Not Your Moms Pie Crust

My mom can make a flaky amazing pie crust standing on her head wearing a blindfold with one arm tied behind her back.  I cannot.  I gave up on pie crust quite a few years ago and haven't looked back.  I buy it.  The downside to not being a pie crust expert is when I make quiche, even though it's very tasty, I always feel a little sad that the crust wasn't made with these two hands.  A couple years ago a good family friend told me he and his wife use leftover rice for their quiche crust.....brilliant....that's the kinda crust I can handle.

Zucchini and Smoked Turkey Quiche with Brown Rice Crust

This recipe makes two quiche.

You will need:

A couple of zucchini, diced in bite sized pieces ( I only had to use one thanks to the ginormously huge veggies grown here in the Mat-Su Valley)

1/2 lb. smoked turkey breast cubed

1 small onion diced fine

10 eggs

2 cups milk

2 cups grated Swiss cheese

4 Tbsp. Flour

3-4 cups cooked leftover brown rice

1/2 cup finely grated Parmesan cheese (any hard grateable cheese will do)

Few tablespoons olive oil

Salt and pepper

Paprika


Preheat oven to 350.

Heat olive oil in large skillet...saute zucchini, onion, and smoked turkey till zucchini and onions are tender...season liberally with salt and pepper....and whatever spices you like...I often use basil and oregano.  Remove from heat to cool.

In large mixing bowl mix rice, 2 eggs and Parmesan cheese.  Season with salt and pepper.  Press into bottom and up the sides of  two greased 9 inch pie plates keeping layer as thin as possible while still covering entire inside of plate.  (Wetting hands with warm water helps keep the rice from sticking to your hands.)

Beat 8 eggs in medium sized bowl, add milk and a little salt and pepper.  Mix well.

Mix 4 Tbsp. flour into turkey/zucchini mixture and mix well.  Layer 1/4 of Swiss cheese into bottom of  each pie plate followed by 1/2 of turkey mixture then top each with remaining Swiss.  Pour egg and milk mixture equally into each shell.

Sprinkle each quiche with a little paprika and bake for 45 mins to 1 hr.