Kicking into spring, these havarti and sundried tomato quiches are gorgeous for an office lunch or a light dinner. I like the creaminess of the havarti next to the sweet and strong tomato flavour. All held together by a delicate savoury custard peppered with some fresh herbs. I have been making variations on these quiches for the past 8 years or so, I truly find them a cinch to make. I have four individual tart tins, so you should end up with four individual quiches. These sundried tomato quiches freeze well, just wrap in foil and pop in the freezer once cooled. We always have a few for easy future meals, especially office lunches.
The sundried tomatoes in this quiche are not the kind you buy in oil. These are dried, truly dried and kept in an airtight container. The flavour is super concentrated and intensely delicious. They are chewy with summer, the texture is almost like a tomatoey leather. They are wonderful to have on hand in the cupboard for sauces, pizzas or even on platters. I bought mine from GoodFor however, I have seen them in a few ethnic supermarkets around Auckland as well. Simply rehydrate them in a bowl of warm water for 10 minutes beforehand. Otherwise, the Delmaine sundried tomatoes in oil will work beautifully here as well.
For the havarti, I used the Castello havarti. Available in all good supermarkets, it is mild and acidulous. Perfect for melting, it lends a beautiful light, creamy flavour to these quiches.
Ingredients
- 1 sheet flaky pastry
- 3 eggs
- 75gm sour cream
- 1 tsp chives
- Salt and pepper to season
- 1 1/2 cup sun-dried tomatoes, sliced
- 2 x chargrilled capsicums, sliced
- 1/2 red onion, diced
- 1 garlic clove, crushed
- 100gm Castello havarti, cubed
Instructions
Preheat the oven to 180 degrees. Slice the pastry into four squares, line four individual quiche tins with pastry and chill for 30 minutes. Blind bake for 20 minutes, until slightly golden. In a bowl, whisk together the eggs, sour cream and chives until combined. Season with salt and pepper and put aside. In a second bowl, combine the sun-dried tomatoes, capsicums, red onion and crushed garlic.
Remove the pastry cases from the oven. Fill each case with handfuls of the tomatoes mixture. Gently pour over the egg mixture slowly, waiting for the mixture to weave it's way through the filling. Top with the cheese and put back in the oven for another 20 minutes, until golden and bubbly on top. Cool in the tin for a few minutes, remove and serve with a big green salad and beautiful tomato chutney on the side.
