Spinach and Green Chile Quiche

"A 'traditional' male might enjoy egg-and-bacon pie if his wife served it to him; a quiche-eater, or Sensitive New Age Guy would make the dish himself, call it by its French name quiche, and serve it to his female life partner to demonstrate his empathy with the Women's Movement. He would also wash up afterwards." ~Bruce Feirstein (author of "Real Men Don't Eat Quiche")

I live with two males, aged 35 and 7. These two love to eat but give me zilch when it comes to suggestions of what to make for dinner. (I hear this is a very common situation in households all over the world.) So, tired of making pot roasts, spaghetti and chicken, I decided to mix up the menu a bit this week. I made the boys something new for dinner. A quiche.

When I asked my husband if he was afraid to be labeled a "quiche eater" (a Feirstein term) he laughed. I mean, this is a man who has never met a meal he didn't like. Call it quiche or call it egg pie...either is fine with him as long as I call him in for dinner. In the end, this quiche was a pretty big hit and the boys would like me to make it again. They also asked me to throw some ham in there next time. Finally...a suggestion! 

Spinach and Green Chile Quiche

Ingredients:

• 1/2 cup flour
• 1 tsp baking powder
• 1 tsp salt
• 12 eggs
• 1 8 oz pkg shredded Monterey Jack Cheese
• 2 cups cottage cheese
• 1 10 oz pkg frozen chopped spinach, thawed and drained
• 1 7 oz can chopped green chiles
• 1/2 cup melted butter
• 2 9" unbaked pie crusts

Directions:

• Preheat oven to 400 degrees.
• Press pie crusts into 2 pie plates and trim edges.
• Whisk flour, baking powder and salt together and set aside.
• Beat the eggs until smooth. Whisk in flour mixture until there are no lumps left. (I found this to be the most difficult part of making this - it was nearly impossible. If you end up with some lumps don't worry about it-it tastes the same.)
• Stir in cheeses, spinach, chiles and butter and mix until completely blended.
• Divide mixture between the pie plates.
• Bake the quiches in the oven for 15 minutes (at 400 degrees).
• Reduce the temperature to 350 degrees and bake 35-40 minutes or until quiches are browned and a knife inserted into the center comes out clean.

This recipe can be made healthier by using fat free cottage cheese and low fat shredded cheese, substituting Egg Beaters for some or all of the eggs and omitting the butter. Or you can throw in some ham or use different vegetables...use the recipe as a base and change it up to suit your tastes.

Enjoy!