Recipe for Traditional Basic Ham Egg and Onion Flan or Quiche (2024)

Recipe for Traditional Basic Ham Egg and Onion Flan or Quiche (1)

by KathleenDuffy

Make a traditional flan or quiche with either store-bought or home-made flan case. This is a delicious, versatile and economical dish eaten hot or cold.

A flan is an open-top pie – sometimes called a quiche. It can be sweet or savoury. Flans are also extremely economical, as suitable leftovers can be incorporated into the filling.

Nowadays, of course, it is possible to buy basic flan cases at supermarkets as well as frozen shortcrust pastry ready for rolling out – and these are usually of excellent quality. They certainly save time, too.

For those who prefer to make everything from scratch, here is a recipe for shortcrust pastry suitable for the flan case, followed by instructions on how to 'blind' bake the flan cake itself.

Then there follows a simple but delicious recipe for Traditional Ham, Egg and Onion Flan.

It’s handy to remember that all cooked flan cases, even store-bought ones, should be painted inside with beaten egg and allowed to dry before putting in the filling. This ensures that the flan doesn’t have a soggy bottom when the filling is eventually added!

Shortcrust Pastry for Savoury Flan Case – White or Wholewheat

Ingredients:

  • 225 g/8 oz plain white or wholewheat flour or a mixture of the two.
  • ½ level teaspoon salt
  • 50 g/2 oz hard margarine (if using wholewheat add an extra 25 g/1 oz)
  • 50 g/2 oz lard or hard vegetable fat
  • 2 tablespoons cold water (3 for wholewheat)

Directions:

  1. Sieve or mix flour and salt in a bowl.
  2. Cut fats into small pieces.
  3. Put them into a bowl and rub between fingers until the mixture resembles fine breadcrumbs.
  4. Add the water.
  5. Using a round-ended knife stir the mixture until it begins to bind together.
  6. Using your hands, knead the mixture lightly and quickly until dough is formed.

Note: Any leftover pastry can be frozen for use later.

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Now Bake Your Flan Case 'Blind'

Baking ‘blind’ is a term used for a flan case that is cooked, or partly-cooked, before the filling is added. Here’s how to do it using the above pastry recipe or store-bought short-crust pastry.

Ingredients:

  • Your short-crust pastry, either bought or home-made (see above for recipe)
  • Flan tin or dish
  • Greaseproof paper or foil
  • Little oil or butter/marge for greasing the paper or foil
  • Dried peas or beans (after use, save in a jar for another time - they will be inedible)

Directions:

  1. Put the flan tin or dish on a baking tray.
  2. On a floured board, roll out the pastry to measure 5 cm/2 inches wider than the diameter of the flan tin or dish.
  3. Cut a circle of greaseproof paper or foil the same diameter as the pastry and lightly grease it.
  4. Now fit the pastry into the flan ring, pressing it in firmly, removing the surplus from the top edge.
  5. Prick the base of the pastry with a fork, all over.
  6. Scrunch up the greaseproof paper or foil to make it fit into the flan tin easily. Open it out and, grease side down, fit it into the flan.
  7. Add a layer of dried peas or beans - or ceramic pie weights - about 1.5 cm/½ inch deep. This ensures that the flan case stays flat when baking.
  8. Bake in a hot oven, Gas 7, 425°F, 220°C, for approximately 10 minutes.
  9. Remove the beans or peas and the greaseproof paper or foil.
  10. Return the flan case to the oven for a further 10 minutes – keep an eye on it to ensure it doesn’t get too brown.
  11. Remove from oven and allow to cool. (See image here)
  12. Paint inside of the flan case with beaten egg and allow to dry.

The flan case is now ready for filling.

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Traditional Ham, Egg and Onion Flan Recipe

This is a very basic, simple example of a traditional savoury flan or quiche. There are many variations on this theme and the pastry case can be home to a never-ending variety of meats, vegetables, fish, cheese and herbs.

Serves 4

Ingredients:

  • Home-made (see recipe above) or shop-bought flan case measuring approximately 20 cm/8 inches.
  • 25 g/1 oz ham fat or lard
  • 1 small onion, finely chopped
  • 125 g/4 oz cooked ham
  • 2 beaten eggs
  • 300 ml/½ pint milk
  • Pepper and pinch of salt
  • 50 g/2 oz grated Cheddar cheese

Directions:

  1. If not using a store-bought flan case, bake the flan case as instructed above.
  2. Fry the onion gently in the fat until soft.
  3. Mix together the onion and ham and add to the flan case.
  4. Mix together the eggs, milk and seasoning and add to the flan.
  5. Sprinkle the cheese on top.
  6. Bake near the top of a moderate oven, Gas 6, 400°F, 200°C, for 20 minutes.
  7. Reduce heat to Gas 4, 350°F, 180°C for a further 10 minutes until cooked.

This flan is so versatile that it can be served hot or cold, be a main meal or a starter, go in a lunch-box or a picnic basket. The possibilities are endless.

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Updated: 12/05/2013, KathleenDuffy

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Recipe for Traditional Basic Ham Egg and Onion Flan or Quiche (11)

Recipe for Traditional Basic Ham Egg and Onion Flan or Quiche (2024)

FAQs

What is the formula for quiche? ›

Ratios: The best way to make a quiche is to add the eggs to a large measuring cup, then add the cream or milk. For every egg used you should add enough milk or cream to create a 1/2 cup. Meaning for 1 egg you will add enough cream or milk to make 1/2 a cup of mixture.

What are 3 main differences between a frittata and a quiche? ›

Origin: Frittata is an Italian dish whereas quiche is a French dish. Crust: A quiche has crust while a frittata does not. Sometimes, quiche is baked without crust. Base Ingredients: While both frittatas and quiches are made with eggs, quiche is made with an egg custard, which also includes cream or milk.

Why do you need eggs in a quiche flan? ›

Quiche filling should contain just enough eggs to prevent it from being soupy, but the eggs are (literally) a supporting player. It's the butterfat in the cream and milk that is responsible for a good quiche's disarmingly rich texture. In other words: Quiche isn't frittata with crust; it's savory custard with crust.

Do you need to prebake pie crust for quiche? ›

Some recipes like quiches recommend partially cooked pie shells because the baking time wouldn't be long enough to fully cook the dough otherwise. Pre-baking a crust can ensure that your pie or tart crust will be fully baked and browned, and not soggy.

What is the milk to egg ratio for quiche? ›

Quiche Ratio: 1 large egg to 1/2 cup of dairy

You'll need to increase the amount of eggs and milk based on the size of your quiche, so knowing the basic ratio makes it really easy to scale up or down. For a standard 9-inch quiche: Use 3 large eggs (6 ounces) 1 1/2 cups of whole milk or cream (12 ounces)

Is milk better than heavy cream in quiche? ›

Heavy Cream and Milk – For the best tasting quiche, use a combination of whole milk and heavy cream. (Or simply use half-and-half.) Using just heavy cream produces an overly thick filling. Whole milk is great, but a combo of heavy cream and milk is better.

What's the difference between a quiche and a flan? ›

What's the Difference Between Flan and Quiche? Flan, in the British sense, is an open-faced pie or tart with a savory or sweet filling. This can include egg-based pies also called quiche. Quiche is a French dish that is a savory egg tart and can include other fillings like ham, cheese, and vegetables.

What is the difference between quiche and egg casserole? ›

Egg Casserole

They include the addition of either flour added to the milk or a more solid dairy product such as sour cream or yogurt. They are heartier than a quiche, leaning more towards a strata in texture.

What is a breakfast quiche called? ›

Frittatas are Italian in origin and can be described as a cross between an omelet and a crustless quiche. Frittatas take less time to make than quiche or strata. The dish is traditionally made by beating eggs with dairy—often heavy cream or half and half—together with ingredients like vegetables, meats and cheeses.

What not to put in a quiche? ›

Avoid Fillings That Are Too Wet

"Some vegetables, such as sliced large tomatoes or raw zucchini, have a high water content and will make your quiche soggy (even if you follow all steps to avoid this!)," Davila notes.

Can you put too many eggs in a quiche? ›

Using too many eggs in the custard results in a quiche that rubbery and too firm when baked, while not using enough will prevent the custard from setting. Follow This Tip: Remember this ratio: 1 large egg to 1/2 cup of dairy.

Why is my quiche tasteless? ›

We've all had a slightly bland quiche before, and there's nothing worse. To avoid this classic trap, take a little of your egg mixture and fry it in a pan until cooked through. Taste it for seasoning, and this will give you a good indicator of whether you've nailed that seasoning or if it needs another pinch of salt.

Should quiche be cooked at 350 or 375? ›

BAKE in center of 375°F oven until center is almost set but jiggles slightly when dish is gently shaken and knife inserted near center comes out clean, 30 to 40 minutes.

What happens if you don't chill pie crust before baking? ›

Non-chilled crust is fairly crumbly and less smooth, which makes it harder to roll out and means it may not look as polished. It will brown more quickly and the final product will likely be tougher, heavier, and more doughy – none of those in a bad way. It will likely have a more intense, butter flavor.

What is quiche filling made of? ›

How to Make Quiche Filling
  1. Blend eggs together: In a mixing bowl, whisk eggs with a fork until blended.
  2. Mix in remaining ingredients: Add heavy cream, ham, cheese, green onions, parsley and season with salt and pepper to taste. ...
  3. Pour into blind baked crust: Pour mixture into pie crust.
Mar 23, 2021

What is a quiche base made of? ›

Quiche crusts are made with shortcrust pastry. The name “shortcrust” refers to the baking term “short” which means pastries that are flaky and crumble when you cut into them.

What is the ratio of egg to milk in quiche reddit? ›

That's 12 fluid ounces. So that would be approx 6 fluid ounces of egg and 6 fluid ounces of cream, or a 1:1 ratio.

What is the ratio of eggs to cream in quiche reddit? ›

I use the rules 1 egg to 1/2 cup dairy, so my standard is 3 eggs and 1.5 cups of a mix of cream and milk (depending on how healthy I'm making it!). More cream = more rich. I've seen recipes fully heavy cream, and recipes fully semi-skimmed milk. I tend to do half and half or 1 cup milk, 1/2 cup cream.

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