Quiche Lunch

Last week I had wanted to make use of some bacon, eggs and milk that I was in abundance of.  As we'd already had bacon and egg sandwich for breakfast I decided against it as it would hardly make for a balanced diet.  Today however, proved to be the ideal opportunity to make a quiche.

We were going to be out in the late afternoon so needed to make a substantial lunch to keep out energy levels up  - otherwise poor hubbs would get hungry and want to go home!

This was made up from guess work and scratch so I was pleased with the outcome - not all experiments in the kitchen turn out OK and these days I need to be quick in the kitchen and don't have too much patience to follow recipes and measurements strictly.  (Baking aside though - that is a food science and I think you have to be fairly strict to the guidelines.)

The pastry shell was made from shortcrust pastry and I probably had 200-250g of pastry - you can use store bought for speed and convenience.  Filling was simply a few things from the fridge, mushrooms, 2 rashers of bacon, a few sugar snap peas picked from my garden, shallots, eggs (from our own backyard hens), cheese and milk.

Bacon, Mushroom and Shallot Quiche
250-300g shortcrust pastry (I have seen ready baked pastry shells in supermarkets but find these too thick and too shallow for quiches and pies)
2 rashers of back bacon
8 mushrooms
3 shallots
few sugar snap peas
50g cheddar cheese (mine was a strong flavoured cheddar so I didn't use a huge amount as the taste would be overpowering)
2 eggs

Grease a loose bottomed flan tin.  (Or if like me you want something a little deeper, use a 4cm deep loose bottom cake tin.)
Roll out pastry and line the bottom and sides of the tin.  Prick the base of the pastry well with a fork and bake in the oven (Gas 6) for 15 minutes. 
Cut up bacon, slice mushrooms and shallots and chop up peas.  Fry in a pan with 1 tablespoon of oil until cooked.  Season well with black pepper and a little salt (bacon might be salty).
When the pastry shell is cooked (it may begin to turn golden on edges) add the cooked mixture to the pastry shell. 
Grate the cheese and scatter over the filling.
Beat the eggs together with the milk and pour into the pastry shell.
Return to oven turn setting to Gas 4 and bake for 35-45 minutes.  The filling should be set and just be turning golden brown.
Serve hot with potatoes and vegetables, warm with salad, or take cold on picnics or at buffets and parties.