My cousin Cameron and I have an obsession a love of mimosas. Whenever we get together you can be sure to expect a bottle of champagne or sparkling wine chilling nearby. So when I heard that this month’s Let’s Lunch assignment was to pair something with champagne, I knew I had to involve her. Besides making a mean blood-orange mimosa, Cameron has a great baking sense (and beautiful kitchen). I love hanging out with her and playing around with recipes.

If you haven’t heard about Let’s Lunch, it is is a bunch of food bloggers that get together and share a virtual lunch. Last month’s theme was pie, and I shared our lime custard n curd pie. First pie, now champagne? I knew I loved these fellow food bloggers!

Generally I wait until the end of month when I have an assignment… I know, I know… a true procrastinator. But once I had settled on the idea of making quiche, well, I could hardly stop myself from making it. The ingredients were calling to me… the bacon wanted to be crisped; the spinach, apples, and shallots were asking me to sauté them and then bath them with eggs, cream, and cheese. Collectively they sang out to be baked in a golden-brown flaky gluten-free crust.

Or maybe it was me calling to them.

And then again, maybe it was the champagne. To be exact, it was a sparkling Chandon rose. Yum!

Whatever it was that drove me to make it so soon was pure torture. Once I had made it and tasted it, I wanted it even more. I wanted to post pictures and talk about it in all its glory. In fact, I did mention it once or twice on twitter. I just couldn’t help myself!

Once you make it, you will feel the same way. It is that good.

Bacon, Apple, and Swiss Quiche Recipe

adapted from recipe by Dorie Greenspan

Ingredients

• 4 strips crispy bacon, roughly chopped
• 1 tbsp. unsalted butter
• 1 large shallot, finely chopped
• 2 cups fresh spinach, packed
• Salt and freshly ground white pepper
• 1 9 – inch tart shell made from Tart Dough recipe (see below), partially baked and cooled
• 1 apple (tart-sweet works best, such as Empire or Gala), peeled, cored, and cut into small diced pieces
• 3 ounces grated swiss cheese
• 2/3 cup heavy cream
• 3 large eggs

 
Method
Center a rack in the oven and preheat the oven to 400 degrees F. Line a baking sheet with a silicone baking mat or parchment paper.

Melt the butter in a small skillet over low heat and toss in with the shallots. Season the shallots lightly with salt and white pepper and cook for 2 minutes. Add spinach and cook until spinach is completely wilted, about 8 minutes. Remove from the heat.

Put the tart shell on the lined baking sheet. Spread the shallots and spinach, evenly over the bottom of the crust. Scatter the apple and bacon over the shallots. Scatter the grated swiss cheese over the shallots and apple. Beat the cream and eggs together until well blended, season with salt and white pepper, and pour into the tart shell.

Gently slide the baking sheet into the oven and bake for 30 to 40 minutes or until the filling is uniformly puffed (wait for the center to puff), browned, and set (mine took at least 45 minutes). Transfer the quiche to a cooling rack and allow it to cool and gather itself for 5 minutes or so.

Carefully remove the sides of the pan and slide the quiche onto a platter if you want to serve it hot, or onto a rack if you want to cool it. Serve hot, warm, or at room temperature.

Serving: You can keep the quiche lightly covered on the counter for a few hours if you’re going to serve it at room temperature. If you want to keep it overnight, wrap it well and store it in the refrigerator. It’s best to bring it to room temperature or to warm it briefly in a moderate oven before serving.

Tart Dough

Makes 1 9 inch tart shell

Ingredients

• 1 1/4 cup gluten-free flour
• 1 tsp xanthan gum or psyllium husk powder
• 1 tsp. sugar
• 1/2 tsp. salt
• 6 tbsp. (3/4 US stick) frozen and then grated unsalted butter
• 1 large egg
• 1 tsp. ice water

Method
To make the dough in a food processor: Put the flour, xanthan or psyllium husk powder, sugar, and salt in the processor and whir a few times to blend. Scatter the grated butter over the flour and pulse several times, until the butter is coarsely mixed into the flour. Beat the egg with ice water and pout it into the bowl in 3 additions, whirring after each one (don’t overdo it- the dough shouldn’t form a ball or ride on the blade). You’ll have a moist, malleable dough that will hold together when pinched. Turn the dough out onto a flowered work surface, gather it into a ball, and then flatten it into a disk.

To make the dough by hand: Put the flour, xanthan or psyllium husk powder, sugar, and salt in a large bowl. Drop in the grated butter and, using your hands, toss the butter into the flour until it’s evenly distributed. Beat the egg and water together, drizzle over the dough and, using a fork, toss the dough until it is evenly moistened. Reach into the bowl and, using your fingertips, mix and knead the dough until it comes together. Turn it out onto a work surface, gather it into a ball and flatten into a disk.

Chill the dough for at least 3 hours (it can be refrigerated up to 5 days).
When you’re ready to make the tart shell, butter a 9 -inch tart pan with a removeable bottom (butter it even if it is nonstick). Line the bottom of the pan with parchment paper.

Roll out the dough between two lightly floured sheets of wax paper or plastic wrap, until the dough is about 12 inches in diameter and about 1/4 inches thick.

Slowly peel back the top layer of wax paper of plastic wrap. Place it back over the top of the dough and gently flip it over. Slowly peel back the other layer and transfer the dough to the tart pan. Ease it in without stretching it and press into the bottom and sides of the pan. Using the back of a table knife, trim the dough even with the top of the pan. Prick the base of the crust in several places with a fork.

Chill, or freeze, the dough for at least 1 hour before baking.

To partially bake the crust: Preheat an oven to 400 degrees F. Press a piece of buttered foil (or use nonstick foil) against the crust’s surface. If you’d like, you can fill the covered crust with rice or dried beans (or special baking beads if you have them) to keep the dough flat, but this isn’t really necessary if the crust is well chilled. Line a baking sheet with a silicone baking mat or parchment paper and put the tart pan on the sheet.

Bake the crust for 20 minutes in the center of the oven, then carefully remove the foil (with rice or beans). Return the crust to the oven and bake for another 3-5 minutes, or until it is lightly golden. Transfer the baking sheet to a cooling rack and allow the crust to cool before you fill it.

This quiche is a symphony of flavors: the delicate flakiness of the crust, the hint of sweetness from the apples, the saltiness from the bacon, and the creaminess from the well… cream, eggs, and cheese go so perfectly together. Definitely worthy of a delicious brunch or lunch and perfect for pairing with some champagne.

Interested in other bubbly pairings? Check out what the other Let’s Lunchers made:

• Caitlin of Caitlin Shetterly on Tour | Gruyere Lace Cookies
• Cathy of Show Food Chef | Truffled Purple Potato Chips
• Cheryl & Mike of A Tiger in the Kitchen | Cheddar Pecan Crisps
• Eleanor of Be a Walk Star |  Grilled Hoisin Pork Shoulder with Mango & Pineapple Salsa
• Ellise of Cowgirl Chef | Sundried Tomato Pesto Palmiers
• Emma of Dreaming of Pots and Pans | Cold, Cured Salmon
• Karen of GeoFooding | Parmesan-Goat Cheese Cups filled with Balsamic “Caviar”
• Linda of Free Range Cookies | Cheese Straw Crackers
• Lisa of Monday Morning Cooking Club | Salmon Tartare
• Maria of The Bubbly Girl | Parmesean Toasts
• Rashda of Hot Curries & Cold Beer | Samosa Shingara Pies
• Steff of The Kitchen Trials | Southern Style Finger Foods 
• Vic of The Taste of Oregon | Parmesan Crisps with Goat Cheese, Fig, and Prosciutto

Karen‘s Parmesan-Goat Cheese Cups filled with Balsamic “Caviar” at GeoFooding

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