Pancetta and Leek Quiche

Pre-bake frozen crust following directions on package and allow to cool (see note). Once crust is baked, preheat oven to 450ºF.

Thinly slice leeks and place them in cool water to remove all of the sand. You will need about 1 cup slicd sleeks. Drain and pat dry. Depending on the size, you may only need 1 leek. I like to cut the leeks in half then slice.

Saute pancetta until fat starts to render. Add and melt butter. Add leeks and saute for 3–5 minutes until softened and bright green. Add wine and allow to cook for a few minutes to reduce. Once wine has reduced by half, remove from heat.

Set leek and pancetta mixture aside in a deep bowl and allow to cool for about 15–20 minutes. Once pancetta and leeks have cooled, stir in Swiss cheese.

Whisk eggs with half-and-half, pepper to taste (ingredients would not allow that as an amount) and nutmeg. I run nutmeg 3-4 times across micro plane zester. Add about 3/4 cup of the egg mixture to the pancetta and leek mixture, folding and stirring (see note).

Spread mixture to crust and pour over egg mixture. You will probably have some left over. I tried to use less half-and-half and fewer eggs but it did not taste as good.

Cover loosely with foil making sure it does not touch the eggs and bake at 450ºF for 15 minutes. After 15 minutes, drop oven temperature to 300ºF and bake for 45 minutes.

When quiche is done, remove foil and allow quiche to stand for at least 15 minutes. Serve with bread or a salad.

Notes:
• Feel free to make your own crust.
• The filling can be made in advance. I usually make it in the morning and refrigerate until dinner time. Just remove from the fridge for about half an hour, pour into the prepared crust and follow cooking directions.