Now that the weather is finally getting brighter, it’s time to start making some lighter dishes for you all. This spring vegetable quiche is packed full of healthy fats, protein, fibre, vitamins and minerals but it won’t weigh you down at all. Even if you decide to indulge in a double portion like me! The filling is mainly tofu-based with some added cashews for extra creaminess. Tofu is a good source of protein and various essential minerals including magnesium, copper and zinc as being an extremely versatile ingredient for all sorts of sweet and savoury dishes.
I love the combination of spinach, mushroom and artichokes – they really work together – but the recipe is pretty flexible so you can definitely play around with the flavours depending on what is available to you – you can also try different nuts in the crust. Let me know if you discover any brilliant combos!
Serves 6
INGREDIENTS
Crust
- ¼ cup ground flaxseed
- 1 cup pecans
- ½ cup coconut flour
- ¼ cup coconut oil, at room temperature
Filling
- 1 packet/300-350g silken tofu, drained
- ¼ cup nutritional yeast
- ¼ cup cashews, soaked for at least 4 hours
- ½ tsp garlic powder
- ¼ tsp salt black pepper, to taste
- 1 cup/85g mushrooms, sliced
- 2 cups/80g spinach, washed
- ½ cup/125g artichokes from a jar packed in oil, roughly chopped
METHOD
- Preheat the oven to 160C (fan oven)
- In a small glass, mix the flaxseed with ¼ cup + 2 Tbsp water (90ml altogether) and set aside for 5 minutes.
- In the meantime, place the pecans in a food processor and whizz to a rough flour.
- Add the remaining crust ingredients, including the flaxseed mixture, and process again until the mixture just comes together.
- Press the dough into a greased pie tin and prick all over with a fork.
- Bake in the oven for 10-15 minutes until firm but still pale.
- While the crust cooks, prepare the filling.
- Place the tofu, nutritional yeast, cashews, garlic powder, salt and pepper in a blender and blend until smooth. Depending on the power of your blender and the moisture of your tofu you may need to add a little, tablespoon by tablespoon until it combines. Set aside.
- Next, lightly sauté the mushrooms in a little oil, adding the spinach to wilt towards the end of the cooking process. Take off the heat.
- Add the tofu mixture and artichoke to the vegetables in the pan and combine completely.
- When the crust is ready, pour in the filling. Turn up the oven to 180C and cook the quiche for around 25 minutes until the filling is set and a light golden colour. (You may need to cover the edges with foil to stop it browning too much).
- Remove from the oven and leave to stand for 10-15 minutes before slicing and serving with a simple salad.
