Disguising Price Increases(No Politics Please)

[Tomatina]

A good quiche along with a nice salad..hmmm..yummy!
Our last one was with fried onions & homemade Sauerkraut, of course herbs, spices, eggs and cheese as well.

For the pastry - the trick is, use small pieces of cold butter/fat, bit of cold water, salt, an egg, mix it quickly with your flour (no raising agent) - don't over kneat it.
Put it in your form and let it rest in the cold for a while (30min at least), put your cold filling on it & put it in the hot oven immediately.

My partner is from Switzerland - I'm wondering, what your Swiss cheese is? (My guess is the Emmentaler)

There is Greyerzer(from West Switzerland, Gruyere is from just over the border to France), Emmentaler and Appenzeller, to mention the most popular ones. They are all named after the region they are from.
Ripe Appenzeller has the most "sharp" taste to me.

There is another cheese, called Schabziger/Sapsago in english- it is very flavourful and you just use a little bit of it (the smell is uhmm, let's say powerful
My partner loves it and it adds a special depth to the dish.

In a couple of weeks the green asparagus season will start at our place, really looking forward to it, one of our fav veggies!
If we make a quiche (& it turns out delicious), I'll make a pic & post the recipe

[Julianna]

My partner is from Switzerland - I'm wondering, what your Swiss cheese is? (My guess is the Emmentaler)

In the US, the name is generic and basically applies to any cheese that resembles Emmetaler. I didnt realize that as a kid and it was always a mystery why Swiss Cheese tasted so varied.

[Tormahto]

Swiss and Gruyere are my favorites, too. Fresh herbs are wonderful in Quiche, chives I particlarly like. Crispy Pancetta, bacon or ham are nice additions. Even crumbled sausage. Grape tomatoes, broccoli, spinach, mushrooms... The possiblilties are endless.

The possibilities, here, are Easter leftovers; ham, kielbasa and asparagus.

Also, I see that my Sicilian Honey garlic is coming up in the garden, from last fall's bulb plantings. 9 of 10 bulbs made it to spring, the one small runt of the litter, didn't. I'll give it a quick taste before deciding to add it in. I'll also be transplanting much of it to a better location, soon.

[Sue_CT]

Garlic scapes might be nice in there too when they come up if you grow hard neck garlic also. I have never had Kielbasa in Quiche but I do love it, and I bet that would be really good. Ham of course, is classic.

[slugworth]

kielbasa and eggs,kielbasa pizza.
fresh kielbasa in spaghetti sauce.

[Tormahto]

Well, the quiche will be delayed one day. I only had time to shop at WalMart today. Real Gruyere was over $19/lb, and there was some 'smoked Gruyere' (made in the USA) for $!0/lb that I passed on. And just imagine the condition of the one last frozen pie crust (a package of 2) in WalMart, that everyone passed on.

With the amount of hams and asparagus that gets sold around here, at Easter, I don't think I'm the only one making quiche. Hopefully one of the other super markets will have frozen pie shells, tomorrow.

[worth1]

Well, the quiche will be delayed one day. I only had time to shop at WalMart today. Real Gruyere was over $19/lb, and there was some 'smoked Gruyere' (made in the USA) for $!0/lb that I passed on. And just imagine the condition of the one last frozen pie crust (a package of 2) in WalMart, that everyone passed on.

With the amount of hams and asparagus that gets sold around here, at Easter, I don't think I'm the only one making quiche. Hopefully one of the other super markets will have frozen pie shells, tomorrow.

You don't make your own pie crust?

For something like quiche.
I've used olive oil instead of lard or shortening to make the crust.
Picked it up years ago from the Frugal Gourmet I think.

[Tormahto]

Well, the quiche will be delayed one day. I only had time to shop at WalMart today. Real Gruyere was over $19/lb, and there was some 'smoked Gruyere' (made in the USA) for $!0/lb that I passed on. And just imagine the condition of the one last frozen pie crust (a package of 2) in WalMart, that everyone passed on.

With the amount of hams and asparagus that gets sold around here, at Easter, I don't think I'm the only one making quiche. Hopefully one of the other super markets will have frozen pie shells, tomorrow.

You don't make your own pie crust?

For something like quiche.
I've used olive oil instead of lard or shortening to make the crust.
Picked it up years ago from the Frugal Gourmet I think.

I make my own pie crusts, even double crusts for 9 X 13 casserole dishes of chicken, turkey, or beef pot pie.

The problem is that I always fail at attempting to make a really flaky crust. And, quiche really deserves that type of crust.

Do you brush the olive oil on?

[worth1]

Well, the quiche will be delayed one day. I only had time to shop at WalMart today. Real Gruyere was over $19/lb, and there was some 'smoked Gruyere' (made in the USA) for $!0/lb that I passed on. And just imagine the condition of the one last frozen pie crust (a package of 2) in WalMart, that everyone passed on.

With the amount of hams and asparagus that gets sold around here, at Easter, I don't think I'm the only one making quiche. Hopefully one of the other super markets will have frozen pie shells, tomorrow.

You don't make your own pie crust?

For something like quiche.
I've used olive oil instead of lard or shortening to make the crust.
Picked it up years ago from the Frugal Gourmet I think.

I make my own pie crusts, even double crusts for 9 X 13 casserole dishes of chicken, turkey, or beef pot pie.

The problem is that I always fail at attempting to make a really flaky crust. And, quiche really deserves that type of crust.

Do you brush the olive oil on?

No I mix it in with a pastry knife or blender.
Hand held.
Helps to get the olive oil ice cold.

[MissS]

@Tormato there is usually a selection of pie crusts in the refrigerator section. If you want a flaky one then be sure that it has butter in it.

[worth1]

@Tormato there is usually a selection of pie crusts in the refrigerator section. If you want a flaky one then be sure that it has butter in it.

When I'm lazy that's what I get.
They aren't bad at all.
Got two in the refrigerator now.

[Tormahto]

Well, just like around the time of St Patrick's Day, when the local stores were depleted of Thousand Island dressing for making Reubens. the Swiss and especially the Gruyere is basically out.

I had to settle for Finladia Lacey Swiss (made in Estonia), and Blanc Grue Gruyere (Boar's Head made in Wisconsin). Several stores had 'Alpine' type cheeses, which I may try next time. At about half the cost, it's worth a try.

[worth1]

I've always preferred Jarlsberg.

[Danny]

Heavy cream is still a bit high, but eggs and butter are falling back to normal lower prices here. Cheeses are reasonable, about a normal to lower price surprisingly.

[MissS]

Well, just like around the time of St Patrick's Day, when the local stores were depleted of Thousand Island dressing for making Reubens. the Swiss and especially the Gruyere is basically out.

I had to settle for Finladia Lacey Swiss (made in Estonia), and Blanc Grue Gruyere (Boar's Head made in Wisconsin). Several stores had 'Alpine' type cheeses, which I may try next time. At about half the cost, it's worth a try.

Another good one is Kerry Gold's Dubliner but it does cost a bit more. It's kind of a cross between a parm and a white cheddar.

[Tormahto]

[bower]

Agree about the butter pastry... I do make crust with olive oil, but it's a yeasted pastry, the rising is what makes it flaky enough.
Butter pastry is... oh I do remember. Butter flavor plus perfectly flaky, that's a serious treat for the celebration quiche.

[worth1]

I think I saw where vodka makes a good crust.
Maybe?

[Sue_CT]

Yes, Worth, I have heard of using vodka in pastry, very cold vodka. Supposed to make it more flaky, but I have never tried it.

[GoDawgs]

I've had a recipe for the vodka pie crust for a good while and it works really well. Got it from Cooks Illustrated magazine (Nov '07). They called it Foolproof Pie Dough. Half of the liquid is ice cold water and half ice cold vodka. It also uses a combination of butter and shortening. The resulting dough seems a bit strange as it has the consistency of play dough but it rolls out really easily and makes a flaky crust. You just need a bit more flour on the board than usual.

I'm trying to remember the reasoning behind using the vodka but it has something to do with helping get the flour very hydrated but then a lot of it evaporates out. No vodka taste at all. My brother says that since he tried it, it's the only pie crust he uses. I can post the recipe if anyone wants it.