Potato, Bacon and Scallion Quiche

This recipe was inspired by one of my favorite restaurants in Boston - OTTO Pizza. Sanjeev and I would walk from his apartment in Allston to the OTTO in Coolidge Corner and share their famous Mashed Potato, Bacon and Scallion Pizza. The dollops of mashed potatoes, mixed with crispy bacon and the freshness of the scallions, on their amazingly thin, crispy and chewy crust - It all made for a non-traditional pizza that was one of the best I’ve ever had. I’m not even usually a crust girl, but I wouldn’t leave any part of that pizza on the plate.

This recipe makes enough for at least 8 servings using a 9 inch pie plate. However, the leftovers can be stored for about 5 days in the fridge or in the freezer for up to 3 months.

Backstory:

If I could have that Mashed Potato, Bacon and Scallion pizza from OTTO shipped out to us in LA - well, I’d probably be spending a lot of money on shipping.

The OTTO dates Sanjeev and I would go on when we were still living in Boston, were some of my favorites. We’d take long walks to whatever the nearest OTTO was and while the pizza was always good, the walks were the best part. As we remain mostly indoors in Los Angeles, without a car, I look back on those walks (and the food we used to get at the end of them!) with fondness.

I’ve been wanting to try my hand at making my own quiche recipe for a while now. In trying to figure out what that recipe might look like, I had been researching many different combinations of fillings. It was actually Sanjeev who suggested trying to replicate that pizza and, while it’s definitely not a replacement, I think it ended up being an amazing homage in quiche form!

Bringing out memories and feelings of nostalgia is one of my favorite things about food and cooking. And preparing this recipe and, of course, eating the end result brought Sanjeev and I back to those early days of our relationship. It made every bite mean so much more.

But memories aside, come on, it’s bacon, potatoes fried in the bacon fat, scallions. This is essentially a loaded baked potato but surrounded by some egg and set on a bed of flaky pie crust. You really can’t go wrong with that combo. Case in point. Great for dinner… or lunch… or breakfast, I’m not here to stop you!

Ingredients:

• 1 pie crust for a 9-inch pie pan (store bought or homemade)

• 3 red potatoes

• 6 slices of thick-cut bacon, about a 1/2 pound (my fav to buy)

• 4 Scallions, thinly sliced

• 4 eggs

• 3/4 cup of milk + heavy cream or half and half (I used 1/2 cup of milk, 1/4 cup of cream)

• 1/4 cup sour cream (plus more for serving)

• 1 and 1/4 cups of cheese (some in, some on top - I used a mix of 1 cup sharp cheddar and 1/4 cup parmesan)

• Spices: Kosher salt, freshly ground black pepper, garlic powder (just a shake or two)

Process:

1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees Fahrenheit and blind bake the pie crust. I followed these instructions for blind baking. You’ll need some pie weights (or dried beans) and parchment paper for this step. Not all quiche recipes include this step, but I wanted to do it so that I was sure the crust was partially baked before the main bake. Since I was using a store-bought pie dough, I basically followed the instructions from step 6 (plus chilling it in the fridge a bit after putting it in the pie plate). If you’re making homemade crust, you could follow all of the blind baking steps in that post (+ her recipe for pie crust - which is very good as well). When the crust is done blind baking, turn the oven down to 350.

2. Prepare the filling. Thinly slice the scallions, grate the cheese and then peel, roughly chop and boil the potatoes - until just fork tender. I put the potatoes in a pot, covered with cold water 1 inch above the potatoes + 1 tsp of kosher salt.

3. Once the potatoes have boiled, drain them and let them cool for a few mins before transfering to a cutting board and cut into smaller dices. They don’t have to be uniform.

4. While the potatoes are boiling (keep a close eye), fry the bacon. Starting in a cold pan, place the slices in and cook on medium until crispy, and drain on a paper towel lined plate. After the bacon is cooked, leave some fat in the pan and fry the boiled and diced potatoes with some salt and pepper for a few mins, only turning once or twice so they crisp up. Last, add back in the bacon and scallions and transfer to a bowl until you’re ready to add them to the egg mixture.

5. For the egg mixture: beat together the eggs, milk and heavy cream with a bit of salt, pepper and a shake or two of garlic powder - using a stand mixer or hand mixer for about a minute. You can also use a whisk, just mix longer. Add in the sour cream and whisk for another 30 seconds with electric mixer or another minute or two if you’re using a whisk - do this until combined and no lumps remain.

6. Next, you can either mix in the fillings (cheese, bacon, potatoes, scallions) right into the egg mixture, or layer them in the pie plate first and pour the eggs on top. Then bake for 45-50 mins, until center is set, keeping an eye on the crust to prevent over-browning. You can cover with a pie crust shield to help prevent this, or just line with foil on the edges.

7. After it’s done baking and cooled (about 10-15 mins), slice and top with extra scallions and sour cream if desired and enjoy!