Mini Quiches

Back to school also means back to routine and good habits, like reasonable bedtimes and healthy eating. For the whole summer, we’ve survived mostly on sausages and ice lollies and have been pretty darn happy doing it. But all good things must come to an end.

For a gentle transition, I like to serve these mini quiches, which are full of fat (and flavor!) but can also be packed with lots of “real food” ingredients. The mini format is less formidable than a full-sized quiche and opens it up to endless customization, perfect for a family whose tastes vary widely. You can serve them simply, with just the egg filling, or add any combination of cheese, bacon, and/or vegetables that appeals to your little eaters. They reheat beautifully (best done for a couple of minutes in a toaster oven), so they make for a good snack as well as a meal.

My kids don’t eat eggs, unless you count French toast and maybe pancakes. So I was quite delighted to find them gobbling up these mini quiches and asking for more. I hope you and your kids like them, too!

Ingredients

1 sheet of puff pastry, cut into squares sized to fit a muffin tin.

Egg mixture:

3 eggs, beaten
½ tsp salt
¼ c. (30 g) flour
1 Tbs butter, melted
¾ c. milk

Optional additions:

100 g (or more) of cheese, grated (e.g., Gruyère, Rahmkäse, Tilster, cheddar, Gouda, etc.)
4 slices of bacon; cooked and crumbled
1/8 c. onion, finely chopped
1-2 Tbs red bell pepper, finely chopped
1-2 Tbs mushrooms, chopped into small pieces

Method

1. Preheat oven to 175°C and adjust oven position to the lower rack.
2. Grease cups of 12-cup muffin tin. Press pastry squares into muffin compartments, sealing any open seams on the sides.
3. Combine eggs, butter, salt, flour, and milk and whisk until smooth. Pour mixture into pastry-filled muffin tins.
4. Add remaining optional ingredients into each quiche to your taste. For example, I would typically add to each mini quiche a sprinkle of bacon, a teaspoon each of mushrooms and onions, then a heaping tablespoon of grated cheese.
5. Bake 30 minutes or until set, optionally sprinkling a little cheese on top just before baking is finished.

Notes:

• Make sure not to buy the circle/octagon-shaped puff pastry, which is difficult, but not impossible, to cut into square pieces. The rectangular puff pastry from Migros or Coop can easily be cut into 12 rectangular shapes appropriate for this recipe.
• Don’t pour the egg mixture into the prepared puff pastry until your other ingredients are ready. Otherwise, the pastry can get too soggy before baking.
• Other addition ideas: tomatoes, zucchini, mini green beans, jalapenos, cooked spinach or other greens, broccoli, etc. Some ingredients should be par-cooked before adding; use your best judgment.

Text and Photos by Tanya Deans

Originally from San Francisco, Tanya has made Zurich her home for the past nine years with her husband and two growing boys. She writes for Moms:Tots:Zurich, which covers hiking with kids in Switzerland and other family-friendly outings in and around Zurich.