Thursday, September 5, 2013

Parmesan Artichoke Quiche


Last Saturday night I got it into my head that I was going to serve an impromptu brunch on Labor Day. If you ever get it into your head to do the same, here's a word of advice: don't!  A brunch is a lot of work and takes more time, I am convinced, than it does to prepare a dinner, particularly in my case where there was both little time and little planning.  But, I'm a softie, and as a number of people had no place to go and were so appreciative of the invitation, ultimately, I was glad that I did it. It was, however, no easy task. One person eats nothing raw, another is a vegetarian, still another eats only things of tepid temperature, but two others, bless them, will eat anything.

My menu was as follows:

Freshly Squeezed Orange Juice
Chilled Cucumber and Avocado Soup
Caesar Salad
Bacon
Creamed Chipped Beef on English Muffins
Parmesan Artichoke Quiche
Green Beans Amandine
Fruit Salad
Pecan Chocolate Espresso Coffee Cake
Coffee, Tea

Everybody loved it. The recipe for the quiche was a new one and is the creation of Magpie Café in Saint Charles, MO. I've talked about them before -- their
potato soup is legendary -- so it stood to reason that the quiche would be tasty as well. 

Parmesan Artichoke Quiche
Magpie Café, Saint Charles, MO

Pastry for 9-inch deep-dish pie

1 1/4 cups shredded Monterey Jack cheese
1 tablespoon butter
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 large clove garlic, finely minced
1 cup coarsely chopped canned (not marinated) artichoke hearts, drained
1/2 cup grated Parmesan cheese
3 eggs
2 cups half-and-half
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper or to taste

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line a 9-inch deep-dish pie plate with pastry; flute edges. Sprinkle Monterey Jack cheese in an even layer over bottom of pie shell.

Melt butter with oil in a medium skillet over medium heat. Add garlic; cook, stirring for 30 seconds. Add artichokes; sauté until all liquid from artichokes has evaporated, about 5 minutes.

Scatter sautéed artichokes over Monterey Jack cheese in pie shell; sprinkle evenly with Parmesan.

In a medium bowl, beat eggs with half-and-half; stir in salt and pepper. Slowly pour egg mixture into pie shell. Bake on bottom shelf of oven until top puffs and turns golden brown, about 50 to 60 minutes. Let cool 30 minutes before slicing.

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1 comment:

~~louise~~ said...

I LOVE Brunch but as you say, Pattie, it sure needs a lot of planning. Looks like you "threw" a fabulous Brunch together especially with so many picky eaters:)

I also love quiche and I am definitely saving this recipe.

Thank you so much for sharing...