Talk about nearly having a heart attack. I love to share my recipes on Food52 because it is fun and a great way to get fresh ideas from other cooks. But I was SHOCKED! when I visited the site today and found that my recipe was chosen as a finalist for the weekly competition. My quiche, beautifully photographed by Joseph De Leo and on the front page:
Bigger shocking moment: pictures of former NYT food writer and my foodie hero, Amanda Hesser with awesome sidekick Merrill. Yeah, that’s them making my quiche.

Food52.com founders Amanda and Merrill
I completely geeked out. Still geeking out. Anyway, here is the recipe and a link to it on Food52. If you get a chance, please vote for my recipe! It is truly one of my best and I am so honored that it was chosen.
Quiona and Kale Crustless Quiche
Makes About 8 slices
- 1/2 cup Quinoa
- 1 cup water
- 2 tablespoons Olive Oil
- 1 bunch Kale, stems removed and cut into ribbons
- 1 Vidalia Onion, thinly sliced
- 2 cloves of garlic, minced
- 1/2 cup white cheddar cheese
- 3 ounces cream cheese, cubed
- 4 eggs
- salt and pepper to taste
- Preheat the oven to 350 and prepare a 9″ pie dish (either butter the dish thoroughly or spray with baking spray). Rinse the quinoa. Combine the quinoa and water in a pan. Bring to a boil on medium-high heat and then reduce to a simmer. This will take about twenty minutes. Set aside.
- Meanwhile, start to caramelize the onions. Heat the olive oil in a large saute on medium heat. When the oil is shimmering, add the onions. Slowly cook until the onions are soft and browned.
- Remove the onions from the pan, and place them in a large mixing bowl. Add the kale into the hot onion pan. On medium heat, cook until the kale is wilted and bright green, about two minutes.
- Allow the greens to cool. Squeeze out any extra liquid using a sieve or a clean dish towel.
- Add the kale, quinoa, garlic, cream cheese and cheddar to the mixing bowl. Stir the ingredients so that they are evenly distributed.
- In a small bowl, whisk the eggs so that they are well combined. Pour over the quinoa/kale mixture. Stir until the egg clings to the greens. Add salt and pepper.
- Pour the mixture in the prepared pie dish. Bake for about 45 minutes, until the top is golden and the pie has started to pull away from the edge of the baking dish. This dish is delightful hot, but even better at room temperature.
I am a big fan of quiche and yours looks really good i shall go and find that link and go over to vote.. well done!!! c
the link should be attached to the recipe title? I’ll make sure it is working, but thank you so much!!
This looks both healthy and delicious! Kale and quinoa are two of my favorite ingredients.
Thank you! Quinoa and Kale are two of mine, too. I love that they are available practically year round, too.
Wonderful! Off to vote now!
Thank you!
So exciting! I’m geeking out right alongside you. 🙂
Thanks, Caroline. BTW, your Brown Butter & Bourbon pound cake looks divine! i’ll be giving it a try when I get the chance.
Hilary, I made this at my birthday and it was a huge hit! I sadly had to use spinach instead of kale, but several people asked for the recipe!
Good work, I’ll direct them here!
Thank you! I’m so glad that you enjoyed it! The recipe will work with a lot of different greens- I like to use collards and mustard greens sometimes.
Just made the quiche with goat cheese instead of cream cheese; yum! My kids eat this stuff like it’s apple pie.
Carli, I’m glad you enjoyed it! I like to sub goat cheese for the cream cheese sometimes. It really depends on my mood. If I have mustard greens around, the goat cheese goes great in the quiche with mustard greens.