Spring brunch rings of quiche for me. Quiche is a perfect blank canvas to which you can add your favorite colors of paint, in the form of ingredients. Crisped bacon, asparagus, artichokes, ramps, fresh herbs, or any combination you can think of. For Easter this weekend, I will be making quiche, not only because the three chefs that will be at my farm this weekend love it but also because it is so portable.

Mine will be baked on Friday night but won’t be served until Sunday morning, 150 miles from where it was made. Quiche has to be fully cooled after baking and then served at room temperature. Making it a day or two ahead serves the dish well, and it is really better that way, so all the flavors have time to meld.

Quiche from scratch is remarkably easy to make. There is, however, one piece of equipment I recommend using that you may not have: a spring-form pan or removable-bottom tart pan. These pans make for easy removal of the entire quiche.

I make what I would classify as a deep-dish quiche. This allows for an entrée-size portion and lots of crust (I am a sucker for great crust). The crust is basic pate brisee dough made with three-quarters unsalted butter and one quarter lard (the lard imparts a richness that butter can’t achieve, but you may use all butter). The key to great crust is not overworking the dough and then folding it over and over to create flaky layers.

When adding ingredients to your quiche batter, generally you will want to roast, blanch, sweat, or wilt your ingredients to remove some of their inherent moisture. For mushrooms, toss with olive oil, and roast at 350° for 15 minutes; for spinach, sauté on medium-high heat until wilted, approximately 2 minutes, and drain on paper towels. If you are going to use bacon or other raw meats, you need to render them first. For bacon, cut into lardons and render in a sauté pan until just crispy, approximately 5 minutes.

Luckily, we don’t live in the '80s any longer, and real men, women, and children can and should eat quiche!

Basic Quiche Egg Batter
Makes one 9-inch quiche

2 c. whole milk
1 c. half-and-half
1 c. heavy cream
7 large eggs
1 T. kosher or sea salt
1/2 t. fresh thyme
1/2 t. finely ground black or white pepper
1 scant pinch nutmeg or a few gratings of fresh nutmeg

Combine milk, cream, and half-and-half in a sauce pan, and heat over medium until scalded. Remove from heat, and let cool completely.

Put all of your ingredients into a large bowl, and whip with a whisk or hand blender until frothy and airy. Pour the batter into your par-baked quiche crust, and bake at 325° for approximately 90 minutes. Cool completely.