Real Man's Ham and Cheese Quiche

This is, I think, one of the finest things I ever made.

I decided to trot this out again from long ago. In doing so I essentially rewrote the whole recipe.

Don't think less of me for using store-bought crust, I'm not a pastry person. I'm perfectly happy with Pillsbury! I made this with homemade ham which just finished curing yesterday. Don't think I'll post a recipe for it; one of those supermarket ham slices will serve nicely.

Real Man's Ham and Cheese Quiche

1 pie crust, thawed if frozen, at room temperature

4 large eggs, beaten moderately

1 tbsp olive oil

2-3 scallions, chopped

1/2 green bell pepper, diced

1 cup cream

1 cup diced ham

1 cup grated cheese (you choose the cheese)

salt and pepper to taste

Preheat oven to 450 degrees.

Put the crust in a 9" pie plate and crimp the edges. Add a circle of foil and pie weights or beans. Bake for 12 minutes. Remove weights (carefully!). Brush the crust with some beaten egg. Allow the crust to cool completely.

Reduce oven temperature to 375 degrees.

In the meantime, heat the oil in a saute pan. Add scallion and green pepper and cook for about 3 minutes, just until softened slightly. Set aside to cool.

Whisk the scallion, green pepper and cream into the eggs. Season with salt and pepper to taste.

When the crust is cool, put the ham and cheese in the bottom of it. Pour the custard mixture into the crust. Place the pie plate on a baking sheet and put it into the oven. Bake 25-35 minutes until the center has just set.

Set aside to rest. Serve warm 0r at room temperature with a salad.