Ok. Picture this. You’ve got no dinner plan (this is me all too often) and all you have in the fridge is some leftovers, a few food staples and lunchmeat. It’s 4:00. Here’s the good news—as long as you have eggs and milk, you’re set. And yes, the kiddos will like it! Enter the crustless quiche. It’s like making eggs for dinner, but fancy and even more delicious. Quiche is packed with protein, so your kids will feel full and satisfied. And you’ll feel good knowing you fed them a hearty, healthy meal.

Crustless Quiche Basics

Recipes will vary–some ratios are four eggs to one cup of milk or cream. Eggs are inexpensive, so to feed a larger or hungrier family, add more eggs. I often use up to 8 eggs, because I’m a big fan of leftovers, but most recipes cap it at 6.

Ingredients:

• 4-6 large eggs, well beaten
• 1 cup milk (1% or 2%)
• 1/8 teaspoon salt
• ¼ teaspoon pepper
• 6 ounces reduced fat or lite shredded cheese
• additional customized ingredients

Directions:

1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit
2. Lightly coat with olive oil a 9-inch pie pan or muffin tins
3. Beat eggs, and then add in milk and whisk to blend ingredients
4. Add cheese, salt and pepper into the bowl and stir to blend
5. Pour mixture into a pie pan or muffin tins
6. Bake in preheated oven until eggs have set, about 30 minutes. For muffin tins cooking time will be less. Check at 15 minutes
7. Let cool for 10 minutes before serving

Customizing Your Quiche

Let your kids personalize dinner. Have them help choose the add-ins. And don’t stop there. See who can come up with the most creative or hilarious name too. If they really own it, they’re more like to eat it. The best add-ins for Quiche includes veggies, herbs and meats. When using frozen vegetables, cook them in the microwave, and strain off extra liquid especially, for veggies like spinach. You can add up to 2 cups of cooked veggies to the recipe basic recipe. Leftover lunchmeat is also perfect for quiche. Have your kids cut up Canadian bacon using kitchen scissors and then mix in with the veggies. If your kids are more adventurous with flavor, add in fresh herbs like chopped chives, cilantro or parsley. A small amount of minced, roasted garlic will enhance the quiche’s savory taste. They can also cut the fresh herbs, just make sure they are cutting over a separate bowl and not into the eggs directly. This allows you to correct for any errors. Pro mom tip: for less adventurous kids, when adding a new veggie to the mix, pair it with something they already like. For example, if they like broccoli, but are not a big fan of spinach, add in spinach in smaller amounts than the broccoli.

My Fam’s Favorite: Easy Broccoli Crustless Quiche

Here’s one of the favorite quiches in my house:

Ingredients:

• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• ½ small onion, chopped
• 1 teaspoon garlic, minced
• 2 cups fresh broccoli, chopped
• 2 slices of Canadian bacon, cut into bite sized pieces
• 1 ½ cups mozzarella or reduced fat very sharp cheddar cheese, shredded
• 6 eggs, well beaten
• 1 ½ cup 2% milk
• 2 tablespoons freshly chopped chives
• 1 tablespoon of fresh oregano or 1 teaspoon dried
•  ½ tablespoon fresh thyme or ½ teaspoon dried thyme
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• ½ teaspoon black pepper
• 1 tablespoon butter, melted

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Coat casserole or pie dish with oil, or spray with oil spray. You can also use lightly coated muffin tins. I use a small silicone brush to coat my pans with olive oil.
2. Over medium-low heat, add olive oil, onion, garlic and broccoli. Cook slowly, stirring occasionally until the vegetables are soft. If you’re too tired for an extra pan, you can omit the onion, triple the chives and cook the broccoli in the microwave for 4 minutes. But still add in the olive oil, by combining in the egg mixture.
3. In a large bowl, combine eggs and milk. Add in all remaining ingredients and mix well.
4. Pour into baking dish.
5. Bake in preheated oven for 30 to 40 minutes, or until center has set.