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I was proud enough of learning how to make a DIY salad taste good to enjoy eating DIY salads for lunch almost every day for the first month and a half of quarantine, but sometime in the last couple of weeks, I hit a wall. I stopped wanting to have a salad at lunchtime, perhaps because I had eaten so many of them, or because they take some time to assemble and I’ve been feeling increasingly lazy, or a combination of both.
The solution to this conundrum revealed itself to me accidentally, when I decided to make two spinach quiches last weekend. One of them was consumed by my family in a single sitting, leaving the other for me to consume slowly over the course of the following week. Every day at around noon, I cut a sizable slice, put it on a piece of tin foil, and heated it in a toaster oven until the cheese started to bubble. Then I plated it, alongside some tortilla chips and whatever “side” I happened to have on hand–carrot sticks, apple slices, leftover asparagus–and that was lunch. By the time Friday rolled around and I consumed the last piece, I was thoroughly convinced that making this quiche was the ultimate solution to my quarantine meal fatigue. Here’s why:
- It keeps well in the fridge
- It requires very little prep
- It provides a serving of vegetables (see spinach) alongside a brush with indulgence (see: pastry dough and melted cheese)
- It feels just the right amount of fancy-for-no-reason, which is hard to come by these days
Any quiche will do, but I’m particularly fond of my mom’s recipe, which I’ll share below. Not only is it easy to make and super adaptable (you honestly can’t really mess it up), but it also has a unique composition where the cheese kind of sits on top in a really thick, satisfying layer. It’s delicious.
Thought you’d never ask—here’s how to make it!
The Best Spinach Quiche
Ingredients:
1 savory flaky pie crust (I recommend a deep dish pie crust and dish if you can find one, since that will allow for more cheese!)
1/2 stick unsalted butter
3 lbs frozen spinach
1/4 cup minced onion
8 whole eggs beaten
1.5 cups heavy cream (I often use whole milk, though–whatever you have on hand)
12 oz shredded Jarlsburg cheese (can sub with any type of cheese, I like to use cheddar)
-Thaw frozen spinach in the microwave and wring out all the water you can (this is KEY–you really need to squeeze out as much water as possible, or else your quiche will be watery. It’s a great arm workout.)
Happy lunching!
