WARRIGAL GREENS QUICHE
This a simple recipe for making very homemade Warrigal Greens quiche from a native weed.
Introduction
In another post on Warrigal Greens Fritters, I have provided some background to this wonderful native weed/vegedible that has recently found a place at our dinner table. It is a good seasonal substitute for silverbeet when it seasonally runs up to seed. So in this post, I will cut straight to the Warrigal Greens quiche recipe so that the original one has some company.
Given that in both posts, there a no tightly defined amounts of ingredients it is difficult to justify describing them as recipes. “More like cooking ideas, but I will give it a go!”
Warrigal Greens quiche recipe
Wholemeal pastry
I start by making a very simple pastry from homemade wholemeal flour (made in this funny little stone mill), olive oil and water as described in another post. In my most recent pastry preparation, I used some small variations that also worked well. I mixed the pastry in a stand mixer (newly acquired and not homemade) instead of a food processor. Both work OK
[Add a photo of the mixer with the chosen blade]
The mixer was very easy to use for mixing in the olive oil to that tell-tale crumbly-looking texture. When it came to added water, the slower speed of the mixer was less violent than when using the food processor (Maybe that problem is more to do with the processor being locked in on its highest speed).
If making pastry only for savoury items two teaspoons of brown DIY pickled mustard seeds make a nice addition to the pastry flavour.
Also, to the three cups of Home ground wholemeal flour, I added half a cup of self-raising flour to give the pastry a little rising for more lightness. This has now become my standard practice.
The pastry cases were lightly pre-baked while the fillings were prepared.
Warrigal Greens quiche vegetable mix.
I start with a batter made with six eggs (although the quiches shown only had four, because I ran out, but they were just fine.) To the egg, I add a little self-raising flour to make a soft batter. More may need to be added later depending upon how much moisture the vegetables sweat into the batter. Pulse flour (such as Faber bean or Chickpea flour can also be added for more protein and fibre.
Pulse flour only can be used to make the filling gluten-free and the pastry case can be omitted to be suitable for celiacs. But then it would not quite be a quiche. Who cares, we will just blame the French as usual and don’t mention the Rainbow Warrior sabotage.
The only must-add thing is the Warrigal Greens (and pastry case). The rest is up to availability and your taste preferences. However, I used the following:
Warrigal Greens. A big metric pile of fresh sliced leaves that after 15 seconds of blanching with boiling water and straining will become a much reduced little pile. So it is hard to use too much.
Carrot. I like to cut the carrot into ribbons with a potato peeler possibly because I am lazy. However, the long ribbons act like gentle reinforcing mesh for the quiche when serving. (Please see my fast and simple stir-fry Warrigal Greens recipe with onion and carrot ribbons [Add link])
Other diced fresh veggies. Onion (plenty, almost as essential as the pastry and the Greens), broccoli (because it is a tonic), red capsicum (great for looks and taste), parsley & green beans (just because they are there in the garden) and zucchini (because it would not be summer without them).
Pulses and grains. Frozen peas and canned sweet corn work well.
Carnivor option. A small amount of diced bacon (if you have not already maxed out on your healthy quota of such processed meat).
Seasonings. Most of the flavours are somewhat bland so their flavours can be lifted with seasoning such as curry, pepper, Moroccan spice mix, Lemon and garlic and my favourite homemade sweet chilli sauce made from a homegrown Rocoto chilli tree.
Mix the vegetables into the batter and put the mix into the pre-baked pastry cases. Fill to the level of the case so that the case does not dry out too much during the second baking. The mix takes quite some time to cook right through if they are of full thickness. So a little sneaky zap in the microwave for about 6-10 minutes each will get thorough cooking off to a flying start before they go into the real oven.
Also, a little high-temperature browning of the vegetable tops gives a nice finish. So if you are pressed for time, sprinkle a dusting of sweet paprika over them before the real cooking starts. No one, except you, will know.
For more Warrigal Greens recipes please see: Warragul Greens fritters, Warrigal Greens stirfries[Add link]. You may also be interested in my Other food ideas or Wanderer’s wild seafood ideas.
Tim
.
