CREAM AND BACON QUICHE 

A quiche hot out of the oven, a salad, and a cool bottle of white wine?there’s the perfect light meal.

Baked in an open-faced pastry shell, the quiche is really just a custard in fancy dress, a mixture of eggs and flavorings.

Quick to assemble and practically foolproof, it requires an expert hand only for its crust. And if you’ve been having troubles with pastry dough, give this recipe a whirl in your electric mixer.

Monique, who has adopted this method from Julia Child’s famous recipe, uses ham instead of bacon; and doesn’t cut it or put it at the bottom, she lays it on top before finally sprinkling some parsley and cheddar cheese.
 

INGREDIENTS

• 6 to 8 pieces thick-sliced bacon
• An 8-inch partially cooked pastry shell placed on a buttered baking sheet
• 3 eggs (U.S. graded ‘large)
• 1 ? to 1 ? cups heavy cream
• ? tsp salt
• Pinch of pepper and nutmeg
• 1 to 1 Tb butter

 (Preheat Oven to 190 degrees)
 

METHOD

Slice bacon into ? inch pieces and brown lightly in a frying pan; drain and spread in bottom of pastry shell.

Beat eggs, cream, and seasonings in a bowl to blend. Just before baking, pour cream mixture into the shell, filling to within 1/8 inch of the top.

Cut butter into bits and distribute over the cream.

Bake in upper third of oven for 25 to 30 minutes, until quiche has puffed and browned, and a small knife, plunged into custard, comes out clean.

Serve hot, warm, or cold; quiche will sink slightly as it cools.
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