Quiche can be enjoyed anytime of the day… breakfast, brunch, lunch or with a glass of white wine and fresh garden salad for dinner. I enjoy making quiche as there are so many other filling ingredients to experiment with. For example, adding wild mushrooms, dandelion leaves, feta cheese, diced artisan sausage or yellow and orange bell peppers for more color. Here is a great alternative using grated potatoes instead of pastry for the crust.

Broccoli and Cheese Quiche with a Grated Potato Crust

For the Crust:

3 cups grated potato combined with 1 teaspoon of salt

1/4 cup shredded Parmesan cheese

1/2 teaspoon black pepper

1 teaspoon salt

1 tablespoon melted butter

Preheat oven to 425*F. Grease a 10-inch pie plate.

Allow the grated potatoes and salt to sit for 10 minutes before squeezing the excess liquid out in a clean tea towel. In a large bowl, combine the dried potatoes, Parmesan cheese, salt, pepper and melted butter.

Press the mixture in an even layer into the bottom and up the sides of the greased 10-inch pie plate. Bake in preheated oven for 20 minutes or until the potatoes begin to brown. Remove from oven and let sit for 5 minutes before adding the quiche mixture.

For the Filling:

1 tablespoon butter

1/2 small onion, diced

2 cloves garlic, minced

2 cups broccoli florets, diced

1/2 large red bell pepper, diced

5 large eggs

1 cup milk

1-1/2 cups cheddar cheese, shredded

1 teaspoon salt

1/2 teaspoon black pepper

In a large frying pan over medium heat, saute the onion, garlic. broccoli and red pepper in butter until the onion is transparent and the broccoli is bright green, about 5-8 minutes. Remove from heat and transfer to the potato crust, making sure that there is an even layer of vegetables.

In a large mixing bowl, whisk together the eggs, milk, cheese, salt and pepper. Spread the vegetables in the potato crust.

Bake in a 350*F oven or until golden brown on top and the egg mixture is set. Allow quiche to sit for 10 minutes before cutting.

Enjoy!