Caramelized Onion Bacon Quiche (Printer View)

Flaky tart with sweet caramelized onions, smoky bacon, and creamy custard for brunch or light meals.

# What You'll Need:

→ Pastry

01 - 1 sheet (about 8.8 oz) store-bought or homemade shortcrust pastry

→ Filling

02 - 7 oz smoked bacon, diced
03 - 3 large yellow onions, thinly sliced
04 - 2 tablespoons unsalted butter
05 - 1 tablespoon olive oil
06 - 1 teaspoon sugar
07 - 1/2 teaspoon salt
08 - 1/4 teaspoon black pepper
09 - 1/4 teaspoon dried thyme

→ Custard

10 - 3 large eggs
11 - 7 fluid ounces heavy cream
12 - 3.4 fluid ounces whole milk
13 - 1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg
14 - 2.8 oz grated Gruyère or Swiss cheese
15 - Additional salt and pepper to taste

# Method Steps:

01 - Preheat oven to 350°F. Roll out pastry and line a 9-inch tart pan. Trim excess pastry and prick the base with a fork. Chill while preparing the filling.
02 - In a large skillet over medium heat, cook bacon until crisp. Remove with a slotted spoon and drain on paper towels. Set aside.
03 - Discard excess bacon fat, leaving about 1 tablespoon. Add butter and olive oil to the pan. Add onions, sugar, salt, and thyme. Cook over medium-low heat, stirring occasionally, for 25-30 minutes until onions are deeply golden and caramelized. Remove from heat and let cool slightly.
04 - In a bowl, whisk together eggs, cream, milk, nutmeg, and a pinch of salt and pepper until well combined.
05 - Scatter caramelized onions and bacon evenly over the chilled pastry base. Sprinkle with grated Gruyère. Pour custard mixture gently over the filling.
06 - Bake for 35-40 minutes, or until the quiche is set and lightly golden. Let cool 10 minutes before slicing.
07 - Serve warm or at room temperature.

# Expert Advice:

01 -
  • The caramelized onions become so silky they taste like butter, sweet enough to fool you into thinking there's dessert involved.
  • It's fancy enough to serve at brunch but casual enough that you'll find yourself eating cold slices straight from the fridge the next day.
  • One quiche feeds six people and costs less than takeout, which means more money for decent wine.
02 -
  • Don't rush the onions—I learned this the hard way by trying to speed things up on high heat, and they turned bitter instead of sweet, ruining the whole dish.
  • If your custard is still wobbling in the middle after 40 minutes, give it another 3 to 5 minutes; overbaking is better than having a runny center, but you want to catch it before the edges start to brown too much.
03 -
  • Use a tart pan with a removable bottom so you can unmold it and slice confidently, and let it cool on the pan for those 10 minutes before attempting to remove it.
  • If your pastry crust starts browning too quickly on the edges, tent it loosely with foil halfway through baking to protect it while the custard finishes setting.
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