Omelet Pie

Okay, so it's quiche -- a damn good one, too -- but I was all set to write a post about how making delicious quiche is an easy way to feel fancy, I hear my brother downstairs. Pure amazement and the excitement that only those not yet of legal voting age can capture in his voice, he exclaims, "Is that an omelet pie?!" My parents tried to teach him to have refined tastes and explained that it is a quiche on the counter -- a damn good one, too. But my brother is not one to be fooled where food is concerned, just like every other teenage boy. He reviewed the ingredient list thusly:

"Eggs? Cheese? Ham? Pie crust? Yeah, like I said, OMELET PIE!"

Having reached his threshold for culinary semantic nonsense, he cut himself a generous serving of omelet pie (codename: quiche), and happily went back to his video games.

Whether you are refined and enjoy quiche for brunch or you take a more direct approach to life and gobble up some omelet pie in between role playing game adventures, make this quiche today. It's fast, easy, scrumptious, and as simple or as fancy as you want it to be.

Preheat the oven to 350, then start with your favorite pie crust:


I confess that I'm not super great at making pie crust from scratch. I usually use the premade stuff from the grocery store. I was feeling adventurous tonight, though, and I made The Pioneer Woman's recipe. It took a little more patience than I'm used to having, but I managed to make it.

Dump about one cup of the leftover ham from dinner (cut into bit-sized chunks) into the crust. Try to get it into as even a layer as possible at the bottom.


Sprinkle one cup of shredded cheese evenly over the ham. I'm using cheddar because it's what I had available, but let the sky be the limit here. Swiss is most traditional, but if you love cheese like I do (and who doesn't?), you'll want to try whatever you've got.


In a separate bowl, combine 3 eggs, 2 TBL flour, 1 cup of half & half, a tsp of salt, black pepper to taste, and a tsp of that dried minced onion from the back of your cabinet that your dad sprinkles all over pot roast. Whisk it all until combined, then slowly and evenly pour the savory custard over the ham & cheese.


My custard just barely covered the ham and cheese, which means I'll end up with a quiche with a very high filling-to-custard ratio, which I like. If you like your quiche more eggy and less fillingey, add another egg and nother splash of cream, or don't be so generous with your filling.


Mmm. Starting to look like quiche now. A normal person would say this baby is ready to go into the oven. But I've always been a person who can't leave well enough alone, so I grated about a half cup of super sharp white cheddar and sprinkled it on the top.


NOW you may put it in the oven. Leave it there for 45-55 minutes, won't you? It's ready to come out when the eggs are "set", which means they're no longer jiggly and runny. Just say those two words out loud, and you'll know why you don't want to take it out before it's done.

I let mine cool for just a few minutes (it's supposed to be served warm, after all), before helping myself to a slice.


Great bouncing icebergs, was it ever delicious. It (like everything else I like to eat) is very high in calories when you count all the egg yolks, cheese, and - mother of all saddlebags - pie crust, but quiche has this magical way of making you feel like you're eating light. Maybe it's the fluffy texture of the filling. Maybe it's our society's penchant for dieting denial. Whatever it is, it's heavenly. And oh so versatile. Spinach and feta quiche. Bacon and Swiss. Mushroom and tomato. Anything you've ever wanted to put in an omelet (but were scared to try) can go into a quiche. It is, after all, just an omelet pie.

Omelet Pie! Quiche!
2 TBL flour
3 eggs
1 cup half & half
1 tsp dried minced onion
1 tsp salt
black pepper to taste
1 prepared, unbaked pie crust
1 cup diced ham
1 cup shredded mild cheddar cheese
1/4 - 1/2 cup shredded sharp cheddar (optional)

Preheat oven to 350.

In a bowl, whisk together flour, eggs, half & half, onion, salt, and pepper until combined. Set aside.
Place prepared pie crust into pie tin. Spread ham evenly in pie shell.
Sprinkle mild cheddar cheese evenly over ham.
Pour custard slowly and evenly over ham & cheese.
Sprinkle sharp cheddar over the top.
Bake for 45-55 minutes until eggs are set.
Serve warm in slices, just like pie. Omelet pie.