Crab and Spinach Quiche

Serves: 8

Hands On Time: 1 hour and 0 minutes

Total Time: 2 hours and 0 minutes

Ingredients

Crust

1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, softened

8 ounces cream cheese, softened

6 tablespoons sugar

1 teaspoon salt

3 cups all-purpose flour

1 teaspoon baking powder

Filling

2 cups heavy cream

3 large eggs

2 large egg yolks

3 cups gouda or Monterey Jack cheese, grated

1 1/2 cups baby spinach, chopped

8 ounces claw crab meat, picked

1/2 cup Pecorino Romano cheese, finely grated

1/2 cup chopped scallions

2 cloves garlic, minced

2 teaspoons kosher salt

1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

Instructions

To make the crust: In the bowl of an electric mixer, cream together the butter, cream cheese, sugar and salt. Sift the baking powder into the flour, then on low speed add it into the flour mixture. Continue to mix until a dough is formed, scraping down the sides of the bowl as necessary.

Refrigerate the dough for 15 to 30 minutes.

For the filling: Heat the oven to 300 degrees. 

In a large mixing bowl, whisk together the cream, eggs and yolks until well-combined. Stir in the gouda, spinach, crab, Pecorino, scallions, garlic, salt and pepper. 

Roll the pie dough into a large circle and line the bottom and sides of a deep dish tart or pie pan. Pour in the filling so it reaches the top of the crust. Bake until lightly golden, about 45 minutes, then cover the quiche with a piece of aluminum foil that has been sprayed with nonstick oil spray, and continue to bake until the center is set, 40 to 45 more minutes. Let cool to room temperature before serving.

About the recipe

While not absolutely necessary, blind baking the crust yields the best results with this quiche. You can substitute a higher grade of crabmeat, but claw will give you the most “bang for your buck.” You can also substitute an unbaked store-bought pie crust for the homemade dough.