It’s been a long, cold winter but with the spring sun we are finally seeing an increase in our flock’s egg production. During the summer, we can get up to 24 eggs a day, however with the very cold temps, lots of snow, and far too much dampness we’ve had around here, this winter we were getting about 5 eggs a week. If that.
I know that we weren’t alone. Many of my chicken friends were noticing the same things in their flocks. Egg production is supposed to decrease during the dark months but this was ridiculous.
Just what am I going to do with 5 eggs when my son the gymnastic uses that many as a “snack” when he gets home from practice?
And I sure as heck, wasn’t going to buy store eggs after preaching to my chicken workshop students (and to readers of this blog) about their evils with regard to nutrition.
Thankfully with the increase of sunlight, we’ve seen a dramatic increase in eggs. We’re all thrilled. Sunday breakfasts can go back to being bacon and eggs, we can bake more, and we can include eggs in our main meals once again.
I see an “eggy” Easter celebration in our future.
As a spring celebration, this past weekend, I made this quiche for lunch. It’s a quick recipe, very easy, and your family will eat it up in no time. For us, who have been somewhat egg deprived, this quiche was like drinking a cool, glass of water.
Note: this is not a “diet” recipe in any sense of the word. I don’t believe in low fat or “diet” anything. I believe in eating good food with lots of vegetables. Everything in moderation.
Also, my kids are not the biggest fans of peas and I was a little concerned when I put this dish in front of them. Turns out I had no worries. “Mom, you can’t even taste them,” said Addy as she reached for a second piece. “You can only taste “green.”
This crust is not burned, it’s just nicely tanned.
Bacon and Pea Quiche
- 1 9-inch pre-made pie shell (yeah I know, but sometimes you have to go the easy route)
- 1 jar of real bacon bits (hey, it was in the pantry, I wasn’t going to throw it out, you could easily substitute the real thing)
- ½ chopped onion
- 1 ½ cup frozen peas
- 1 ½ cup finely shredded Swiss cheese
- 3 eggs
- 1 ½ cup half-and-half
- Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Bake pie shell for 7 minutes.
- Reduce oven temp to 375 degrees.
- Sauté onions (use just a glug of olive oil.)
- Lightly beat eggs.
- In bowl, combine bacon, eggs, peas, cheese, half and half, and onions (add the onions last because if they are still hot they could start cooking the eggs.)
- Mix together and pour into pie shell.
- Bake 40 – 45 minutes until center is set and knife comes out clean.
I don’t tend to add salt and pepper to my recipes and instead let people add it later as they see fit. “This dish just screams for pepper,” my youngest daughter, Emma later informed me.
As you know there are a million variations on the quiche theme. What I’ve learned from the feedback of my kids regarding quiche:
- Make sure the quiche is “stuffed.” No one likes an “egg” pie. Use frozen vegetables, leftovers, and basically anything that’s not nailed down in your kitchen.
- Use the best cheese you can find. A really good cheddar or Swiss will make all the difference in the world.
- If you can make two at a time, quiche makes for an excellent breakfast the next day.
I have one reader (Em B. I’ve looking at you) who is a reluctant cook. Em – here’s your assignment, please make this easy quiche and report back to us all on how it went.
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Wendy Thomas writes about the lessons learned while raising children and chickens in New Hampshire. Contact her at [email protected]
Also, join me on Facebook to find out more about the flock (children and chickens) and see some pretty funny chicken jokes, photos of tiny houses, and even a recipe or two.
