processor. 

In another container melt the butter.

Add the water & egg to the melted butter. Stir to combine. Don't let this mixture cool.

Pour the melted butter mix over the combined dry ingredients & stir to combine.

It can be mixed by hand, fork or wooden spoon. Mechanical devices can over mix the dough very easily, it is best done by hand.

At this stage the dough will feel slightly greasy. Wrap the dough in plastic clingwrap or put it in a plastic bag, flatten it & store in the fridge for approximately 1 hour or freezer for ~25 mins.   

Cooling the dough is important - after cooling the butter is fully absorbed, flexibility is increased & the dough is easier to handle.

Bring the dough out of the fridge, it will be quite hard.

Lightly dust a clean work surface (silicon mat, baking paper) with some of the extra flour. 

Knead the pastry until it is soft enough to roll out.

To stop the pastry sticking to surfaces lightly dust them with some of the extra flour. Alternatively place a piece of baking paper on top of the dough. 

Roll out the pastry to the required size. I use a round fluted porcelain flan dish, it does not have a removable base and has a diameter of 28 cm. The pastry will shrink slightly during baking. It is best to use a round flan/tart pan. 

Grease the flan/tart pan.

Lightly dust the rolling pin with some of the extra flour to stop the dough from sticking. Transfer the dough to the pan using the rolling pin. To get the dough onto the rolling pin lift up the mat/paper & drape it over the rolling pin. Peel off the mat/paper & move the rolling pin over the pan. Gently lay the dough into the pan. 

Gently push the dough into the sides of the pan. If the dough breaks don't worry it is easy to patch. If possible trim the dough to slightly higher than the sides of the pan. 

Put the pan into the fridge for ~10 mins. 

Transfer the pan to the oven. The best results are obtained if the dough is baked in the pan with nothing over the top of it (you don't need to do the traditional blind baking). Bake the dough for 15 mins at 170 C. 

While the pastry is baking prepare the filling.

Filling

Chop the onion finely, transfer to a frying pan with a knob of butter or oil & gently cook until slightly golden.

Chop the bacon & add to the frying pan. Cook for a couple of minutes.

Add in the lemon thyme. 

Defrost the spinach & add to the frying pan. Stir to combine. Turn off the heat & allow the mixture to cool slightly.

In another container mix the eggs & cream together.

Add in the spinach/bacon mix to the eggs/cream & stir to combine. 

Pour the filling into the baked pastry shell.

Top with crumbled chevre & pine nuts.

Bake at 170 C for ~30 - 40 mins. If both pastry shell & filling are still warm then check the quiche at ~25 mins. If your oven has a hot spot, turn the quiche halfway through baking.