WBB #6 Cranberry and Gruyère Quiche

The thing I love about events like Weekend Breakfast Blogging, is that it inspires me to look outside the box and try to create something new. I truly get a kick out of pondering what to put together for an event, mixing tastes and textures in my head. When the rules for this event (A twist on an ordinary breakfast) were announced, it didn't take me long to decide what I wanted to make.

I love quiche. I don't think I bolded that enough; I love quiche. Eggy, cheesy, often packed with savoury meats and veggies, all wrapped up in a flaky pie crust. What's not to love? They're inexpensive to make, and look great when entertaining, or even as warmed over leftovers while sitting on the couch and watching Veronica Mars. (Admit it, you love that show too.)


Second to pancakes (Mmmm), quiche is likely my number one breakfast food. It's definitely in the top three. That being said, I've never had a "sweet" quiche before, they've always been savoury. When pondering the event, I wondered to myself how a sweeter quiche would taste, and then grinned. I would make a fruit quiche! Originally I was going to go with strawberries, and a lighter cheese. Once at the store however, I decided to go instead with something a little more in season. Cranberries beckoned delightfully from the shelves, and I picked up a bag of dried, and fresh. For my cheese I wanted a strong, nutty flavour. You can use any swiss in the recipe, but Gruyère is what I recommend.


The recipe itself is fairly simple, and quick to make. I have to say, now that I've tried this, I definitely want to make some other sweet quiches, such as the strawberry one, perhaps a mango or peach quiche, or even a dark chocolate and nut quiche! In addition to the ready amount of fruits available there are also endless matching cheeses one could pair.

The original recipe is one of a myriad of quiche recipes. I learned to make quiche years and years ago, and they're all pretty much the same- eggs, cream, good fillings. This one in particular appeared in a French cookbook, and used bacon, onions, leeks, and cheddar- tell me that doesn't sound delicious!


Cranberry and Gruyère Quiche

1 pie crust (for the sake of time, I used ready made, but there are many good pie crust recipes about, such as here and here.)
3 eggs
1 1/2 cup light cream
7 ounces Gruyère or swiss cheese, cubed
3 handfuls dried cranberries (about 1 1/2 cups worth)
Salt and pepper to taste

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees. Beat together the eggs and cream, then season with salt and pepper. The cranberries bring alot of sweetness to the quiche, so don't worry about salt in a sweet quiche. (Granted, don't go nuts, either. ;)) Sprinkle half the cheese over the pastry, then top with the cranberries, then the rest of the cheese.

-Side note: I didn't include it, but a breakfast type meat would go wonderfully with this, and perhaps make it more appealing to the carnivores in your family. Canadian bacon or crumbled breakfast sausage would be wonderful. If you intend to add meat, brown it first before adding it with the cranberries.

Pour on the egg mixture and bake 45 minutes, or until golden brown and set. For a topping, I sauteed some walnuts in some brown sugar and butter, then poured the bubbling mixture over the quiche.

I loved the way the cranberries plumped right up and flavoured the quiche, the cheese providing delightfully sharp contrast. Served as part of a holiday morning spread, you can't get very more festive than cranberry. :)