I can’t believe Christmas is only two weeks away. I am so disorganised this year…… Having increased my work hours in October, I have been really struggling to fit everything in and even finding time to cook has become difficult.
We finally managed to get the tree up at the weekend however and hopefully this week, I’ll manage to go get a few presents. The Christmas cards were written yesterday (although they are yet to be posted) and at some stage, I will work out what we are going to eat……
Whatever your Christmas meals consist of, you can pretty much guarantee that at some stage you will be wondering what to do with leftovers. Many people go for bubble and squeak, or just eat as many turkey sandwiches as they can bear…… I like to make quiche with my leftovers!
You can put pretty much anything in quiche and whilst it may feel a bit of a hassle to make pastry from scratch, whether you are gluten free or not, there are an increasing number of ready-made options and mixes available. Although I do mostly make my own pastry, like anyone I welcome time-saving alternatives. Admittedly I will be pretty fussy about any standby pastry that I use, but for the quiche here, I used Silly Yak ready to roll pastry that I find works particularly well in quiche. If you have never used it, you will find it in the chiller cabinet at Tesco.
One of the things I love about quiche is that it gives you an amazing meal in one. You might choose to serve it with salad, veg or potatoes, but this is by no means essential. I am always more than happy with a big slice…… warm or cold…… served all on its own.
Last year I made an amazing Christmas Dinner quiche with turkey left-overs which I never got round to blogging (it got eaten before any photos were taken), but did subsequently re-produce a Sunday Roast Dinner version which I made in support of the Joseph Joseph Don’t Waste It campaign.
The quiche I have made here, is with left-over Autumn pumpkin (although you could use any squash) and Sunday lunch chicken. I’ve added some bacon which I found nearing its use-by date in the fridge and toasted pine nuts for texture and depth of flavour. The whole lot is paired with Gruyere cheese for extra nuttiness and interest.
Frankly, it’s a delicious combination and although Gruyere is more expensive than cheddar, it is worth the extra for the difference in flavour that it adds. It works amazingly against the soft pumpkin and crunchy pine nuts and with the saltiness of the bacon, succulence of the chicken, crispness of the pastry and creaminess of the eggs, you are sure to enjoy every mouthful.
I am sharing my Chicken, Squash and Gruyere Quiche with the following linkies :
Cook Once Eat Twice with Searching for Spice.
Free From Fridays with the Free From Farmhouse and Le Coin De Mel.
Other quiche recipes on Gluten Free Alchemist :
Asparagus & Stilton
Cheddar, Gruyere & Bacon
Roast Dinner
Leek & Stilton and Gruyere & Mushroom Minis
Chicken, Squash & Gruyere Quiche (makes equivalent 1 x 25 cm/10 inch quiche)
Ingredients
Method
- Prepare the pastry, roll out and line your flan tins as in this recipe (being really careful to repair any potential cracks) and chill for about 30 minutes.
- Pre-heat the oven to 200 C/400 F/Gas 5.
- Line your raw pastry cases with baking paper and baking beans and blind-bake by cooking for 10 minutes, before removing the baking beans and paper and baking for a further 5 to 10 minutes, until golden and crisp.
- Remove the pastry case from the oven (leave in its tin) and turn the oven down to 180 C/350 F/Gas 4.
- Filling : Prepare (ahead of time) your pumpkin, bacon, pine nuts and chicken :
- Pumpkin : Take your pumpkin flesh, season with salt and pepper and then roast for about 40 minutes in a hot oven. Once cooked, cut into small chunks.
- Fry the bacon until golden and crisp. Set aside on kitchen paper to remove any excess oil.
- Chop your cooked chicken into small chunks.
- Toast your pine nuts either in a hot oven or under the grill for about 10 minutes, turning 2 to 3 times.
- When your pastry case is ready, sprinkle the bacon, chicken, pumpkin, pine nuts and a little parsley onto the bottom.
- Add a layer of grated cheese, reserving a small handful to sprinkle on the top.
- Beat the eggs, cream, milk and seasoning together until light and airy.
- Pour the egg mix over the fillings in the pie case (don’t over-fill). Top with the reserved cheese and a sprinkle of parsley.
- Bake immediately for about 30 minutes until the top is firm and set and there is no ‘wobble’.
- Remove from the oven and enjoy.
Such a fantastic idea this! Leftover roast turkey could easily be used to. A perfect No Waste Food Challenge entry, thank you! 🙂 Wishing you all the best for the New Year!
Absolutely Elizabeth. I love Christmas dinner quiche! Especially when it has a little stuffing added too.
Happy New Year to you and thanks for all your hard work in hosting this year xx
Your quiche looks so well made, I could do with a slice for lunch, I love squash. Have a great Christmas Kate xx
Thanks you Alida. Me too! and You too!!!! xx
This looks so enticing Kate, and although it's not vegetarian I recon some of the quorn 'meats' could be used in place of the chicken and bacon quite successfully.
Angela x
Thanks Angela. quorn 'meats' would be perfect alongside the squash for sure! x
Oh my, this looks amazing!! I love all the flavours in this quiche and what a fab way to use up leftovers. You sound much more organised than me this Christmas…I am still in denial. I think I've ordered some presents…parcels keep arriving, though I'm not sure if they are the right parcels. Christmas cards have been bought, but not written and I've booked a shopping slot for Tesco man to deliver me my food for Christmas day…but I think that's about it! Most disorganised Christmas ever!! (I normally have 3 lists and have done it all by the end of November) – I blame the blog!! Eb x
Thanks Eb. Finally got round to responding! I hope your denial has now moved on….. only 1 day to go! Blaming the blog is a wise idea. Have a fantastic Christmas xx
Am so grateful for all your hard work that you so generously share. I found you through Frugal in Norfolk originally.
A specific question. I use Silly Yak pastry which I think is the best I've used so far. Have you tried freezing it? It's says not to on the wrapping but I can't really understand why not. I've sent them an email but so far had no response. It's a 15 mile journey to get some so would be great if it could be frozen. Sue
Ahhh thanks… you're welcome x
As for freezing Silly Yak pastry….. I've frozen it a few times and it has been fine! I hadn't even noticed that it said 'don't freeze'…. oh well….
I wouldn't worry too much…. It's worked for me! x
Thanks for that. I couldn't see why not and now you confirm that into the freezer it will go. My life will be much simpler. I find gluten free pastry quite difficult to make successfully so usually don't bother as it's just for me. Happy Christmas! Sue
Kate this looks so good! I can just imagine how well the flavours go together! Popping over from #CookOnceEatTwice
Thank you Kirsty. x
This looks delicious! I think it would be lovely with turkey to use up some of those leftovers. My mum used to make a quiche about once a week when I was growing up so I really love them but only make them a couple of times a year now – they really are a great way of using all sorts of leftovers. Thank you so much for sharing with #CookOnceEatTwice
Thank you Corina. I can vouch for it being amazing with turkey and leftovers having used some in quiche last year! I'm certainly planning on making another with this year's leftovers x
This looks fab! I love quiche too but nobody else is much of a fan. Well done for even writing xmas cards this year! I decided to give myself a break and not beat myself up about it…although of course I am! But hey, nobody is getting a card this year. My excuse? Too much wasted card ;)!!!!
Thanks Vicki. Frankly I think you are wise not to bother with cards. I only do them because I neglect my friends so much the rest of the year that I feel I need to try and catch up!
This looks delicious! I love trying different types of quiches and this is a really unique take!
Thank you Janelle. The squash was amazing in there. Loved it! But then I adore pretty much anything in quiche xx