Best 7 Melinda Lees Master Quiche Recipes

CRUSTLESS QUICHE MASTER RECIPE

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. For the pan: Brush pan with the soft butter and sprinkle the grated Parmesan evenly on top. Or for a Quick Crust, pulse bread into crumbs in a food processor. Heat butter or oil in a large skillet over medium heat; add bread crumbs and stir until evenly toasted, about 5 minutes. Evenly spread crumbs in a 9-inch glass or ceramic pie pan. Place pan on a baking sheet.
• Whisk the half-and-half, eggs and yolks in large glass measuring cup. Season with salt, pepper, and nutmeg, cayenne or paprika to taste. Spread half the desired filling evenly in the pan, top with about half the cheese; repeat with remaining filling and cheese. Pour the custard over the fillings. Top with more herbs or cheese as desired.
• Bake until the quiche is just set in the center, about 40 to 50 minutes. Cool completely on a rack before serving.

QUICHE - MASTER RECIPE

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 375.
• Fill parbaked shells and bake until set.
• Any filling you wish to use.
• Serve warm or at room temperature.

LEEK QUICHE

Steps:

• Unroll crust into a 9-in. pie plate; flute edge. Refrigerate 30 minutes. Preheat oven to 400°., Line unpricked crust with a double thickness of foil. Fill with pie weights, dried beans or uncooked rice. Bake on a lower oven rack until edges are golden brown, 10-15 minutes. Remove foil and weights; bake until bottom is golden brown, 3-6 minutes longer. Cool on a wire rack. Reduce oven setting to 325°., In a large skillet, heat oil over medium-high heat. Add leeks and mushrooms; cook and stir until tender, 3-5 minutes. Add sausage and garlic; cook 1 minute longer. Remove from the heat. Sprinkle 1/2 cup cheese over crust. Top with sausage mixture and tomatoes. Whisk eggs, cream, sour cream, thyme, salt and pepper; pour over top. Sprinkle with remaining cheese., Bake until a knife inserted in center comes out clean, 40-45 minutes. Cover edges with foil during the last 15 minutes to prevent overbrowning if necessary. Let stand 10 minutes before serving. If desired, top with additional fresh thyme.

MINI LEEK QUICHES

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.
• Rinse the leeks in a bowl of water and strain. Set aside.
• In a skillet over medium heat, add the butter. When it is melted, add the leeks and season with salt and pepper. Cook until they are soft and tender, 6 to 8 minutes. Remove from the heat, stir in the thyme, and let cool to room temperature.
• Roll out each pie dough round onto a clean dry surface. Using a 2 1/4-inch biscuit cutter cut 12 rounds from each dough. Gently press the rounds into each of the mini muffin tins to form mini crusts.
• In a large measuring cup, whisk the cream and eggs with the pumpkin pie spice and a generous pinch of salt and pepper.
• Fill each muffin cup with 1 teaspoon of the cooled leeks and top with 1 teaspoon of the cheese. Cover the filling with the egg and cream mixture. Place the muffin tins onto cookie sheets and put them into the oven. Bake until the egg mixture has set and the quiches are lightly browned, 10 to 15 minutes. Let cool for 10 minutes before turning them out onto a wire rack. Serve warm.

ULTIMATE BRINE FOR TURKEY

Steps:

• Combine all ingredients in a non-reactive pot, bring mixture to a boil, lower heat and simmer for 15-20 minutes (partly covered). Allow brine to cool completely.
• Rinse turkey under cool running water, inside and out (remove giblets from body cavity). Pat turkey dry with paper towels, then immerse turkey in cooled brine.* Turkey should be completely submerged in liquid (place a plate on top of the bird if necessary to keep it covered with the liquid).
• Cover the pot and refrigerate* for 8-10 hours or up to 24 hours. Remove turkey, rinse, pat dry, and roast as usual.
• COOK'S NOTE: For a very crispy skin: after removing the turkey from the brine, rinsing it and patting it dry, allow the turkey to stand UNCOVERED in the refrigerator for 6-12 hours or overnight. This will dry the skin and result in its being crispy at serving time.
• This resting period has the added advantage of evening the degree of brininess throughout the meat (it will be less salty on the surface of the meat, more evenly brined throughout), and resting produces a slightly more tender result.
• *Be sure the container used for brining turkey is non-reactive: use enamel, glass or crockery or stainless steel - never cast iron or aluminum. The pot should be just large enough to contain the turkey (so the brine will be sufficient to cover the bird). Brining Bags are now available from many cookware stores, as well as giant-size Ziplock bags (food safe) that may be used alone, or use within a sturdy pot.
• *NOTE REGARDING THE CONTAINER (AND REFRIGERATION) FOR BRINING TURKEY:.
• We have learned that many folks do not have sufficient room in their refrigerators - or sometimes a pot big enough - for the turkey in its brine. Our solution is suggest that the turkey be placed, along with the brine, in a food-safe plastic bag, such as a turkey roasting bag (available in most markets). Then, the bag, with turkey and brine inside, can be placed in an insulated cooler, a large stock pot or plastic crate, (or even a deep sink) and surrounded by ice, "blue ice" or empty plastic bottles that have been filled with water and frozen. [The latter suggestions are to keep ice from melting into water which can be messy.] Then the cooler is closed, or the sink covered, and the turkey can be brined there for the number of hours required - checking to be sure that the temperature of the brine is maintained at below 40 degrees, for safety. It is imperative that the temperature never be allowed to rise above 40 degrees - add more ice/blue/ice as needed.
• ** NOTE REGARDING THE AMOUNT OF SALT IN BRINE: A milder brine may be made, which may have a less flavorful result - but if salt is a concern (the entire turkey will absorb only 10-15% of the brine) the amount of salt may be reduced. For the desired chemical effect to take place, however, the proportions cannot be less than 2/3 to 1 cup of salt per gallon (4 quarts) of water or other liquid.
• **TYPES OF SALT:.
• Kosher salt is the ONLY type of salt to be used in making brine (it is sweeter and more pure than ordinary table salt). Kosher salt is available in two varieties. The most common is flaked salt (example: Morton Kosher Salt) which has been pressed into flakes by rollers. The other type is a four-sided crystal (example: Diamond Crystal Kosher Salt). The crystal-shaped salt measures differently because of its shape. Use about 25% (one quarter) MORE crystal salt than flaked salt when measuring for brine or other recipes. The formula is: 1 tablespoon of regular table salt is equivalent to 1 ½ tablespoons flaked kosher salt, or 2 tablespoons, diamond crystal kosher salt.
• ***NOTE REGARDING BRINING TURKEYS TO BE "DEEP FRIED:".
• When a turkey will be deep fried (Cajun style or otherwise), too much sugar will cause the bird to blacken on the outside. It is best, therefore to use water, rather than apple juice or cider, and to greatly reduce the amount of sugar called for in the above listing of brine ingredients.
• Variations:.
• *A listener called last year to report that using beer instead of juice resulted in a wonderful flavor - she even used Guiness, a more bitter-tasting beer - and loved it!
• Along the same vein, another listener said that she made the brine as directed, then - after it had cooled - she added an equivalent (the same) amount of flat dark beer and another full one cup of brown sugar (packed measure). After stirring the mixture until the sugar dissolved, she proceded to brine her turkey in the mixture - and indicated that the result was just fabulous.
• **BRINING A GOOSE: This brine works exceptionally well for brining a goose before roasting. The meat of the goose benefits greatly from brining for 12 to 24 hours. Follow the same directions for goose as you would for brining a turkey.

QUICHE LORRAINE

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 400 degrees.
• Line a nine-inch pie plate with the pastry. By all means build a rim with the pastry and flute it. This is essential for the amount of custard indicated in this recipe.
• Cover the bottom of the pastry with a round of parchment paper and add enough dried beans or peas to partly fill the shell. Bake 10 minutes.
• Reduce the oven heat to 375 degrees. Remove and discard the beans and parchment paper and set the pastry-lined pie plate aside.
• Cook the bacon until crisp and remove it from skillet. Pour off all but one tablespoon of the fat remaining in the skillet. Cook the onion in the remaining fat until the onion is transparent.
• Crumble the bacon and sprinkle the bacon, onion and cheeses over the inside of the partly baked pastry.
• Combine the eggs, cream, nutmeg, salt, pepper and Tabasco sauce to taste. Strain the mixture over the onion-cheese mixture. Slide the pie onto a baking sheet.
• Bake the pie until a knife inserted one inch from the pastry edge comes out clean, about 25 minutes. Remove to a wire rack. Let stand five or 10 minutes before serving.

MELINDA LEE'S MASTER QUICHE RECIPE RECIPE

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 375 degrees. In a 2 cup measuring cup, place the eggs and seasonings. Add enough cream to fill the measuring cup to the 1-1/4 cup level ( you'll need about 1/2 cup of cream). Blend together the cream and eggs mixture using a fork or whisk- just to incorporate thoroughly. Sprinkle the filling of your choice over the bottom of one 8-inch or 9-inch baked pie shell. Pour in the custard mixture ( the liquid should come up to about 1/4 -inch from the rim of the pie crust shell). Bake the quiche at 375 degrees for about 35 minutes or until the thin blade of a knife, inserted near the middle of the quiche (about an inch or so out) comes out clean. Cook's Note: The center should still be a little bit "jiggly" - the custard will complete cooking as it stands after baking. Suggested Fillings: 5-6 slices crisp, cooked bacon crumbled 3 ounces coarsely grated cheese Optional ( for cheese or any other filling) -sprinkle a little cheese over the top of the quiche and dot with butter before baking 1/4 cup, smoked salmon- chopped; add dill or parsley 1/2 cu to 3/4 cup, cooked broccoli or other vegetable of your choice, optional- add 1/4 cup grated cheese to vegetable 1/2 to 3/4 cup, diced sauteed ( or caramelized) onion 1/2 cup or as desired, leftover shredded meat or poultry diced, sautéed jalapeño or other chile (to taste) fresh snipped herbs of your choice