Not only is quiche my favorite egg-based dish, it is really versatile. It works for breakfast, lunch, or dinner and can be eaten warm or at room temperature. It also can be made ahead of time, which can be a lifesaver given my work schedule, and can easily be transported to an event. In addition, you can use almost any combination of add-in ingredients and have a winning result.
For this particular quiche, I wanted to make use of the wonderful Hatch green chiles that are available this time of year. That gave me the idea for a Hatch green chile, ham and cheese quiche. (See below for a vegetarian option.) The roasted Hatch chiles give a nice little spicy kick that takes this quiche up a couple of notches.
We get the Hatch chiles in mild and hot, so that gives us the choice of controlling the amount of spice. Jeff and I love the hot ones, but be careful, they are spicier than a lot of people can handle. If you are serving this to guests, you probably should go with the mild chiles or make two quiches—one hot and one mild. But don’t despair if you didn’t stock up on Hatch chiles while they were in season, canned green chiles will work just fine.
In working on this recipe, I tried several variations in the amount of milk, cream, and eggs. Ultimately, I ended up with this version, which has a rich, yummy texture but doesn’t leave me feeling like I just consumed a carton of pure cream with my quiche. I hope you find it the right balance for you too. If not, substitute extra cream for some of the milk (richer) or extra milk for some of the cream (a little healthier). After all, you are the chef in your kitchen, so you get to make the rules.
Start with an unbaked pie crust placed in a 9 inch pie pan. (Check out this link for how to make your own Easy Buttery Pie Crust.)
Preheat the oven to 425 degrees F.
Whisk eggs until well blended. Add the salt and pepper and whisk. Then add milk and cream. Whisk until combined.
Add the ham, Swiss cheese, green onions, and green chiles. Stir until combined.
TIP: For the ham, I get a very thick slice of Black Forest ham from the deli and dice it into 1 / 4 inch cubes.
Veggie Option: For a vegetarian version, substitute small pieces of sauteed cremini mushrooms for the ham.
In two minutes you will have the perfect filling for your quiche. Take a look!
Place the pie pan on a baking sheet and pour the egg mixture into the unbaked pie crust.
Cover the edge of the pie crust with foil to prevent it from browning too much. Bake quiche for 15 minutes.
After 15 minutes, lower the oven temperature to 350 degrees F and remove the foil. Bake the quiche until it is just set. It should take approximately 30-40 minutes.
Let it cool slightly before serving. If you plan to serve it later, refrigerate the quiche after it cools. Enjoy!
- 6 eggs
- 1 cup whole milk
- ⅓ cup whipping cream (or heavy cream)
- 4 oz. ham, cut into small cubes
- 3 Tbsp. green chiles, chopped (mild or hot)
- 4 oz. Swiss cheese, grated
- 3 green onions, sliced
- 1 tsp. Salt
- ½ tsp. Pepper
- 1 pie crust, unbaked
- Preheat oven to 425 degrees F.
- Whisk eggs until well blended.
- Add the salt and pepper. Whisk until blended.
- Add the milk and cream. Whisk until blended.
- Add ham, Swiss cheese, green onions, and green chiles. Stir until combined.
- Pour mixture into unbaked pie crust.
- Cover edge of pie crust with foil to prevent it from browning too much.
- Bake quiche for 15 minutes.
- Remove the foil.
- Lower the oven temperature to 350 degrees F.
- Bake quiche until set, approximately 30-40 minutes.
- Allow the quiche to cool slightly before serving. If you plan to serve it later, refrigerate the quiche after it has cooled.
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