Shrimp & Onion Quiche with a side of Homesickness

Usually, I fly home to Savannah for the month of June.  For obvious reasons, I didn't do that this year.  When I first made the decision, I didn't think it would be a big deal.  Now that July is almost over, I feel differently.  Don't get me wrong, if I had to make the decision over again I would do the same thing- but I would not underestimate how it impacts me when I don't get to go home.

In a pathetic attempt to in some way create home here in Colorado, I decided to pull one of my numerous cookbooks about Savannah and make some of my favorite recipes.  I knew it wouldn't be the same.  The frozen seafood I can get here pales in comparison to fresh seafood in Savannah.  But desperate times call for desperate measures.

The first book I pulled is called Savannah Classic Seafood.  It was published in 2010 and I bought it soon after.  I have never cooked anything from it.

This recipe is called Shrimp & Onion Quiche.  The recipe comes from 17Hundred90- a very nice restaurant in the historic district.  I've never eaten this there, so I have no idea how close the recipe comes to the real thing- but this definitely doesn't suck!  It would be better with Georgia shrimp, but I used what I could get my hands on. The only substitution I made was using heavy cream in place of half n half.  Oh- and some hot sauce!

Here's the run down on the recipe:

1 pie crust

4 eggs

3/4 c. heavy cream

salt

pepper

hot sauce (I added this- it wasn't in the original recipe)

freshly ground nutmeg (also not in the recipe but I never make a quiche without at least a little)

olive oil

1/2 pound small shrimp, raw, shells removed (I used large shrimp and cut them into pieces)

1 medium Vidalia onion, chopped

1 cup shredded cheddar

I made a no-roll pie crust and put it in a glass pie dish.  After that, I pre-heated the oven to 350 degrees.  I put the eggs, cream, salt, pepper, hot sauce, and nutmeg in the blender and gave it blitz.  Then I sautéed the onions in the olive oil in a skillet until they began to soften.  I added the shrimp and continued to cook for only about another minute. I put the onion and shrimp mixture in the bottom of the pie crust, then poured over the egg mixture. Lastly, I sprinkled the cheddar over the top.  

The recipe said to bake this for 25 minutes, then let it rest for 10 minutes before serving.  Mine ended up in the oven for at least 45 minutes in order to cook through- then I let it rest for at least 20 minutes before I cut it.  I think it would be even better to make it the day before, then reheat it the next day- to give the flavors a chance to fester a little more.  Not to mention it would be easier to cut cleanly.

I served this with some fresh cucumbers and tomatoes.  It was delicious!  The leftovers are going to be even better for lunch tomorrow.