Family Friendly Quiche

This easy “make ahead” meal is perfect for babies and toddlers 9+ months and delicious for parents too! Packed with protein, iron, calcium, healthy fats, fiber, vitamins A and C, quiche is well-rounded nutrient rich meal for everyone in the family.

Prepare the quiche when you have some time, possibly after bedtime or over the weekend and then re-heat one or two slices at meal time (45 seconds per slice in the microwave or 15 minutes in the oven). The nice thing about quiche is that the ingredients can vary depending on what you have in the refrigerator. This quiche has spinach and red peppers in it because that is what I had leftover in the refrigerator but you can use other greens, veggies, and even cheeses and pre-cooked meats. Since the crust is frozen, you can literally make this quiche whenever you have some various fresh veggies or eggs that need to be eaten! The quiche lasts in the refrigerator for 3 days, if it’s not eaten before then!

Cooking Time: 15 minutes hands-on, 1 hour hands-off

Ingredients:

Whole wheat pie crust (I use Wholly Wholesome Organic Whole Wheat Pie Shell found in the frozen aisle at Whole Foods)
4 eggs
1 cup milk (Whole milk works best)
6-8 oz spinach leaves
½ red pepper, diced into 1/2 inch pieces
½ T olive oil
Garlic, salt, & pepper to taste (Note: Limit the added salt if you are sharing this with a little one under 3 years old)
Optional: cheese, sausage, other vegetables

Directions:

Preheat oven to 350⁰F. Bake frozen pie crust in oven for 15 minutes.
While crust is baking, crack eggs into medium size bowl and whisk. Add milk, salt, and pepper to bowl.
Heat ½ T olive oil in large frying pan. Add peppers and garlic and sauté for 5 minutes. Add spinach and sauté for 1 minute, or until spinach is wilted. Remove vegetables from heat. Lay a clean dish towel on the counter. Pour vegetables on to towel to cool. After 5 minutes, use the towel to “ring out” the excess water from the vegetables over the sink.
Remove the pie crust from the oven and sprinkle the veggies evenly in the crust. Pour the egg and milk mixture over the vegetables until the crust is full.
Return quiche to oven and bake for 1 hour.
Serve fresh, or, if saving it for later, allow quiche to cool to room temperature before covering it and storing it in the refrigerator.