Crustless Quiche Tucson

I grew up with the saying "Real men don't eat quiche!" but I never paid any attention to that. I ate quiche but was really never a huge fan. I always found them to be too bland and not very satisfying to the palate. I wanted to change that perception because I always felt that this dish could really rise to the occasion with the right ingredients and become a truck stop favorite, if you will, appealing to both men and women.

If you have poo-pooed quiche in the past, you will want to taste this recipe. It will change your mind about quiche forever! Oh, and this recipe is TOTALLY Atkins friendly and gluten-free so enjoy without guilt!

Ingredients

• 8 ounces of thick-sliced bacon (about six slices) cut into 1" pieces
• 1 medium yellow onion, diced
• 1 medium red bell pepper, diced
• 1 9-oz. bag of baby spinach
• 2 cups shredded sharp cheddar cheese (recommend Tillamook)
• 5 eggs, beaten
• 1/2 cup heavy whipping cream
• 1 teaspoon Ancho chile powder
• salt and pepper to taste

Method

1. Preheat oven to 375ºF.
2. In a large, heavy pan, cook the bacon over medium heat until cooked, about 15 minutes. Bacon should be brown with the bacon grease forming a "foam."
3. Using a slotted spoon, remove the bacon from the pan.
4. Add the onions and red bell pepper to the bacon fat in the pan and cook over medium heat until the onion becomes translucent, about 10-12 minutes.
5. Add a handfull of spinach at a time to the onions and bell pepper, stirring, until the spinach is wilted and you have added all the spinach to the pan.
6. Remove the pan from the heat and stir in the bacon.
7. In a medium-sized mixing bowl, combine the cheese, eggs, cream, and Ancho chile powder. Thoroughly mix.
8. Add the bacon, onion, spinach, and bell pepper mix from the pan to the mixing bowl. Stir until incorporated.
9. Grease a 9-inch glass pie plate and pour the quiche mixture into the plate.
10. Bake at 375ºF for 40 minutes.
11. Remove from oven and let rest for 10 minutes before serving.

Serves six.

Mmmm....bacon!

This is just half the spinach!

All spinach with bacon added
 ready for egg mixture

Pre-Oven