Roasted Cherry Tomato Quiche

Roasted Cherry Tomato Quiche 

Last night when the road-weary travelers drove in (aka my kids), we made tacos at 10 PM, polished off slices of chocolate cake, then walked to the beach where a glorious harvest half-moon dipped into the ocean like a cookie. We watched it rise and gradually lose its pumpkin hue before we trudged home through the sand for bed.

Today, we breakfasted on this lovely Roasted Cherry Tomato Quiche by Violet Cakes .  The extra effort it takes to roast the cherry tomatoes is so worth it.  They taste like candy when they come out of the oven. In fact, some of them didn't make it into the recipe because there were too many tasters in the kitchen!  And the custard?  Divine!


Roasted Cherry Tomato Quiche

By Claire Ptak of Violet Cakes

Makes 1 - 9" quiche, serving 4 - 6

For the pastry

140g (1 cup) all-purpose flour, plus more for rolling
a pinch of salt
a pinch of sugar
85g (6 tablespoons) cold unsalted butter, cut into cubes
3 tablespoons ice water
1 egg, lightly beaten
Butter, for greasing the pan

For the filling
2 Tablespoons all-purpose flour
3 eggs
200g (3/4 cup) cream
115g (1/2 cup) whole milk
2 good pinches sea salt
plenty of cracked black pepper
150g (5 ounces) cherry tomatoes, halved
1 tablespoon olive oil
a sprinkle of salt and pepper
2 sprigs of thyme
1 ear of corn (I used 2 handfuls of kale instead, sauteed for about two minutes)
90g (3 ounces) soft goat's milk cheese (I used Mediterranean feta, because it was what I had)
1 Tablespoon chopped fresh summer savory or thyme

To make the pastry, combine the flour, salt and sugar in a bowl. Cut in the cubes of butter with a pastry cutter or use a stand mixer. Avoid overmixing, as you want to leave larger chunks of butter than you would think. This will make the pastry more flaky. Drizzle in the water and bring it all together. Shape into a ball and wrap in plastic wrap. Leave to rest in fridge for at least 30 minutes.

Meanwhile, make the filling. Whisk the flour into one of the eggs to make a paste. Add the remaining eggs one at a time, mixing until fully incorporated. Whisk in the cream and milk. Season with the salt and pepper. This can sit while you prebake the pastry.

Preheat your oven to 200 degrees C/390 degrees F. Butter a tart pan or a springform pan. On a lightly floured surface, roll out your chilled pastry and press it into your buttered pan. Line the pastry with a sheet of parchment paper, then fill it with rice or dried beans and blind-bake for 25 minutes. Remove the beans and paper and brush the pastry with the lightly beaten egg. Return the pastry to the oven and continue baking for 15 - 20 minutes until golden.

Meanwhile, roast your halved cherry tomatoes with a drizzle of olive oil, a sprinkle of salt and pepper and the sprigs of thyme. They will take about 30 minutes to dry out a become more concentrated in flavor.

Turn the oven down to 180 degrees C/355 degrees F. Fill the baked pastry with the corn (or kale) and tomatoes, crumble in the cheese and sprinkle the top with the chopped savory or thyme. Pour the egg and cream mixture over the top. Place the pan on a baking sheet in the oven and bake for about 45 minutes until golden. Leave in the pan for 15 minutes before turning it out.