Pear and Hazelnut Quiche

I love getting new cookbooks. Even though I pretty much never follow an entire recipe, I love the inspiration and organization they provide. I also enjoy pretty pictures of food, of course. That is why, when I received the Stonyfield Farm Yogurt Cookbook at the Stonyfield event last week, I got straight to work meal planning from it, using its healthy yogurt recipes as inspiration. A recipe for an Autumn quiche immediately caught my eye. Pears and hazelnuts definitely sounded like a delicious combination, and a mix of eggs and yogurt gave the dish the healthy protein I was looking for in a normal meal plan.

My “wing it” version of Stonyfield’s quiche lacked the pie crust that theirs called for. My quiche making discovery, that flour or biscuit mix sinks to the bottom to form its own crust, was magical, and was the base of this quiche.

I started by sautéing a chopped leek in butter until nice and soft. Then I threw in about 1/2 cup of hazelnuts to  get browned and buttery with the leek.

While those cooked on low, I mixed five eggs with half cup of Greek yogurt, a half cup of milk, and a half cup of whole wheat flour.

Mmmmm. . . 1% organic milk tastes like the milk in Ireland, which I drink all day long when I am there. I used to use only skim until we accidentally bought 1%, and I can’t go back. It is so rich and delicious.

Once the leeks and hazelnuts had cooled, I whipped them into the eggs and poured the whole thing into a pie plate, topping with slices of pear. Into the oven at 400 degrees for about 30 minutes it went. Once it was firm, I put the oven setting on broil for about a minute to brown the top. Yum!

I served the quiche atop a bed of arugula with a drizzle of Girard’s dressing and some more hazelnuts. It made a perfect, light late summer dinner and an even better lunch. I think I am going to start making a quiche a week with different ingredients. I love the versatility and protein and potential to include lots of veggies and, in this case, fruit.

Have you been taking advantage of the abundance of fall fruit? Make anything delicious?