The Spring Quiche - dairy free!

This is a recipe I make often (usually during the weekend, because it makes a great meal to take for lunch at work during the week).

It is totally dairy free (the way I make it) and it all started when my daughter was a newborn and came up with a milk allergy from the protein she ingested through breast milk. In order to breast feed her I went on an 8-month strict diet excluding dairy products and all other food that had milk or milk protein as an ingredient. And believe me, casein (milk protein) is almost everywhere. This homemade quiche was one of the alternatives I came up with and since then it has become a staple in our house.

Why do I call it the Spring Quiche? Because it is colorful and reminds of spring (which is almost here, by the way!)

Want to make one too? Here are the ingredients:

• 2 cups of flour (all purpose or whole wheat, whichever you prefer)
• 125 grams of vegetable margarine (100% vegetable if you want to keep it dairy free)
• 4 large eggs
• 2 table spoons of olive oil
• water (to add as needed)
• chopped vegetables - round up what you have in the house. For this particular one I used onions, carrots, peas, mushrooms and sweet corn, but it works well too with broccoli, asparagus, eggplant, zucchini, spinach...)
• your favorite vegetable seasoning (I usually use Provence herbs) and a pinch of salt (if you like pepper, add it as well; my husband is allergic so we don't use it at our house)

First, you need to make the crust. In a bowl, combine flour, margarine and one egg.

Slowly add water and mix (using your hand is the fastest way) until you have something that resembles this:

Let is rest for a while. Put all your vegetables in a pan, add the olive oil, a bit of water, the salt and the seasoning. Let it simmer for about 10 minutes.

Spread the crust dough over the bottom and the sides of a pie mold:

Pour the vegetables over the crust, taking care not to add a lot of liquid:

In another bowl, whisk the remaining three eggs...

...and then pour them as evenly as possible over the vegetables:

Put it in the oven at 180º C for about 35 minutes or until the crust starts to look golden-ish. Serve it hot or cold, according to your preference.

This is an easy recipe that allows you to make a yummy meal from scratch in a short amount of time, and it has endless possibilities for variation. If you don't like it 100% vegetable, add chopped chicken breasts, for example. Or tuna. If dairy free is not for you, add grated cheese on top...

Enjoy, and have a great weekend!