Mushroom and Bacon Quiche - Breaking the Quiche Curse

This is one of the richest quiche I  ever made and my first try at Crisco instead of ghee.  First seen at pioneer woman's, it is a fail safe quiche recipe. From one who is cursed with  quiche failures, this speaks volumes.

 Unlike the pioneer woman's elegant way of incorporating the ingredients by hand, I had mine done in a food processor, since I was in a hurry to eat it.  Luckily it turned out well!

The vinegar seemed out of place but it is the secret to flaky crusts. Vinegar hinders gluten formation that  makes the pastry chewy when you overwork the dough.

Here's how I broke my quiche curse and got the thumbs up from my guests :

A mighty quiche to feed ten.

Enough for 10.

Ingredients  for pastry :

11 inch pan pan with removable base

3 cups plain flour

1 tsp fine salt

1.5 cups Crisco

1 small egg, cold

5 Tbsp cold water

1 Tbsp white vinegar

Ingredients for quiche filling :

7 eggs

1.5 cups of cooking cream

1 onion, sliced

2 cups of button mushrooms, sliced

2 cups of bacon, chopped

1 cup of cheddar cheese

( 7 eggs and 1.5 cups of cream seems to much for my shallow pan. I would tweak the liquids to 5 eggs and 1 cup of cream for a better fit )

Pastry crust :

In a bowl, combine flour and salt. Transfer it to the food processor.

Using pulse mode, cut in the Crisco until the flour resembles big crumbs.

Add egg and pulse for 1-2 seconds, until egg is combined with the flour mix.

In a cup, mix water and vinegar.

Drizzle over the flour mix and pulse , a tablespoon at a time until the dough just about comes together. Do not over pulse.

Bag and chill the dough for 30 minutes.

 Grease and dust a French pan with removable bottom.

Roll out the dough on a floured worktop and  transfer it to the pan. If it gets difficult to handle, pat the dough in place against the pan surface in batches to line it. Go for artisan and do not fret about the uneven surface.

Chill until it is ready to bake with the rest of the ingredients.

Quiche filling :

While chilling the pastry crust, prepare the filling.

Fry the bacon with a knob of butter until browned. Remove to cool. Saute the onion until soft.

Add mushroom and cook until mixture is no longer soggy, medium heat. Add the bacon again. Toss and cool.

Combine eggs and cream. Beat in pepper. Stir in cheese.

Assembly :

Preheat the oven to 200C, with a baking rack.

Sprinkle the quiche filling, sans egg-cream mix , to the pastry.

Just before baking, pour in the egg-cream mix. Bake at 200C for 50-60 minutes until the top is caramelized and browned. I like my quiche well done and firm , when the skewer comes out clean.

Cool well on a rack before serving.

Original recipe at  pioneer woman