Ham and Green Onion Quiche

Husband Ron recently pronounced this quiche the very best he’d ever tasted! I was surprised to hear that, because it’s so easy to make. You can use my recipe for Bride’s Pastry or use the recipe that follows, or buy a frozen pie crust. I must admit, I’m not a fan of frozen pie crusts. I’ve never found the quality as good as those I make myself. If you’re new to making pie crusts, follow this recipe and method precisely and you’ll breeze through the process. In fact, your success will be assured! 

This recipe makes one single-crust pie, suitable for a 10-in. straight-sided quiche dish or a 9-inch pie pan. I plucked the recipe for this excellent pie crust from the J.M. Smucker Co.’s Crisco website. 

Although I’ve stuck to the exact ingredients, I’ve slightly condensed the website’s method and added some tips of my own for making perfect pastry. The ingredients and the method apply equally to single-crust pie and quiche crusts. The entire process takes about 40 min., including chilling time.

Ham and Green Onion Quiche:

To Prepare the Bottom Crust for the Quiche:

1-⅓ c. (330 mL) all-purpose flour

¼ tsp. (1.2 mL) salt

½ c. (125 mL) vegetable oil shortening, well chilled

3-to-6 tbsp. (45-to-90 mL) ice cold water

Read recipe before deciding your choice of pie crust method: Preheating temperatures are different for each. 

Trace the outline of ungreased quiche dish or pie pan onto parchment paper before starting. Cut the paper slightly inside the traced line so parchment fits inside pan. Set paper circle and quiche dish or pie pan aside. 

Combine flour and salt in medium bowl. Cut chilled shortening into cubes. Cut shortening into flour with a pastry blender, using an up-and-down chopping motion. Mixture should resemble coarse crumbs, with some pea-sized pieces remaining. Sprinkle half the maximum recommended amount of ice cold water over flour mixture. Using a fork, stir and draw flour from bottom to top of bowl to evenly distribute moisture. Press chunks to bottom of bowl with fork. 

Add just enough more water by the tablespoon so that dough is moist enough to form a ball when compressed. Flatten dough on work surface to about ½-in. (1.27 cm) thickness (see Note). Roll dough from center to edges, gently working pastry in circular fashion with steady, even pressure. When dough is slightly larger than quiche dish or pie pan, loosely wrap it around rolling pan. 

With rolling pin centered over dish or pan, carefully unroll dough, molding it to fit dish or pan sides. Never flute quiche pastry as high as pie pastry. You should have just enough dough to flute ¼-to-½-in. (0.6 cm-to-1.27 cm) above quiche pan.

(I didn’t roll my dough quite enough, so didn’t have quite enough pastry to flute the edge of my quiche dish. Rather than risk toughening the crust by re-rolling it, I left it).

Use a dinner fork to prick bottom and sides of pie crust at least 50 times to prevent it from blistering and breaking (see Further Note). You now have the choice to use one of two methods to pre-bake your quiche or pie: (1) Pre-baking without weights: Bake crust 10-to-12 min. in lower third of oven at 425 deg. F., or until edges and bottom are golden brown. (2) Pre-baking with weights: Chill or freeze pie shell 30 min. Lay trimmed parchment paper inside pastry, filling with dried beans or pie weights. 

Bake 10 min. on middle oven rack at 375 deg. F., just until pastry starts to brown. Remove weights or beans with small tongs. Peel off paper. Reduce heat to 350 deg. F. and continue as quiche or pie recipe directs (see Even Further Note). 

Note: For perfect pastry, I use a lightly floured rolling pin cover and a lightly floured pastry-rolling mat. Neither is essential, but the standard method - rolling pastry on a well-floured work surface with a well-floured pin - can produce tough pastry. The Crisco site suggests you chill dough for 30 min. to 2 days before rolling it, but this dough recipe is so easy to work that I haven’t found chilling necessary. The site also suggests rolling the dough between two sheets of parchment or waxed paper, but I’ve always found that method difficult, frustrating, and highly unsatisfactory.

Further Note: The fork-pricking and preliminary baking methods apply only to single-crust pies. No need to bother with pies to be filled and baked with a top crust.

Even Further Note: If making a chilled berry or cream pie, for example, reduce heat from 425 deg. F. and continue baking empty shell at 350 deg. F. for 5-to-10 min. Cool shell and fill with berries or cream filling. A quiche or a pie shell filled with anything that needs further cooking will always need additional baking to brown the shell. Follow the method your recipe directs.

To Prepare the Filling for the Quiche:

4 eggs

1 c. (250 mL) heavy cream or ½ c. (125 mL) heavy cream and ½ c. (125 mL) skim milk

½ (2.5 mL) tsp. salt

½ tsp. (2.5 mL) coarsely ground black pepper

¼ tsp. (1.2 mL) hot sauce 

1 c. (250 mL) grated Monterey Jack or Jarlsberg cheese

½ c. (125 mL) grated Parmesan cheese

½ c. (125 mL) chopped ham

2 green onions, finely chopped

Prepare filling as crust bakes. In a large bowl, whisk together eggs, cream, seasonings, and hot sauce. Stir in cheeses, ham, and green onions. Blend well, pouring into partially cooked pie shell. Bake 30 minutes in oven preheated to 350 deg. F. When quiche finishes baking, turn off oven heat, leaving oven door closed. Let quiche rest inside oven 30 min. longer. Garnish with a few shakes of paprika. Serve hot. Yields 6-to-8 slices.

Trim parchment to fit pan and unbaked pastry.

Use cloth-covered rolling pin and non-stick mat.

Combine measured flour and salt in bowl.

Cut chilled shortening into cubes or small spoonfuls 
before adding to flour mixture in chilled bowl.

Use up/down “chopping” motion to cut shortening
into flour with pastry blender until mixture
resembles coarse crumbs.

Use ice water ...

Add water gradually, stirring with fork
after each addition.

Work from bottom to top with “under/over” motion ...

... to distribute evenly.

Dough should easily form a ball without feeling moist.

Roll from center to edges, using steady pressure.

When pastry reaches desired size, 
loosely ease over rolling pin.

Gently drop pastry into quiche pan, molding to fit.

I prefer Method #2 (above) for preliminary baking of 
pies and quiches: I use parchment and pie weights.

As crust has initial baking, assemble filling ingredients.

This combination is a sure palate-pleaser.

Whisk together eggs, cream, seasonings ...

... Add both kinds of grated cheeses.

Stir in ham ...

And green onions. Combine well.

Remove weights. Peel parchment from lightly baked crust.

Pour filling into crust, returning to oven for final baking.

                           Ready to eat: Ham and Onion Green Quiche!