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Wednesday, April 20, 2011

Leftover Ham: Quiche


Sumiko mentioned that we're going to be together for Easter this year.  It's always a nice treat to be together for holidays since we live over 300 miles and 5 hours apart.  In discussing our menu, we were tempted to break away from the traditional Easter ham, but after some consideration, we decided to stick with tradition.  Our reasons:
  • Hams (including spiral hams, which we like) are usually one sale before Easter.
  • They're easy to make. Most are already cooked and require only reheating.  When you want to keep it simple so that you're able to actually enjoy your day, this is important.
  • They produce a lot of leftovers.  
It's that last point that I want to focus on today.  We're planning on having Easter dinner on Saturday so that we can actually enjoy Sunday without being stuck in the kitchen all day.  Not to mention it can be stressful trying to get a huge meal together after being at church all morning.  Instead, we're hoping to enjoy each other and the sunny, 70-something degree weather we're supposed to have on Sunday.  After church we're hoping to get pictures of our kids dressed up (it's not easy to get a 6-year-old, three 2-year olds, and a 9-month-old sitting still and all looking at the camera at the same time, let alone smiling, but we're going to be adventurous and try it!), go for a hike, etc.  We figured leftover ham sandwiches would be perfect to pack for a picnic lunch after church!

Ham is so diverse - sandwiches aren't the only things leftover ham's good for.  It makes great soup, omelets, breakfast burritos, etc.  The latest thing I've tried is ham and cheese quiche.  It's a great way to use up leftover ingredients other than the usual ham and potato soup, which is great (but gets a little old if we have it too much)!

Ham and Cheese Quiche
1 9-inch pie crust
1 cup ham, diced
1 cup shredded cheddar cheese
1/4 cup onion, chopped and sauteed
1/4 cup green bell pepper, chopped and sauteed
4 oz. can diced green chiles
2 eggs
1 cup milk
Salt and pepper, to taste

Line pie crust with foil; bake at 400 degrees for 5 minutes.  Remove foil and bake an additional 5 minutes.


Place ham, cheese, onion, green bell pepper, and chiles in baked pie crust.


In a bowl, combine eggs, milk, salt and pepper; mix well.


Pour egg mixture over ham.


Bake at 400 for 35 to 40 minutes or until a knife inserted in the center comes out clean.  If the crust begins to brown too much, cover only the crust with foil.  Allow to rest for 5-10 minutes before cutting.

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4 comments:

  1. Jen in SLOApril 20, 2011 at 12:42 PM

    I have a question about the pie crust. I made PW's crust, and I thought it was awful. Do you do anything to tweak it? It was dense, not flaky, and it tasted like cardboard. :(

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  2. SumikoApril 20, 2011 at 12:58 PM

    I'll let Kimiko follow up about how she makes PW's crust, but I have had it and it was okay. I personally prefer a traditional flour, shortening/butter, salt, and water crust. I'll post mine some day.

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  3. Jen in SLOApril 20, 2011 at 4:18 PM

    Thanks. It's entirely possible it was my technique and not the recipe, so tips on how to make it work would be great. :)

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  4. KimikoApril 20, 2011 at 6:59 PM

    I haven't had a whole lot of success with traditional pie crusts (my sister's version), so I tried this one and loved it! I made it as written, except I cut it in half instead of into thirds. One thing to remember when making pie crusts is to be careful not to overmix it. When you mix moistened flour, it develops gluten, which makes it tough. This is good when making bread, but not when making delicate pastries such as pie crusts. Also, if you don't have a pastry blender, I would recommend getting one. You want small chunks of shortening (as opposed to just mixing it into the flour). This will help create a flaky crust. I hope this info is helpful. Pie crusts are one of those things that often take practice to get right!

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