I first learned about the original form of this recipe from a long-time friend who has raised six delightful children, married them all off happily, and is now a mom-mentor type to all the rest of us. I try to keep my ears perked when I'm around someone like her, because I figure that, with that kind of track record, she's got to have some wonderful things up her sleeves.
Sure enough, this is one of them.
(Hmm. Quiche up your sleeves?)
The first great thing about this quiche is - it's easy. Oh-so-easy! Forget rolling out a crust; it makes is own!
The other great thing about it is, it can be adapted to include whatever you have on hand. Got ham or bacon? Cooked shrimp? How about sauteed scallions, mushrooms, and garlic? Or steamed veggies? Just give them a chop, and scatter them across the bottom of a greased 9 x 13 inch baking dish, then sprinkle it over with whatever cheese you have, shredded. (If all you have are the eggs, cheese, and milk, then you can still make this quiche in its simplest form.)
All the other ingredients go into the blender together and get whirred around for a few seconds.
The blended mixture then gets poured over the ingredients in the baking dish, which gets placed into a moderate oven for 40-45 minutes.
While it's baking, you'll have time to clean up, set the table with something pretty, sweep your floor, fold your laundry, read a book to your boys, walk around the block, check your email, take a nap, write a letter, or do whatever else you can come up with (I'm sure you won't be hard-pressed).
After the quiche responds with a jello-jiggle to a slight shake of the pan, and you've taken it from the oven and set it on the stove top to rest for ten, all you have to do then is:
Sit. Relax. Enjoy. That's it!
Simple Quiche
-adapted from Marie Johnston
12 eggs
1 cup all-purpose flour
2 teaspoons baking powder
1/4 cup melted butter
3 cups milk
1 teaspoon celery salt
2 cups shredded cheese
1 cup meat bits (ham, bacon, shrimp)
1 cup sauteed and /or steamed veggies (broccoli, spinach, carrots, mushrooms, 1 clove minced garlic, 1/2 cup chopped scallions)
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Grease well a 9 x 13 inch baking dish. Scatter sauteed and/or steamed veggies across bottom of dish. Sprinkle with shredded cheese.
In a blender, combine eggs, flour, baking powder, butter, milk, and salt. Blend on high speed for several seconds until fluffy and well blended. Pour egg mixture slowly over cheese and veggies in baking dish.
Place on center rack in oven and bake for 40-45 minutes. When it's done, it should jiggle slightly, like jello, in the center. Remove from oven and let rest for 10 minutes before serving.
