This quiche, from Justina Walls and Glenn McCarthy, was served to Howard Lyman*  when he spoke at the 2011 VegFest Colorado. Howard pronounced it the best quiche he’d eaten and coming from the Mad Cowboy, that is quite a compliment!  Justina suggests that you double the recipe and cook two, one to eat and the other to freeze.  Serve this quiche with fresh fruit for a great make ahead breakfast or brunch.  

 

• 1 T olive oil

• ½ red bell pepper, diced small

• 3 diced green onions, both green and white parts, white areas diced smaller

• 1 T minced garlic

• ¼ lb (about 2 cups) chopped crimini mushrooms

• 8 oz. fresh asparagus, stiff part of shafts removed, remaining parts cut into ¼ to ½ inch pieces

• 1 tsp. dried rosemary, crushed

• 1 whole wheat pie crust

 

• 12.3-ounce package firm silken tofu, patted dry with a clean kitchen towel to remove excess moisture (Justina uses Mori-Nu)

• ½ cup plain soymilk or other plant milk

• 4 oz.  grated vegan mozzarella (Justina uses Daiya)

• 3 T nutritional yeast

• 1 T cornstarch (or arrowroot powder)

• 1½  tsp. tahini (substitute cashew butter only if necessary)

• ½  tsp. each onion powder, garlic powder and salt

• ¼ tsp. turmeric

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees. Pierce the bottom of the crust a half-dozen times.

Add olive oil to a sauté pan and turn burner to medium heat. Sauté the bell pepper and green onion until they begin to soften. Add the garlic and cook for another minute. Add the mushrooms and cook until they just begin to exude their juices, then stir in the asparagus and rosemary. Cook until the asparagus is bright green. Remove the pan from the heat.   

Place the remaining ingredients into a food processor. Process until the mixture is completely smooth. Add the sauteed veggies to the mixture and stir to mix evenly. (If doubling the recipe in the food processor, you’ll need to pour that mixture into a bowl and add the veggies in order to have room to stir it all together.)  Pour this mixture into the pie crust(s).

Bake in a 375 degree oven for 50 minutes or until the quiche looks firm and a knife inserted into the middle comes out clean. Remove the quiche from the oven and allow it to sit for about 10 minutes prior to cutting.

 

* Howard Lyman, a forth generation cattle rancher and dairy farmer, wrote the eye opening book Mad Cowboy, Plain Truth From The Cattle Rancher Who Won’t Eat Meat,  (Scribner, 1998).  I’ve had the pleasure of hearing Howard Lyman speak on several occasions and he is inspiring.