Caramelized Onion Quiche and the Winners!

Did You Know? In 1987 Larry Shaw at the San Francisco Exploratorium started thinking about “rotation into another dimension”, which coincidentally is what pi (3.14...) describes: the relationship between two dimensions. Shaw and his colleagues built a pi shrine that displayed the first 100 digits of pi, walked in a circle around it and ate pie. Later, Shaw’s daughter discovered that 3/14 aligned with Einstein’s birthday and the popularity of Pi Day grew from there.

So, in honor of Pi Day, I bring you a quiche. Close enough, right? Ever since my last quiche, my sister and Caitlin have requested this brunch favorite on a pretty regular basis. I made this particular version when we had lunch at my uncle's house a few weeks back (the lunch that included the flan). It was a huge success, but it was eaten so quickly, I never had a chance to snap some pictures of the final product. Which leads us to this weekend, and a recreation of the familiar caramelized onion quiche, to comfort us after a long night of dancing.

My uncle Leo, and his band "One Good Guy," were performing at East Bay in Plymouth, and he needed a big crowd to cement a recurring spot for the Summer months (sign his email list to help out the cause). We rallied up the neighborhood, and made an awesome Saturday night out of it. It was so much fun, and the band was great, dropping hit after hit, after hit. Not getting home until a little after 2, we all slept in later than usual. Promising a quiche sometime over the weekend, I figured this was my last chance to keep my word. So a little while later, I presented a quiche.

I always caramelize way more onions than the recipe probably calls for, but we all love onions, so why not? I just find that I usually end up with some leftover egg and milk, which is perfect for some scrambled eggs or omelets the next morning. Because of my onion overload, this quiche is little more along the lines of an onion pie, rather than a quiche, and a lot less eggy, which I love. If you want more of a custard base, leave out an onion or so. Quiche's are pretty adaptable, so feel free to experiment with the ingredients. My brother begged for some bacon, but come on, does he know who he's talking to?

Caramelized Onion Quiche
Adapted from Elise of Simply Recipes
Pate Brisee (1/2 recipe)
2 tablespoons olive oil
3 large sweet onions, sliced into wedges (attached at root end-see pictures or tutorial in original recipe seen here)
Salt and Pepper
1-2 tablespoons balsamic vinegar
1 cup milk (I used 1%)
3 large eggs
Pinch nutmeg
1 1/2 cups Gruyère cheese, grated (about 6 oz)

On a lightly floured surface, roll dough into a 12-inch circle. Fit into a 10-inch round tart pan, pressing dough into corners. Transfer to freezer to chill for 30 minutes.

Preheat oven to 350°.

Line pastry with aluminum foil, pressing into the corners and edges. Fill at least two-thirds with baking weights (I use uncooked rice). Bake first for 15 minutes, remove from oven and let cool a few minutes. Carefully remove aluminum foil and weights. Poke the bottom of the pastry with a fork and return to the oven to bake an additional 10-12 minutes, or until lightly golden. Transfer to a wire rack to cool while making the filling.

Heat olive oil in a large, heavy-bottomed sauté pan on medium heat. Add the onions and sprinkle with salt. Cover, and cook for about 10 minutes, until the onions have softened and are translucent. Uncover, reduce the heat to medium low, and cook for an additional 40 minutes, stirring occasionally, until the onions are well browned. Add the balsamic vinegar and cook for 10 minutes more, until the onions are completely caramelized, and a rich mahogany. Remove from heat.

Place tart pan on a baking sheet to catch any spills. Sprinkle half the cheese evenly over the bottom of the crust. Spread the onions over the cheese. In a medium bowl, whisk together the milk and eggs. Season with nutmeg, salt, and pepper. Pour over onions. Sprinkle with the remaining cheese. Transfer to oven, and bake until just set in the center, 30 to 35 minutes. Cool on a wire rack for about 10-15 minutes before slicing.

*Make Ahead: I made the entire quiche the day before, let cool, and stuck in the fridge. I reheated it the next afternoon in the oven for a quick brunch.

WINNERS!

The winners of the Matt's Munchies fruit leathers have been chosen! Using the Random Integer Generator from Random.org, I entered 1-43 (#of comments), and they picked two random numbers to win the Matt's Munchies. Here's what the screen looked like...

Random Integer Generator
Here are your random numbers:
38 24
Timestamp: 2009-03-14 13:27:09 UTC

Congratulations Jodye (of Couple of Vegans) and Hannah (of Bittersweet)! Shoot me an e-mail with your address! In other freebie news, An Apple a Day is having a Pure Bar giveaway, so check it out, and try your luck there too! (Ends the 17th...St.Patrick's Day)

Pisto Manchego with Eggs

Did You Know? White shelled eggs are produced by hens with white feathers and white ear lobes. Brown shelled eggs are produced by hens with red feathers and red ear lobes. Brown egg layers usually are slightly larger and require more food, thus brown eggs usually cost more than white eggs.

Just in this past year have my tastebuds developed a love for eggs. I've always eaten a healthy diet, but when I started going to acupuncture, my doctors really examined the foods I was incorporating into my daily life. Surprisingly, I wasn't eating the type foods that my body required to function at it's best. So to get my system in its optimal condition, and my chi in balance, I reworked a lot of aspects of my life, diet being one of them. I was instructed to eat eggs, a lot of eggs. In fact, they were perfectly fine with me consuming at least a dozen every week, if not more. And while I didn't take it to that level most weeks, I did go from not eating eggs at all, to eating at least 1/2 a dozen every week.

This recipe came about in one of my late night recipe searches for things to do with eggs. If I was going to be eating a lot of eggs, I needed to find ways that I would enjoy them (scrambled not being one of them). To this day, I pretty much only enjoy them fried or poached, with the yolks still runny. This pisto manchego incorporates my love of vegetables with my new found love of poached eggs.

Swimming in a ratatouille base, the creamy egg yolks are blanketed by a firm white, making this dish perfect for breakfast, lunch, or dinner. I can't wait until Summer arrives, when the farmers markets spring up again, and you don't think you'll ever see the end of your zucchini and tomato bounty. Until then, here's the recipe...

Pisto Manchego with Eggs
Adapted from The New York Times: Recipes for Health section

2 tablespoons olive oil
1 medium onion, chopped
4 garlic cloves, minced
2 pounds zucchini, or a combination of green and yellow summer squash, diced
2 pounds tomatoes, peeled, seeded and chopped (juice reserved)
Salt & Pepper
4-6 eggs

Heat the oil in a large, heavy, nonstick skillet over medium heat, then add the onion. Stir often, until transluscent — about 5 minutes. Add the garlic and cook, stirring, for another minute or two until fragrant. Stir in the squash and 1/2 teaspoon salt, and cook for 5 minutes, until the squash is coated with oil and beginning to soften. Add the tomatoes, and salt to taste (3/4 to 1 teaspoon), and turn the heat to medium-high. Stir often for 5 to 10 minutes, until the tomatoes have slightly cooked down. Add the juice from the tomatoes plus 1/4 cup water, stir together, and turn the heat back down to medium-low. Cook uncovered for 30 to 35 minutes, until the vegetables are soft and easy to mash. Stir often until the mixture cooks down and begins to stick to the pan. From time to time, press on the squash with the back of your spoon so that it breaks down. Taste, adjust the salt, and add lots of pepper.

Using the back of your spoon, make 4-6 wells in the vegetable mixture and break an egg into each well. Sprinkle with salt and pepper. Cover the pan, and cook until the eggs have set, about six to eight minutes (the whites should be set, but the yolks should still be runny). Serve, using a spatula to dish out portions of pisto topped with an egg, or two.