Easy Puff Pastry Ham and Cheese Quiche Recipe (2024)

FAQs

Do you cook Puff Pastry before adding filling? ›

Partially cooking your pastry before adding moist fillings will seal the surface and result in a crisp pastry case – it's necessary, because it means your precious pastry won't turn soggy when it's filled and baked.

Always preheat your oven for a minimum of 15-20 minutes before baking, because Puff Pastry depends on even heat to rise and puff. Place pastries 1 inch apart. If you want a flaky thin and crispy pastry that's not very puffy, prick the unbaked Puff Pastry all over with a fork, which lets steam escape while baking.

And yes, as you'll see, you should always prebake quiche crust to avoid a gummy pastry. Preheat the oven to 450°F. Roll out your homemade or purchased refrigerated dough into a 12-inch circle.

The key to getting your quiche just right is the custard, and this means having the correct milk to egg ratio. It's essential to have just enough eggs to set the dairy, but not so many that the quiche becomes rubbery.

When making a pie with a pastry top or lid, choose a dish with a rim and allow the filling to get cold before topping with pastry. Roll out pastry large enough to cover dish and with some spare.

Always bake Puff Pastry Shells in a preheated 425° F oven. Bake Puff Pastry Cups in a preheated 400° F oven for 20 minutes.

Milk is too runny and will burn but you can add a little to your egg wash to make it a little thinner for coating. Melted butter also burns quite quickly. Egg wash is the most reliable because it coats the pastry evenly and doesn't run off.

Egg wash is often used to make toppings on pastries stick. It's also used as a glaze to help the pastry achieve the perfect golden brown color and shine. Butter will not help toppings stick to pastry since it isn't a binder like an egg is, but butter can work in place of an egg wash for some foods.

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.

Poking holes allows steam to escape

Air bubbles can also lead to cracks, and cracks inevitably lead to leaks. Therefore, for a level, leak-proof crust, a perforated crust is key. If, however, the recipe you're working with has a particularly liquidy filling, poking the bottom isn't a necessary step.

What not to put in quiche? ›

Using too many eggs in the custard.

The best quiche consists of a custard that's the perfect ratio between eggs and milk. 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.

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.

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.

Line the tart tin with baking parchment and fill with ceramic baking beans or dried pulses. Bake for about 15 minutes or until the pastry is firm, then remove the beans and cook for about 5 minutes more, until golden brown and biscuity. Trim off any excess using a small serrated knife before filling.

If you put hot filling into your pastry case, you will melt some of the fat prematurely and so the pastry won't be as good as would be if you let it cool. I +1 but note that if you cook your pastry blind first (without filling) you can then fill immediately with hot filling.

Cool and serve: Let the pastries cool slightly, then serve. Or if you're filling them after baking, let them cool completely, then fill and serve.

The first trick I would try is to check that your fruit is piled high, so that the pastry doesn¹t fall as it cooks, then I would try a slightly higher oven temperature than you have been, lowering it after ten minutes or so. I cook mine on 200c/Gas 6, but you could try it a little higher for a while.