I never really liked quiche before… and I think that’s because of the icky store bought refrigerated pie crust that it gets baked in. For some reason, the sides of the pie always crumbled on my fork, and it never tasted like much anyway. I’ve realized since that I would really enjoy quiche (I mean, who DOESN’T like a baked mixture of eggs, veggies, and about three types of cheese?) if it didn’t have a crust. At the same time, there is something comforting about having some sort of shape to the slice- some kind of “crunch” at the bottom that makes it a bit more satiating.
The other night I was preparing two quiches for an event at church, but I also wanted to make one for home. The problem is that pie crust comes in packs of two at the store. Hmmmm… wheels went spinning. Why not use the leftover barley soup I had made the night before (which had sort of already sucked up all the liquid from the cooked barley I’d added!) and somehow beef it up a bit to turn it into a crust of sorts? After all, I’d heard of other people using quinoa as a base- why not barley?
The soup was still a bit too runny to serve as a sturdy crust, so I added some random dry ingredients I had on hand- I didn’t want to mess with clumps of flour in my dinner, so I decided on some good ol’ fashioned, wholesome oats, and Panko bread crumbs. I also added an egg together before pressing it down into the dish to help the crust set a bit better.
Then, layered in the rest of the quiche ingredients as per usual! Since Ben and I would both be eating this, I used diced ham and shredded cheddar on “his” side, and turkey and swiss on “mine.”
The result was exactly what I was hoping for- a lighter pie with a chewy crust on the bottom and crisped sides. Plus, with every bite you get a forkful of veggies from the original soup! Served over a spinach salad, this was the perfect addition to our regular “staples.” In fact, Ben even said it was the “best quiche I’d ever made!” Well, that seals the deal- definitely making this one again!
- 4 eggs
- 1/2 cup leftover vegetable soup (I used an organic “rustic bean and vegetable” boxed soup from the “simply balanced” line at Target- link in the intro above!)
- 1/2 cup cooked pearl barley
- 1/3 cup milk
- 1/2 cup low fat cottage cheese
- 1/3 cup Panko bread crumbs
- 1/2 cup raw old-fashioned oats
- 1/2 tsp dried basil
- 1/2 tsp dried oregano
- 1/4 tsp parsley
- salt and pepper to taste
- raw spinach
- handful of chopped broccoli or cauliflower (or both)
- handful of sliced grape or cherry tomatoes
- diced ham
- shredded deli turkey
- shredded cheese (any kind, but I used a “casserole” blend)
- sliced Swiss cheese, torn into smaller pieces
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
- In a large bowl, whisk together soup, barley, and 1 of the eggs.
- Add bread crumbs and oats. Stir to combine.
- Using fingers or back of a spoon, press the crust mixture into the bottom and up the sides of a lightly oiled pie plate.
- Layer spinach (I torn mine into smaller pieces first) into dish, followed by broccoli and tomatoes. In half the dish, sprinkle ham. In other half, add the shredded turkey.
- In the mixing bowl, beat the remaining 3 eggs, milk, cottage cheese, spices, salt and pepper. Pour into the dish.
- On ham side of the quiche, sprinkle a handful of shredded cheese. On other half (turkey side), place the Swiss cheese slices.
- Bake uncovered at 350 for 40-50 minutes, or until eggs have set and cheese is bubbling.
- Allow to cool for at least 5 minutes before serving
Claire Tastes 
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