Snow Day (Spinach, Sausage and Shallot Quiche)

This is what a Sunday snow day looks like. This is what it tastes like too but never let it be said that I am cruel enough to ask you to imagine that. For the record, you're looking at a spinach, sausage (banger, if we're going to get specific) and shallot quiche, baked into my favorite pie crust.
To be even more specific, this is another view of the same snow day.

Sunday Snow Day from ToKissTheCook on Vimeo.

For those of you in warmer climates (cough *parents* ahem), this is what a snow day looks and sounds like. Please forgive the low-fi recording but I think you get the idea.


Yes, I think we all prefer the view from here a little better though it has to be said that from inside a cozy house, hot coffee in hand, looking at evergreens heavy with snow isn't the worst way to spend an afternooon. It's potentially the best way to spend an afternoon when it involves a long lunch with Miss Rebecca.

The coffee in this case is my latest little addiction- Tanzanian from Steaming Bean. A friend brought an extra pound back from a Colorado adventure and I'm officially hooked.

Incidentally, it washes this down really well and will properly defrost any toes that dare trudge through the snow toward quiche.
I love days like this. I was up early early early for no particular reason and just started making pie crusts. Then watched Hannah and Her Sisters followed by a snowmelt sweatfest and then the lunchy brunchy business above. Tonight is a turkey dinner with yet another neighborhood friend/family and I go bearing apple pie. A great day and it's just nice to write that down from time to time.

Spinach Sausage and Shallot Quiche
1 half pie crust recipe ( or just make a full one and save the other half for some other noble cause)
1 8 oz package frozen organic spinach (thawed and wrung of as much liquid as possible)
5 pork bangers (I love Spencer's- great quality, posh tasty)
2 shallots, minced
1 cup shredded or shaved Pecorino cheese
7 eggs
3/4 cup whole milk (2% would work fine)
Pinch of Nutmeg
Salt and Pepper (hooked on Maldon Smoked Salt)

1) Put your pie crust together, chill it for at least an hour, roll it out, put in your pie or quich dish and put it in the fridge till you're ready to fill it.
2) Preheat oven to 400 F.
3) Saute your bangers in a frying pan over medium heat, ensuring even browning on all sides. Bangers tell you they're done by splitting open. Once your little meats are split and browned, put them on a plate lined with paper towels and let them cool a bit.
4) Saute your shallots in the banger drippings. There are healthier ways to do this but I ran 5 miles this morning and was feeling a little cheeky/counterproductive. Sue me.
5) Scramble your eggs and use a basting brush to glaze the top of your quiche crust. You'll appreciate this later when your edges are all glossy. Once that's done, add your milk and continue to beat egg mixture till everything is incorporated and it's a uniform consistency.
6) Add spinach, bangers, cheese and sauteed shallots to egg mixture. Season but go a little heavier on the pepper than the salt- both the bangers and the cheese are giving you a little extra sel already.
7) Pour mixture into your pie crust, tent loosely with foil and bake for 1 hour at 400. Check it at 45 minutes and remove the foil if you need some extra browning on top.
8) Once the quiche is set in the middle (no more jiggling), pull it out and let it cool for 10-15 minutes before slicing. Know that sounds like torture because the house is going to smell really really good but it's worth it to have slices that actually come out of the pan in the way nature intended.