Hearts of Palm and Spinach Quiche

As I have mentioned more than once, I often share meals with my dad. I enjoy cooking, and he enjoys eating, and taking a break from the frozen dinners that comprise much of his diet. This quiche is so good that, heaven help me, it crossed my mind to not mention it to dad and eat his portion myself. I didn’t, but I thought about it.

I am a big fan of hearts of palm, and try to use them in as many dishes as possible. I have found, over the years, that they are a fine, if not better, substitute for artichoke hearts. They have the same mild flavor, but are tender rather than woody, as artichoke hearts can tend to be. So, this is a variation on my Crustless Artichoke and Spinach Quiche, using hearts of palm as a substitute. I liked it so well, that this is going to be my new “go to” quiche. I used the Applewood Smoked Gruyere that I picked up at Aldi, and this gave the quiche a wonderful creamy texture, and lightly smoky flavor. In a word, wonderful! 

Hearts of Palm and Spinach Quiche

1 piecrust, homemade or purchased

1 teaspoon Dijon mustard

1 tablespoon olive oil
2 cups baby spinach

1 8-oz. pkg. Aldi Applewood Smoked Gruyere,* grated

5 hearts of palm from a 14.5 oz. jar of Melissa’s Hearts of Palm, sliced into ¼ coins (about 1 c.)

5 large eggs

2/3 cup heavy cream
2/3 cup whole milk
Few gratings fresh nutmeg

Preheat the oven to 425°F. Blind bake pastry shell, whether you’ve made the pastry yourself or bought one. You can do this by lining the pastry with aluminum foil, topping the foil with pastry weights, and baking it in the oven until the pastry is golden at the edges, about 15 minutes. If you don’t have pastry weights, well, by them (you can find them here), or use dried beans or rice.

Remove from the oven, allow to cool slightly, and spread Dijon on the bottom.  While the pastry is cooling, heat oil in a 10-inch skillet over medium-high heat. Add spinach, and stir until wilted, 2-3 minutes. Place spinach, hearts of palm, and grated cheese (reserve a bit for top, if desired) into the pastry shell, spreading to cover.

In a medium-sized bowl, whisk together the eggs, cream, and the milk until thoroughly blended. Season with salt and pepper. Slowly pour egg mixture (Very slowly, I am talking almost glacial) over the spinach, hearts of palm, and cheese in the prepared pastry shell. Grate nutmeg over top, and sprinkle on remaining grated cheese.

Bake in the center of the oven until the filling is golden and puffed, and is completely baked through, about 45-55 minutes. To test for doneness, stick a sharp knife blade into the center of the filling and if it comes out clean, the quiche is baked through. Remove the quiche from the oven and serve immediately.

*This may be a seasonal item, so regular Gruyere would be fine as well.

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Here is another use for those tasty hearts of palm – Baked Hearts of Palm Dip.  Addicting!

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