“Cutting out rich pastry cuts the calories. Here we’ve used filo, which saves on fat but still tastes great. Beautiful! ”
Ingredients
- 2 leeks
- 1 shallot
- 8 sprigs of fresh thyme
- 60 g higher-welfare smoked ham
- 10 g unsalted butter
- 200 g sprouting broccoli
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 3-4 sheets of filo pastry , (170g)
- 3 large free-range eggs
- 300 ml semi-skimmed milk
- 75 g strong mature Cheddar
Method
- Preheat the oven to 180°C/350°F/gas 4.
- Trim and finely slice the leeks, peel and finely slice the shallot and pick the thyme leaves. Roughly chop the ham.
- Melt the butter in a pan and sauté the leeks and shallot with half the thyme leaves for 5 minutes, until soft but not coloured – add a splash of water if it starts to stick. Set aside.
- Cut the broccoli stalks into 3cm lengths and slice the larger florets in half. Blanch in boiling salted water for about 3 minutes, then drain well.
- Lightly brush a 26cm round quiche tin with a little of the oil, then drape a layer of filo pastry over it, very gently pressing it into the corners, leaving a few centimetres overhanging.
- Brush the filo with a little more oil, scatter over some of the remaining thyme leaves and layer another piece of filo on top. Repeat layering the oil, thyme and filo until you have a fully lined quiche base – around 4 filo sheets. Bake the case in the oven for 3 to 5 minutes, until just starting to colour.
- Stir the broccoli and smoked ham through the leek mixture, then spoon the filling over the pastry base.
- Beat the eggs and milk with a pinch of black pepper, then grate in ¾ of the cheese. Pour it over the veg and ham, grate over the rest of the cheese, then place it on a baking tray and bake for 25 to 30 minutes, or until cooked through.
- Remove from the oven and leave to stand for 15 minutes before serving with a green salad.
Tips
To get the quiche out in one piece, take care when layering your filo, and leave it to cool in the tin.
Source: Jamie Oliver
