Feta, Caramelised Red Onion and Thyme Quiche
In week sixteen of our bakery training programme, we teach our trainees to make shortcrust pastry – and, with it, our infamous quiche. Some have never heard of quiche before; some only have memories of eating soggy beige pastry in church halls; but very few have ever experienced a proper homemade, deep-filled quiche as it should be. Plentiful red onions and feta sit over a crumbly wholemeal pastry, suspended in a silky, just-cooked egg filling. This quiche has gained converts both in and out of our classroom.
SERVES 4–6
For the pastry
150g wholemeal plain flour, plus extra for dusting
a pinch of fine cubed
75g cold butter, cubed
3 tbsp cold water
For the filling
20g unsalted butter
2 large red onions, thinly sliced
1 tbsp soft light brown sugar
1 tbsp balsamic vinegar
4 medium eggs
300ml double cream
50ml whole milk
1 tbsp fresh thyme leaves, plus extra for garnish
150g feta cheese
salt and pepper, to taste
First, make the pastry. Combine the flour and salt in a bowl and rub the butter in with your fingertips until it resembles breadcrumbs. Sprinkle over the cold water and bring together into a ball of pastry. If it doesn’t come together easily, add a little more water. Wrap the pastry in clingfilm and leave to rest in the fridge for 30 minutes.
To make the filling, melt the butter in a large non-stick frying pan over a medium heat. Add the onions with a pinch of salt and cook for about 20 minutes until soft, stirring occasionally. Stir in the sugar and vinegar and cook over a low heat for 5 minutes until the mixture is sticky. Set aside to cool.
Meanwhile, preheat the oven to 180°C/160°C fan/Gas Mark 4.
Roll out the chilled pastry on a floured work surface to about 2mm thick, rotating it now and then to avoid sticking. Lift the pastry into a 20cm pie dish, gently lifting and tucking it to line the sides and base of the dish. Leave a little overhang of pastry around the edges.
Line the pastry case with baking paper, fill with baking beans or uncooked rice/lentils and bake for 15–20 minutes. (This weighs the pastry down while it bakes, ensuring it remains flat and even, and is called ‘blind baking’.) After this time, remove the beans/rice and the baking paper and return the pastry case to the oven to bake for a further 10 minutes, or until the base feels dry, looks cooked and has no oily patches. Gently trim the excess pastry from around the edge of the tin with a small serrated knife.
Whisk together the eggs, cream, milk, thyme leaves and a good pinch each of salt and pepper.
Fill the base of the pastry case with the sticky onions, crumble the feta over the top, then pour over the creamy egg mixture.
Gently transfer the quiche to the oven and bake for 30–35 minutes until golden brown on the top and there is only a small wobble in the centre.
Sprinkle a few more thyme leaves on top and leave to cool a little before serving warm. Alternatively, cool completely, then refrigerate, before cutting into neat slices.
