For all of you gluten-free quiche-loving gals out there, this is for you. This polenta crust is tasty and very easy to put together: heat it, mix it, press it down, that’s it. I strongly recommend you use good quality medium grind instant polenta – I buy this one at Eataly in Dubai Mall and sometimes use this brand which you’ll find at Organic Foods and Cafe. Avoid the East End polenta found at Spinneys and Choithrams: it’s too fine, takes forever to cook and just won’t do the job.
In this recipe, I’ve used spinach, feta and tomato, but by all means go crazy and garnish it with whatever tickles your fancy: grilled eggplant or courgettes, bell peppers, artichokes, olives, asparagus or chard all work well. As for the cheese, fresh chèvre, grated cheddar and Spanish manchego are good alternatives for the feta but if you want to lighten it up, you can also omit it altogether and lace the custard with some homemade pesto instead.
It’s a perfect weeknight dinner, with a nice side salad….but I’ve also had it for breakfast and it’s definitely brunch-worthy too.
Serves 4-6
Ingredients
Crust:
- 2 1/2 cup of water or broth
- 1 cup medium grind polenta
- 1/2 cup of grated parmesan
- 1 egg
- a pinch of salt
- 1 tbsp butter
Filling:
- 1 cup of heavy cream or creme fraiche
- A big handful of fresh rocket leaves
- 1 1/2 cup of cooked spinach, squeezed of excess water
- 1/2 cup of crumbled feta
- 6-7 cherry tomatoes, halved and seeded
- 3 eggs
- Salt, pepper
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 300F
- Bring water to a rolling boil
- Whisk in cornmeal gradually until it thickens – this should take 5 minutes for instant polenta, 15 for traditional style polenta. The consistency should be thick enough to manipulate with your hands.
- Take polenta away from the heat and stir in butter, parmesan, another pinch of salt and the egg
- Once it is lukewarm, place the polenta on a well-greased 9-inch pie plate and press it in so that it is less than 1/2 inch thick on the bottom and sides
- Blend half a cup of the cream with the rocket in a mixer for 20 seconds or until the it becomes a nice creamy green color
- In a separate bowl, whisk the eggs, the rest of the cream, the blended rocket/cream mixture and feta. Season with salt and pepper.
- Scatter the spinach on the polenta pie crust
- Pour the egg/cream mixture over the spinach. Top with the cherry tomato halves.
- Place the quiche in the oven for 30 minutes or until it is firm to touch
