Have you ever had a craving so compelling that you simply must have the thing of desire come hell or high water? Have you ever felt this way about quiche? 

This morning, I did.

Now, I don’t typically have such intense longings for breakfast foods, but today, while conjuring the perfect Sunday, après workout meal, and then learning that my go-to brunchy place is currently closed (thanks, COVID), my thoughts were all-consumed with the flaky, eggy goodness now denied me. 

At this point, not just any quiche would suffice. So, what’s a hungry quiche snob to do? She sucks it up, and gets in the kitchen, that’s what.

After all the holiday cooking I’ve been doing, there is an inordinate hodgepodge of what-have-yous in my refrigerator at the moment, none of which were screaming, ‘Make me into quiche, please!’ I also know that I used up all of the flour I had days ago, so I’d need to get creative with a crust solution.

Undeterred, I scoured the pantry for a suitable substitute, stumbling upon an unopened bag of almond flour. Necessity being the mother of invention and all, so was born this flaky, gluten free tart dough. 

As an unexpected bonus, it came together so much easier and quicker than a traditional pie dough, making the wait time for my insatiable hankering a bit more bearable. In fact, I’d venture to guess I made this entire quiche in less time than it would have taken me to order and have it delivered.

The filling was also a fun lesson in experimentation. I’ve never had chestnuts in a quiche before, but that’s what I had, so that’s what I used. I do know that I love them sautéed in butter with shallots and fried sage, so at the very least, I had a winning combo there. 

I added in the arugula and goat cheese out of sheer speculation, and I’m so glad I did. The peppery bite of the arugula, and the luscious, creaminess of the goat cheese really popped against the subtly sweet and meaty flavor of the chestnuts. 

Honestly, this turned out so much better than expected, and I’m happy I was so ardently obliged to indulge in my yearning. I will also be indulging in the other half of this quiche for dinner, unabashedly. 

~Ingredients~

For crust:

1 cup almond flour

2 Tbsp butter, melted and cooled

1 egg, beaten

½ tsp salt

For filling:

1 Tbsp butter

1 shallot, finely diced

¼ cup roasted & peeled chestnuts, chopped (*see note*)

½ cup arugula, chopped

2 sage leaves, chopped

¼ cup crumbled goat cheese

For egg mixture:

3 eggs, beaten

¼ cup milk of choice

2 Tbsp cream cheese

Pinch nutmeg

½ tsp salt

~Instructions~

Preheat oven to 425 degrees. Spray a 8-inch tart pan with cooking spray.

Mix all ingredients for the crust together in a bowl until combined. Turn out into tart pan. Press the dough evenly into and up the sides of the pan with your hands. Refrigerate while making the filling, about 10 minutes.

For the filling, melt the butter in a sauté pan. Add shallot and chestnuts, cooking until shallots are translucent. Add chopped arugula and sage, and cook until arugula is wilted. Set aside.

Remove the crust from the refrigerator, poke a few holes in the bottom with a fork, and bake at 425 degrees for 10 minutes. Remove and let cool while making the egg mixture. Turn the oven down to 350 degrees.

For the egg mixture, whisk all of the ingredients together until smooth. Spoon the filling into the prepared crust, and sprinkle goat cheese evenly on top. Pour the egg mixture on top of the filling, then bake the quiche for 30 minutes, or until the middle is set. 

Let cool slightly before removing from pan so the crust doesn’t stick. 

*Note* 

~You can buy pre-prepared chestnuts in the produce section of most grocery stores.