A Lovely Lunch

My lovely friend Lauren came over for lunch this afternoon. I made a version of my mom's quiche and Lauren brought over a fantastic salad, fresh feta and cucumbers, and some yummy olives. And of course, what better to go with our lunch than a delicious wine she had received for her birthday? It was a Sangue di Giuda, I suppose that is how you refer to wine. I don't know much about wine, so I am going to assume "Sangue di Giuda" is like "Chardonnay" or something, in which it is a general type. I will have to learn more about wine for my New Year's Resolution. However you refer to it, it was simply delicious. I have never liked a red wine before, not that I have had very many, of course.

Anyway, I have put the recipe for the quiche that I made today below.This is actually an adaptation of the Cheese Custard Pie from Joy of Cooking. My mother has been making it for years and talks about the story of "Marguerite, the vile-tempered cook" that goes along with the recipe every time she cooks it. Following tradition, I have included the story, since it seems wrong to make the quiche and not tell someone the story.

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"In Switzerland we had a vile-tempered cook named Marguerite. Her one idea, after being generally disagreeable, was to earn enough to own a small chalet on some high peak where she could cater to mountain climbers. While she was certainly not born with a silver spoon in her mouth -although it was large enough to accommodate several- she did arrive with a cooking spoon in her hands. If she has attained her ideal, many a climber will feel it worth while to scale a perilous peak to reach her kitchen. The following Cheese Custard Pie was always served in solitary state. Its flavor varied with Marguerite's moods and her supply of cheese. It was never twice the same, as she had no written recipe, but we have endeavored to make one like hers, for it would be a pity to relegate so good a dish to inaccessible roosts."

Of course, I should note that this is normally made with a pie crust. I did not want to mess with a pie crust today and wanted a bagel anyway, so I skipped the crust. If you want to add the crust, simply bake a pie crust in the pie tin, make and pour the quiche filling in (skip the wax paper in my directions), and bake as directed.

Ingredients

1 3/4 cups milk or cream

1 cup grated cheese

(I used what I had on hand: roughly half mozzarella, half cheddar, and a tablespoon or so of Parmesan)

1/2 to 1 cup of diced ham

2 cups of fresh, washed spinach

2 tablespoons of finely chopped onion

2 teaspoons salt

1/4 teaspoon paprika

3 eggs

Directions

Preheat over to 325.

Prepare a 9 inch pie tin (about 2 inches deep) by layering it with wax paper (this will keep the quiche from sticking, since no crust is being used).

Cook the onion in a pan over medium-low heat with a little olive oil until tender. Add fresh, wash spinach to the pan, along with a tablespoon or so of water. Cover and let cook for 4 minutes or so, until wilted. Remove from heat, set aside.

Scald milk. Reduce the heat and add grated cheese. Stir until the cheese is melted.

Add ham and spinach and onion, salt, and paprika. Remove the mixture form the heat and beat in, one at a time, 3 eggs.

Fill the pie tin, being careful not to spill any of the filling underneath the wax paper, and bake it until the custard is firm, about 45 minutes.