Bacon Broccoli Quiche with Cheddar

Ingredients

This cheesy bacon quiche recipe uses a handful of common ingredients to make a yummy lunch or breakfast pie. Ingredient quantities are listed in the recipe card at the bottom of this post. Here's what you'll need:

• Pie Crust - Use a homemade or store-bought crust, but either way make sure it is deep-dish!
• Bacon - Chose a high-quality, thick-sliced bacon for the best results. Or, feel free to omit the bacon for a vegetarian-friendly Broccoli Cheddar Quiche! 
• Broccoli - Chop the broccoli florets into small, bite-sized pieces. You can use fresh broccoli or frozen and thawed.
• Onion - Optional, feel free to leave it out if preferred.
• Garlic - Also optional. But, come on. Bacon and garlic? Meant to be.
• Shredded Cheddar Cheese - Use a good cheese and shred it yourself! We like a super-sharp white cheddar, but a more mild cheddar, or even Swiss cheese, would work well, too. 
• Eggs - The star of this recipe is that silky egg custard!
• Heavy Cream - We like to use heavy whipping cream for a rich, luxurious egg filling. For a lighter quiche, feel free to substitute additional whole milk.
• Whole Milk 
• Salt & Black Pepper

Advice for Flawless Quiche

Broccoli Broccoli Bacon Quiche with Cheddar is an easy recipe that anyone can make. The best quiche has a crisp, flaky pastry and a barely-set cloud-like egg custard. Follow these tips for the best results!

Perfectly Creamy Egg Custard

• Cool crust and bacon broccoli filling before adding the egg custard. - Give everything a little time to cool to room temperature before adding the mixture of eggs. Otherwise, the heat could scramble your eggs!
• Do not use pre-shredded cheese. - Pre-shredded cheese is tossed in corn starch and other preservatives to prevent it from sticking together. Those additives will cook into your custard and create grainy textures. For the best results, shred your cheese by hand or in the food-processor. It will only take a minute or two!
• Bake the quiche in a pie pan on top of a foil-lined baking sheet. This way you can easily remove the quiche from the oven and catch any potential spills!
• Cook the quiche at a low temperature. - The best quiche is cooked low and slow until the custard is barely set! We recommend cooking this Bacon Broccoli Quiche at no hotter than 300° Fahrenheit (150° celsius). 
• Do not overcook the quiche. - Overcooked quiche is just scrambled egg pie! The baked custard should be blonde and still jiggly in the center of the quiche! 
• Let the quiche rest before slicing and serving. - Quiche needs a few minutes to set when coming out of the oven.

Crisp, Flaky Crust

• Use a great pie crust recipe. - If making your own crust, make sure to choose a pie crust recipe that is well tested. We are partial to Our Favorite Buttery Pie Crust recipe, but any tried-and-true pie crust will do. If using a frozen store-bought pie crust, be sure to choose a deep-dish, 9 inch crust. 
• Blind bake the pie crust completely. - Blind baking is when you bake the pie crust on its own (filled with parchment paper and pie weights) before adding any filling. (You can read more about blind baking on our pie crust post.) The bottom of the pie crust should be cooked through and golden before adding any filling.
• Use aluminum foil or a pie shield to prevent burning, if necessary. - If the edges of your pie are becoming too browned during the quiche bake, simply tent the edges of the pie dish in foil (or use a pie crust shield) to prevent burning. 
• Bake quiche on the bottom third of your oven. - Baking the Bacon Broccoli Quiche on the bottom of the oven (close to the heat source) helps to prevent a soggy-bottomed pie! The base of the crust will be in the hottest part of the oven and crisp to a beautiful golden brown! 

Our Favorite Easy Pie Crust Recipe

Our homemade pie crust recipe uses all butter and is made completely by hand. No special equipment required! Check out the entire post for best practices and a quick How To Video.

Serving Suggestions

This Bacon Broccoli Quiche with Cheddar is no-doubt delicious enough to be eaten all by itself. However, for a more complete meal, we recommend serving this recipe with a side dish and a glass of wine! Here are some of our favorite pairings to try at your next brunch:

Sides

• Salad - A crisp green salad is our favorite side dish for quiche. Try it with a light and bright vinaigrette or our Creamy Poppyseed Dressing.
• Potatoes - Home fries with green onion, roasted baby potatoes or French-style Lyonaisse potatoes with caramelized onions are a good option, too!
• Fruit Salad - A fresh fruit salad is great with most breakfast recipes!

Wines

• Sparkling - A decent quality Prosecco, mimosa or yeasty Champagne will have vibrant little bubbles that clean your palette after every bite!
• Rosé - A dry rosé makes for a picture perfect Spring-appropriate pairing! Try something from Provence.
• White - For a white wine pairing, we recommend a wine with a richer mouthfeel and racing acidity. Try a lesser-oaked chardonnay from Chablis, a Chenin blanc from Vouvray or an off-dry French or German riesling. They all pair perfectly with eggs!