Cheese and Chile Quiche

Travis is a big fan of breakfast for dinner, and who can't resist a creamy, cheesy egg dish?! So quiche is a big hit in our house. This is one of my favorite quiche recipes as it is simple and only has one main "non-essential" ingredient in it, roasted poblanos. I served this dish by itself because even after you are full you will want seconds. I suggest it eating it on a rainy day, while on the couch, wrapped up in a blanket, watching a good movie (that's what we did last night)!

Notes on the Pie Crust (READ THIS):

I do not use pastry dough for this recipe, instead I use store bought, premade crust from the refrigerated section of my grocery store. If you use this kind of dough DO NOT do steps 2 through 4. If you precook your pie crust it will be very overcooked when you bake it again with the quiche filling. Do step 1, place your premade crust in a tart or pie pan pushing it down and getting all air bubbles out, and then go directly to step 5.

Notes on the Poblanos:

To roast the poblanos preheat your oven to 400 degrees, place the poblanos on a baking tray and roast for about 30 minutes turning and checking on them every 10, until they become almost a blackish green color and have a slight char. Once they are done, place them in a Tupperware with a lid for 10 minutes. This will make it easier to peel them. Take the poblanos out and use your hands to peel and seed them. You can use this method for any sort of vegetables that needs to be roasted and peeled like red bell peppers or garlic.

Ingredients

Serves 4

Pastry dough

1 large garlic clove

3/4 teaspoon salt

1 lb poblano chiles (about 4 large), roasted and peeled (directions above)

6 large eggs

1 cup whole milk

1/2 cup Mexican crema or heavy cream

2 tablespoons finely grated white onion (using small teardrop holes of a box grater)

1/2 teaspoon black pepper

1/2 lb Monterey Jack cheese, coarsely grated (2 1/2 to 3 cups)

Directions

1. Put oven rack in middle position and preheat oven to 375°F.
2. Roll out dough into a 13-inch round on a lightly floured surface with a floured rolling pin. Fit dough into tart pan, without stretching, letting excess dough hang over edge. Fold overhang inward and press against side of pan to reinforce edge. Prick bottom all over with a fork. Chill until firm, about 30 minutes.
3. Line shell with foil or parchment paper and fill with pie weights. Bake until pastry is set and pale golden along rim, 20 to 25 minutes.
4. Carefully remove foil and weights and bake shell until deep golden all over, 15 to 20 minutes more. Put tart pan in a shallow baking pan. Leave oven on.
5. Mince garlic and mash to a paste with salt using side of a large knife.
6. Discard seeds, ribs, and stems from chiles, then pat dry if necessary and cut into 1/3-inch-wide strips.
7. Whisk together eggs, milk, crema, onion, garlic paste, and pepper in a large bowl until just combined, then pour into baked tart shell.
8. Sprinkle cheese and chiles over custard (chiles will sink slightly) and bake until custard is just set, 50 to 60 minutes. (Center will jiggle slightly; filling will continue to set as it cools.)
9. Transfer quiche in pan to a rack to cool at least 20 minutes before serving.
10. If you use a tart pan, to remove side, center a large can under pan and let side of pan drop. Serve warm or at room temperature.