Gluten-free asparagus Gruyere quiche made with leeks, Gruyere cheese, and an optional hash browns crust. The quiche is lightened with replacing some of the traditional cream with egg whites and low-fat milk.
Serve this dish with an asparagus puff pastry tart with cheese at your next brunch and make a pot of ginger lemon honey tea!
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- ๐ง Main Ingredients + Notes
- ๐ช Recommended Equipment
- ๐ฏ Why This Recipe Works
- ๐ฉโ๐ณ Ways to Lighten any Quiche
- โฐ Tips to Simplify and Save Time
- ๐ฉโ๐ณ Asparagus Preparation Tips
- ๐ฉโ๐ณ Asparagus Quiche Preparation Tips
- ๐กIdeas for Possible Variations
- ๐ More Eggs
- Light Asparagus Quiche + Hash-Browns Crust
Quiche is the quintessential spring brunch dish. And it's so easy to make vegetarian. Like this vegetarian Quiche Lorraine that's traditional with meat. Or this classic Quiche Florentine. But asparagus is one of the first spring vegetables to show up at the market, so I like to kick off spring with this Asparagus Quiche.ย
And this year I wanted to lighten it up.
By the way, if you want a heartier egg dish with asparagus, check out this Asparagus Egg Bake with artichoke hearts and grated potatoes. For a lighter egg dish, make these herbed goat cheese soufflรฉs.
These are all great brunch dishes for Easter (or anytime!). If you like to make traditional dishes for Easter, try your hand at this traditional Good Friday bread, Hot Cross buns.
๐ง Main Ingredients + Notes
The secret to faster and easier meals often lies in the ingredients. For example, store-bought items and ingredients you make ahead and store in the refrigerator (or freezer) can turn a 60-minute recipe into a 30-minutes meal or less.
For the all of the ingredients, measurements and directions, go to the Recipe Card at the bottom of this post.
- Shredded frozen hash brown potatoes - thaw them before using them.
- Asparagus - skinny asparagus can be a little tougher than the fatter asparagus, so I recommend a medium to fat asparagus for quiche. And pass on asparagus with split and excessively woody stem bottoms. This can be a sign of older asparagus.
- Leeks
- Eggs - I always purchase pastured eggs (organic) as they're much healthier because of the way the chickens are fed.
- Half and half
- Low-fat milk - for example, 2% milk
- Mustard powder - I highly recommend Coleman's mustard powder.
- Gruyere Swiss cheese - Emmentaler Swiss cheese workd fine in this recipe too, but I prefer Gruyere.
- Nutmeg
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๐ช Recommended Equipment
Having the right equipment for recipes makes prepping soooo much easier. If you want more fuss-free prepping and cooking, check out my updated list of favorite kitchen tools and equipment.
- 9-inch pie plate
- Sheet pan
- Parchment paper
- Whisk
- Large bowl
- Hand mixer
- Rubber spatula
- Cooling rack
๐ฏ Why This Recipe Works
- Roasting the asparagus and leeks before adding them to the quiche intensifies their flavors.
- The additional egg whites, when whipped, expand the quiche without added the extra richness of the yolks.
- Using a combination of half & half and low fat milk in place of heavy cream lightens this quiche without sacrificing any favor.
- Grating your own cheese always, yes always, provides a better cheesy flavor! Pre-grated cheese is coated with a cellulose coating to prevent it from caking. This interferes with it's melting properties, and mutes the flavor.
๐ฉโ๐ณ Ways to Lighten any Quiche
#1. Use a combination of eggs and egg whites in place of all whole eggs.
- For a heavy egg quiche, start 4 whole eggs and add 1 yolk for every 1 cup of milk or cream in the recipe. To lighten the quiche, swap the extra yolk for 2 egg whites. To further lighten a quiche, use 3 whole eggs and 2 egg whites.
- For every egg yolk eliminated, you save 4.5 grams of fat and 55 calories.
#2. Swap out heavy cream for a combination of half & half and low-fat milk.
- This recipe uses a combination of half & half and 2% milk in equal amounts.
- 1 cup of heavy cream is nearly 470 calories and 46 grams of fat. Substituting equal amounts of Half & Half and 2% milk reduces this to 208 calories and 19 grams of fat.
#3. Replace heavy cream with ricotta cheese
- For details, check out this asparagus ricotta quiche.
#3. Go crustless.
- I didn't do that with this recipe since my family LOVES hash browns, but it's easily done. Just pour the egg mixture directly into the pan. Bake at 350หF for 35 minutes, or until a knife inserted into the middle comes out clean.
โฐ Tips to Simplify and Save Time
- Roast the asparagus and leeks ahead. Store in an airtight container for up to 3 days.
- Assemble the entire quiche the night before, cover and refrigerate. Bake it the following morning. Either bring to room temperature before baking, or add additional time in the oven.
- Make this asparagus quiche ahead, including baking it, and either serve at room temperature the day of your brunch, or cover and refrigerate it for up to 2 days. Either serve at room temperature, or reheat it in a 325หF oven for 15 minutes.
- Use a store bought frozen pie crust in place of the hash browns crust.
- Go crustless with this quiche. (See the above Ways to Lighten Any Quiche section for more information on this.)
๐ฉโ๐ณ Asparagus Preparation Tips
- Wash the spears under running water to remove any grit.
- Snap or slice each spear. They'll break naturally at the point where the tough woody part of the spear begins. This is typically the bottom third of the spear. Discard the woody part.
- Slice each spear into thin discs roughly ยผ" thick.
๐ฉโ๐ณ Asparagus Quiche Preparation Tips
- Arrange all the layers individually for an even distribution of asparagus and leeks.
- Cool the quiche for at least 10 minutes after baking to allow the eggs to set up.
- When folding the egg whites into the quiche mixture, don't fold them in all at once. It's much easier and more effective to fold them in one-third at a time. Once the first third is folded in, with lumps of whipped egg whites, fold in the next third.
- Use a rubber spatula for folding in the egg whites. Swipe the spatula toward you through the middle of the egg whites. Turn the bowl a little, and repeat. Continue until there are small lumps lefts. Never completely mix the whipped egg whites into a quiche or cake batter, or you'll lose a lot of the airy benefits.
๐กIdeas for Possible Variations
- Use fontina cheese in place of the Swiss cheese.
- Make this quiche with a pastry crust or bake without any crust at all. (See the above Ways to Lighten Any Quiche section for more information on this.)
- Swap out the asparagus for broccoli or other veggies you love.
๐ More Eggs
- Frittatas are a little similar to a crustless quiche. They're kind of like the combination of an omelet and quiche. And one of my favorites is this broccoli tomato frittata.
- Asparagus and eggs are fabulous together, and besides combining them in this quiche, I make this asparagus egg bake with orzo pasta, spinach, and feta every spring for brunches and dinners.
- This asparagus ricotta quiche replaces heavy cream with ricotta cheese for a lighter quiche.
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Light Asparagus Quiche + Hash-Browns Crust
Equipment
- baking sheet
Ingredients
Optional Hash Browns Crust
- 2 ยฝ cups shredded frozen hash brown potatoes, thawed I use Ore-Ida
- ยผ cup unsalted butter, melted
- ยฝ teaspoon kosher salt
- ยผ teaspoon freshly ground pepper
Asparagus Gruyere Quiche
- 2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
- 1 cup thinly sliced asparagus, sliced ยผ" thick
- ยฝ cup thinly sliced leeks, white and light green parts only
- 4 large eggs
- ยฝ cup half-and-half
- ยฝ cup 2% milk
- 1 teaspoon mustard powder
- 1 teaspoon kosher salt
- ยฝ teaspoon ground black pepper
- 2 egg whites
- ยฝ cup freshly grated Swiss cheese
- โ teaspoon grated nutmeg
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 425ยฐF.
Optional Hash Browns Crust
- Combine the thawed hash browns with the melted butter, salt and pepper. Press the hash browns into an 8 or 9-inch pie plate, making sure to work them up the sides of the dish.
Asparagus Gruyere Quiche
- Toss the leeks and asparagus with olive oil and arrange on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper. Slide into the oven, along with the hash browns-lined-pie plate (or other crust-lined pie plate), and bake for 20 minutes.Lower the oven temperature to 350หF.
- Whisk the 4 large eggs, half-and-half, milk, mustard powder, salt, and pepper in a large bowl.
- Separate 2 additional eggs, and save the yolks for another use. Whip up the egg whites using a hand mixer, or whisk, until they have soft peaks. When you turn the mixer or whisk upside down, they should droop, but not fall back into the bowl.
- Fold the whipped egg whites into the egg and milk mixture using a rubber spatula, and fold in the grated cheese.Pro tip: I find it much easier to fold egg whites into a mixture when I add them only โ at a time, whether it's this quiche or a cake. See the Preparation Tips in the post for more details.
- Arrange the asparagus and leeks evenly in the pie plate. Pour the egg mixture over the top. Sprinkle with nutmeg, and bake for 25 minutes, or until a knife inserted into the middle of the quiche comes out clean. High altitude tip: When baking this at high altitudes add 5 - 10 minutes to the bake time.
- Cool on a cooling rack for at least 15 minutes before slicing into wedges, or cool to room temperature.
Jane, The Heritage Cook
This is brilliant Susan! The perfect way to have quiche without having to worry about making a gluten-free crust!!
The Wimpy Vegetarian
You would love this one, Jane!!! A very Happy Easter to you and your family!!
Cricket Plunkett
Usually I just make my quiche crustless, I'm going to have to try a hash brown crust next time!
The Wimpy Vegetarian
It's so good with the hash browns!!
Cindy
Gorgeous Susan! I love the has brown crust!
The Wimpy Vegetarian
Thanks so much Cindy!
SallyBR
Oh, I love this! I've made once a quiche with a sweet potato crust, I think I will adapt your filling to that crust because we loved it and I happen to have sweet potatoes staring at me, begging to play
amazing - I know I'll be having lamb chops for the main dish tonight, but was debating what to serve with it, and I think your quiche will be it!
The Wimpy Vegetarian
Thanks so much Sally! I hope you had a wonderful Easter feast!!!
SallyBR
Made it! Did a few twists, posted on Facebook with a link to your blog... we wolfed down half of it... oh it was good!
I used diced fennel bulb instead of onion (due to onion sensitivities from hubby) - and a sweet potato crust.
should blog about it at some point...
it is delicious indeed!
The Wimpy Vegetarian
I'm so excited that you made it, Sally! And I'm so glad you liked it!!! You made my day, my friend!
Katie
1 - this looks and sounds so seriously delicious.
2 - I would love to live in your neck of the woods- it sounds so amazing!
The Wimpy Vegetarian
Thanks so much Katie! It's a challenge living in the mountains, but so rewarding!
Laura Dembowski
Our spring depends very much on the kind of weather we are having. It has been very warm these past few days and the trees and daffodils have sprung into bloom. It is magical! Love the idea to use hash browns for quiche crust.
The Wimpy Vegetarian
It will be interesting to see how spring changes with each year. This was a very cold, snowy winter - a record breaker for snowfall. I imagine next year might be very different ๐
Liz
Thanks for all your tips, Susan! This is one superb quiche!!!
The Wimpy Vegetarian
Thanks so much Liz!
Rita
I made quiche for a birthday party last week. Of course with a splash of Angostura bitters. Susan, the recipe title says gruyere, but the recipe calls for Swiss. Am I missing something? Gruyere makes a big flavor difference. My fav is Emmi from Switzerland.
The Wimpy Vegetarian
I love both Gruyere and Emmi! Both are Swiss cheeses of course, but you make a great point. My intent is not for folks to use the traditional Swiss cheese with holes. That's an entirely different flavor as you point out! I'll make the clarification! Thanks so much, and Happy Easter to you and your family!
Caroline
This looks and sounds delicious. I keep meaning to try a hash brown crust and everything else about this is speaking to me too.
The Wimpy Vegetarian
It dinner with a salad tonight for us! Thanks so much, Caroline, it's one of my favorite quiches!
Kelsie | the itsy-bitsy kitchen
This looks so totally delicious! Gruyere is one of my favorite cheeses and that hash brown crust sounds perfect!
Nikki@soulfullymade
This looks perfect for my sister's baby shower! It looks divine!
Betty Ann Quirino
This is a beautiful and delicious quiche. Thanks for the cooking tips and sharing your thoughts on this holiday.
mjskitchen
Oh yes, I know what you mean about living at higher elevations. This year we had a very early spring bloom but now it's cold again. So things are slowing done again.
Love seeing asparagus ASAP in the spring and buy it every week. This quiche looks like a delicious way to enjoy this spring vegetables. We love quiche, asparagus and hash-browns, so this is a keeper. Thanks!
The Wimpy Vegetarian
We had snow flurries today, for Heaven's sake. Crazy. Luckily I'm ok with it, and go to the Bay Area once a week to get my spring fix! I highly recommend this quiche - it's really good. How can you go wrong with eggs, potatoes, and cheese ๐
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