my golden hour

Bacon, Cheddar, and Portobello Mini-Quiche Recipe

Ingredients

• 4-5 slices of bacon
• 3 cloves of garlic, minced
• 1 bundle of spinach, washed thoroughly
• 1 tbsp butter
• 8 ounces of baby portobello mushrooms, sliced
• 1/2 small onion, chopped finely
• 1/2 red bell pepper, diced finely
• 2 green onions, chopped finely
• 8 large eggs
• 1 cup grated cheddar cheese
• 1/4 tsp ground black pepper

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees.
2. In a food processor, add the flour, butter, sugar, and salt and pulse together until the butter is crumbly-looking and pea-sized. 
3. Add water, 1 tbsp at a time while pulsing. Pulse until the dough forms into a ball on the side of the bowl. Be patient and pulse very slowly, the dough will eventually come together even if it looks too dry. 
4. Take the ball out and cover with plastic wrap, then put in the refrigerator for 30 minutes while we assemble ingredients for the quiche.
5. Cook bacon in a skillet to however you like it. I usually love bacon slightly crispy with a little chew, usually when it’s golden brown. Set aside on a paper-towel-lined plate, and discard the bacon fat. 
6. Heat 1 tbsp olive oil in the same skillet on medium-high heat with the garlic and heat until fragrant, around 15 seconds. 
7. Add spinach, cook until wilted and soft, around 5 minutes. 
8. Tilting the pan, squeeze out excess water from the spinach using your wooden spoon and remove spinach into a bowl to cool.
9. Return skillet to the heat, add 1 tbsp of butter, and add sliced mushrooms and onions. Sprinkle lightly with salt, be careful not to oversalt because the cheese will make the quiche salty. Saute for around 5-7 minutes, or until the onions are soft and translucent and the liquid has almost evaporated completely.
10. Add diced bell pepper to the pan and saute for a minute. 
11. Turn off the heat, and add the chopped green onions and mix. Remove mixture to a separate bowl.
12. Line a cupcake tin with cupcake liners. To be extra safe, I like to spray the inside of each cupcake liner lightly with PAM or other non-stick spray.
13. Take out the chilled dough and using a knife, halve the ball and save it for another use. Using a rolling pin, roll out the dough to around a 1/4 inch thickness and use a circular stencil to cut out 12 equally shaped discs to line the bottom of each cupcake liner. (I didn’t have a stencil, but I used the top of one of my spice jars and it worked perfectly.)
14. Drop a spoonful of spinach on top of the pie-crust, and distribute evenly. 
15. In a large mixing bowl with a handle (I like using my 8 qt. pyrex glass measuring cup), beat 8 eggs. 
16. Add the grated cheese and pepper to the eggs, and stir.
17. Add the mushroom, onion, bell pepper, green onion mixture to the eggs and mix well. 
18. Using a big spoon, spoon an equal amount of filling into each of the 12 cupcake tins. Distribute egg at the end equally to all tins.
19. Crumble bacon with your hands and place on top of each quiche, pressing gently so they are a little submerged.
20. Place in oven for 25 minutes, or until golden brown. 
21. Enjoy after they have cooled a little bit, and to reheat, place in the microwave for 30 seconds. These can be frozen in zip-lock bags after they’ve been cooked and cooled for 2 weeks. Grab one on the go in the morning for a quick, easy, and delicious breakfast.