From Julia Child's kitchen

A photo of Julia Child's kitchen; source: WBUR.org

After visiting my friend S during our recent trip to San Francisco, I was inspired to make a quiche, which S showed me was a simple and delicious item for a weekend brunch or a weekday lunch with your family. I rummaged around my kitchen for my Julia Child cookbooks. I found a copy of From Julia Child's Kitchen that Auntie Del had given me. I opened up the yellowing pages (I think Auntie Del bought the cookbook when it was first published in 1975) and found simple instructions to assemble a quiche.

The first item I made was the pie pastry for the quiche. Home-made pie pastry makes all the difference when you are baking, as I know Mama V will attest to for her home-made pizza dough. It gives you a flaky, delicious pie crust rather than the dull taste of frozen, store-bought pie dough. I really like Martha Stewart's recipe for Pate Brisee. What I like most about this recipe is that it gives you a nice buttery flavor that works well with sweet and savory baking without using shortening or lard. This recipe gives you two pastry shells so you can use one and store the other in the freezer for up to a month for future baking.

2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour (I love King Arthur flour)

1 teaspoon kosher salt

1 teaspoon sugar

1 cup chilled unsalted butter, cut into pieces

1/4 to 1/2 cup ice water

Place the flour, salt and sugar in the bowl of a food mixer, and process for a few seconds to combine. Add the butter pieces to the flour mixture and process until the mixture resembles a coarse meal. Add the ice water in a slow, steady stream until the dough holds together.

The great thing about making a quiche is that it is so accessible and simple. The basic quiche filling includes:

3 eggs

1/2 cup milk

1/4 tsp salt

a pinch of pepper

You can add any kind of cheese to a quiche. I like the combination of Swiss and Parmesan cheese. Julia Child advises to use about 3/4 cup cheese. You can also add any cooked leftovers you may have in your refrigerator, such as:

Bacon, ham or pancetta

Cauliflower or broccoli

Mushrooms

Smoked salmon

Asparagus

Spinach

To assemble a quiche roll out your chilled pie pastry and lay it in a buttered pie dish. Sprinkle 1/4 cup of your cheese on the pie pastry. Then add any additional ingredients. Last week I added leftover bacon and cauliflower. Pour in the basic quiche filling and sprinkle the remaining cheese. Bake for 30 to 35 minutes in a 375 degree oven. Serve warm or at room temperature over mixed greens. For New York mamas, Satur Farms provides lovely, and local, mixed greens, which you can purchase at Whole Foods or at the Greenmarket.