Well, if you cooked the food last week… at least you had the food.  Tailgate Thursday returns home this weak, battered, bruised, but not beaten.  And ready to eat and get lit up for a noon MACrifice. 

It’s getting cooler, Oktoberfest Beers are flowing, it’s fall.  So it’s time for some quiche?  Won’t Pitt be happy.  On to the grub, and make sure to follow us over to Kitchen Encounters for some sides and even a few surprises [hint, it’s doesn’t have to be quiche].

Ingredient List…

1  recipe for Pate Brisee, or your favorite pie pastry recipe, rolled, fitted into a 9" quiche dish and decoratively edged*, or:

1  7 1/2-ounce boxed, refrigerated pie crust, at room temperature, fitted into a 9" quiche dish and decoratively edged

1  pound jumbo lump crabmeat, the best available [ED: I don’t know, take out a second mortgage]

4  ounces diced shallots or sweet onion

8  ounces grated Gruyere cheese

2  tablespoons Wondra Quick-Mixing Flour for Sauce and Gravy

3  jumbo eggs

1  cup heavy or whipping cream [ED: Marry a cardiologist, damn do I have to think of everything for you?]

1/2  cup mayonnaise

1  teaspoon lemon juice, preferably fresh, or quality bottled concentrate

1  teaspoon cayenne pepper sauce, more or less, to taste

1/2  teaspoon ground nutmeg

1/2  teaspoon white pepper

additional Wondra flour, for preparing quiche dish

Step 1.  Place the shallots (or onion), cheese and flour in mixing bowl.

Step 2.  Using two forks, toss, as you would a salad, until shallots and cheese are evenly coated in the flour.

Step 3.  Using a rubber spatula, fold in the crabmeat, just enough to evenly incorporate it into the cheese mixture.  You don't want to break up or mash the big lumps of crabmeat.

Step 4.  Sprinkly a light coating of flour evenly over bottom of prepared pastry shell. Gently spoon the crabmeat mixture into shell.  Distribute the mixture evenly, mounding it slightly towards the center, but do not compress the mixture or press down.  You want it to remain light and airy.

Step 5.  In measuring container, whisk together the eggs, cream, mayonnaise, lemon juice, pepper sauce, nutmeg and white pepper.

Slowly drizzle cream mixture over and around the top surface of the crab mixture.  Go slowly, so as to give the liquid time to drizzle down into the cracks and crevices of the light and airy crab mixture.

Step 6.  The quiche is now ready to bake on center rack of preheated 350 degree oven for 50 minutes. 

Quiche will be golden brown, puffed throughout and a knife inserted into the center will come out clean.

Remove from oven and cool on rack, about 30-60 minutes, prior to slicing and serving warm or at room temperature.

As always, there is plenty more at Kitchen Encounters including Mmm…..Bacon and Egg Spinach Salad and Homemade French Salad Dressing.  Plus, don’t forget to submit whatever questions you have for Q&A Friday.