Quiche bianco

1. Cook bacon to a well-done, crispy texture and allow it to cool. For best results, use a microwavable bacon tray like the Makin Bacon®, which allows the bacon to cook above the fat, not in it. Crumble the bacon into bits with a tool like the Gourmet Cheese Mill Grater® or place in a sealed plastic bag and run a rolling pin over it repeatedly to crumble the bacon. Set aside.

2. Alternatively, place 4 oz frozen bacon bits in a food processor and pulse them create finer, more uniform bits and eliminate hunks of fat. Set aside.

3. Brown and finely crumble sausage in a frying pan over medium-high heat. Drain thoroughly with paper towels. Set aside.

4. For best results, buy block Swiss cheese and shred it yourself. Avoid pre-shredded bagged cheese.

5. Allow pie crust to come to room temperature before unrolling onto a sheet of wax paper. Use a rolling pin to stretch the dough to fit your flan dish. Flip the pie crust into a flan or tart dish (9” x 1 ½”) or a pie plate (9” x 1 ¼”) with the wax paper facing up and gently remove wax paper. Stretch and press the edges of the crust up the sides of the dish.

6. Spread about half the cheese into the pie crust. Spread the sausage, bacon, onion and pepper evenly over the cheese. Add ground black pepper to taste. Spread the remaining cheese into the crust over the other ingredients.

7. At this point you may cover the pie plate with plastic wrap and foil and place in the refrigerator overnight if you intend to bake this for breakfast the next day. When you are ready to bake the quiche, remove it from the refrigerator and allow it to warm up to room temperature for 15-30 minutes before baking.

8. Preheat oven to 425°F. In a separate bowl (preferably a batter bowl with a pouring spout), add the eggs, several dashes of Frank’s Red Hot sauce and beat with a whisk until mixed. Add the heavy whipping cream and whisk thoroughly until mixed. Pour liquid mixture into quiche dish and place quiche on oven on middle rack.

9. Bake for 15 minutes at 425°F. Reduce heat to 300°F and bake for an additional 30 minutes. Remove from oven and insert a butter knife into the center to test for doneness. If it comes out clean, the quiche is done. If not, continue baking and check again in a few minutes. Remove quiche from oven and allow it to cool for about 10 minutes before cutting.

10. To transport the quiche to a breakfast gathering away from home, allow the quiche to shrink back into the crust for about a minute, cover with heavy duty foil and place in an insulated carrier or cardboard box. It should stay hot for an hour or two. You can reheat quiche in the original pan by baking it uncovered at 350°F for 10-15 minutes.