Quiche Lorraine
An Original Recipe by a Lorraine :)
Makes 4-6 mini quiches depending on the size of your tins or one large quiche
For pastry:
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250g/8.83 ozs cream cheese, softened (light will do)
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100g/3.5 ozs cold butter, cut into cubes
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1 to 1 1/4 cup plain all purpose flour
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Pinch of salt
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butter for greasing tins
For filling:
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1 cup grated cheese (gruyere, cheddar or a mix)
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2 tablespoons flour
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150g bacon, cooked and cut into pieces
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1 cup cream
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4 eggs
You can also use ready made shortcrust pastry
Step 1 - To make the pastry, blend the cream cheese in a food processor and then add the butter, flour and salt and whiz until it comes together. Add a bit more flour if needed. Grease tins with a little butter or oil and then press the pastry into the tins trying to get it as thin as possible. Cover with cling film and allow to rest for 20 minutes in the fridge.
2. Preheat oven to 200C/400F. Dock the pastry with a fork and then line each tin with a piece of foil. Fill these with ceramic pie weights or dried beans or rice and bake for 10 minutes.
Step 3 - Meanwhile, prepare the filling. In a bowl, combine the grated cheese and flour and mix to combine. In a jug measure the cream and beat in the eggs.
Step 4 - When the pastry is ready, remove from the oven and turn up the oven to 220C/428F. Place the cheese in the bottom of each pie and then cover with egg mixture and bacon. You could of course mix these all together and that would be fine too but I like the layer of melted cheese. Bake for 10 minutes and then reduce the heat to 180C/350F and bake for another 10 minutes. Serve warm from oven (which is when the pastry is at its best).