Spinach and Herb Quiche with Gruyère (French Quiche Florentine)

A French dish with Italian inspiration, Quiche Florentine is an elegant, yet easy, spring-inspired dish. In French cooking, dishes that include spinach are called à la Florentine. The term comes from the French queen Catherine de Médici, who was born in Florence and married the heir to the French throne. When Catherine became Queen of France, she brought her own cooks from Florence, along with spinach seeds. (Can you believe the French didn’t have spinach until the mid 1500s?) As her cooks began making dishes with spinach, the practice gained popularity and spinach became known as a vegetable from Florence. I think what makes this quiche so good is the combination of heavy cream and Gruyère, which makes it insanely rich. There’s also a good bit of spinach, which balances out all that richness and makes it just a little bit healthier.

Pâte Brisée:
all-purpose flour, unbleached (300 g)
butter, cold, cut into cubes (175 g)
sea salt (4 g)
egg yolk (23 g)
water, cold (55 mL)

Filling:
extra-virgin olive oil (20 mL)
1 medium onion, finely chopped
baby spinach leaves (250 g)
fresh parsley (25 g)
fresh oregano, finely chopped
fresh rosemary, finely chopped
3 whole eggs
fresh cream (220 mL)
1 pinch garlic powder
1 tsp. corrainder powder (optional)
1 tsp. red chilli flakes
½ tsp. nutmeg, freshly grated
Gruyère cheese, grated (120 g)
sea salt
black pepper, freshly cracked

For the Pâte Brisée:
Place the flour and salt in a bowl. Using your fingers, rub the butter into the flour so that it resembles a breadcrumb sort of texture. Add the egg yolk and water. Mix well until it all comes together. Knead gently until a ball of dough forms. Wrap the dough in cling film and leave it to rest in the fridge for at least one hour.

Sprinkle the work surface lightly with flour and rub the rolling pin with flour. Take the pastry out of the fridge and roll it about 2 mm thick. Roll using even pressure and gentle strokes, giving the pastry a quarter turn after each roll. Occasionally, flip it over to ensure that the pastry is not sticking and dust more flour on the surface as needed. Using your rolling pin, transfer the pastry to a tart shell. Gently ease it against the sides and into the bottom edges. Trim the top edges with a knife and pinch over the top of the tart shell to prevent shrinkage down into the tin when you cook it.

Chill the pastry shell in the freezer for about 10 minutes until it is hard.

Preheat the oven to 375°F (190°C/170°C fan, Gas Mark 5).

Cover the pastry with baking paper. Allow it to come over the sides of the tart and fill the centre with rice. Put in the oven for about 15 minutes or until it gets golden brown. Brush with egg wash and bake for another 5 minutes. Remove and allow it to cool.

For the Filling:
Heat oil in a pan and sauté the onions until golden brown. Add the spinach leaves to wilt, followed by parsley and oregano. Toss around for about 5 minutes. Remove from heat and add the rosemary.

In a bowl, beat the eggs and stir in the cream. Season with the garlic, corriander, nutmeg, chilli flakes, salt and pepper.

Sprinkle half of the cheese over the pre-baked quiche base. Pour in the filling and sprinkle remaining cheese overtop.

Reduce the oven temperature to 350°F (180°C/160°C fan, Gas Mark 4) and bake for about 15 minutes until the quiche looks firm. Give it a good shake and make sure there is no wobble in the middle.

Serve hot or warm.

Makes 4-6 servings.