There is nothing more comforting than a freshly baked quiche brimming with seasonal vegetables and filled with rich, velvety batter. An ideal dish for garden parties, al fresco lunches and summer picnics, quiche has always been a favourite of our family gatherings: easy to prepare, yet absolutely delicious and eye-pleasing.

A good quiche is a triumph of the season. It should not be over-complicated but bursting with flavours of just a handful of carefully selected ingredients, best sourced at the local farmers’ market or kitchen garden.

The choice of cheese is critical; it will either marry or dissociate all the flavours. For this particular recipe we picked Sussex Slipcote: soft sheep milk cheese with creamy, fluffy texture and slightly sharp, refreshing flavour. Recommended by Catherine Colton from West Horsley Dairy it beautifully complemented the saltiness of bacon and peppery tang of chard.

And then the pastry… thin, crusty, with all the crumbs worth fighting for. Enjoy!

Ingredients:

FOR SHORTCRUST PASTRY:

  • 250g plain flour
  • 125 chilled unsalted butter diced
  • 2 egg yolks
  • 50ml cold water
  • Pinch of salt
  • 1 egg and splash of milk for glazing (egg wash)

FOR BATTER:

  • 300ml double cream
  • 200ml whole milk
  • 2 yolks
  • 4 eggs
  • Generous pinch of salt and pepper
  • 2 tbsp finely chopped chives

FOR FILLING:

  • 100g good quality streaky bacon lightly fried in a hot pan
  • 5 rainbow chard leaves roughly chopped, blanched in boiling water for 15 sec and plunged into icy cold water
  • 100g sheep or goat cheese torn
  • Handful of cooked green peas and broad beans (optional)

Method:

Mix together flour and salt in a bowl. Add chilled butter and quickly rub in with your fingertips. Then add egg yolks and mix in slowly adding water. Mix only until the dough leaves the sides of the bowl clean bearing in mind the pastry is best when not overworked.

Tip the pastry out onto a lightly floured worktop and shape into a ball. Place on a sheet of cling film, cover with another one and flatten into a disk 3-4 mm thick with a rolling pin (allow the pastry to be larger that the case by 2 inches all round. Refrigerate for at least 3 hours before baking.

Heat your oven to 170 deg.

Remove the pastry disk from the fridge and tightly line the greased  12inch tin. Do not remove the excess at this stage but allow it to hang over the edge.  Prick the base with a fork and line with baking parchment or cling film and baking beans (dried pulses or rice will work as well).

Blind bake for 10-12 minutes, or until the pastry is a light golden brown, then remove the parchment and beans, brush with eggwash and return to the oven for further 5-8 min or until the egg has dried and sealed the base. Leave aside to cool down.

Lower the oven setting to 140deg.

Place all the components of the filling inside the quiche base leaving the cheese until last.

Mix together all batter ingredients in a pan and gently heat on the top of the stove until it reaches 45deg (warm but not hot!). Then pour the egg mixture into the base and place onto a preheated oven. Bake for 20min until the butter is just-set. If too pale for your liking place under the hot grill to add some colour.

Serve either warm or cold.