Our courgette plants are still providing us with a few courgettes so when I was thinking about what to make for a starter when friends came round recently I felt compelled to use them. My first thought was to make one of my roasted courgette tarts but pastry was also on the menu for a dessert so that was a no-no.
Then I remembered reading somewhere about a crustless quiche and an idea came into my head. I put the roasted courgette slices along with some lardons and onion in the bottom of some ramekins, added a slice of goat’s cheese, poured in the quiche liquid filling, topped them with half a cherry tomato and there we have them.
They puffed up in the oven like a quiche filling often does and looked very tempting. I served them warm with some crusty bread and they went down a treat. I didn’t quite know what to call them as “crustless quiche” sounded a bit clumsy and they weren’t exactly a soufflé. So I called them “pots”. Our guests said they were delicious and they would have been pleased to have eaten them in a restaurant. I’ll take that as a compliment!
Ingredients
1 medium courgette, green or yellow, wiped and sliced thinly
1 small onion, peeled and chopped
1 pack of lardons
4 small slices or chunks of goat’s cheese
2 eggs
a spoonful of double cream (or crème fraîche)
about 100ml milk
2 cherry tomatoes
Method
Preheat the oven to 180C / 160 fan. Scatter the courgette slices and chopped onion over a baking tray and scatter the lardons on top. Roast for about 15 minutes until the lardons are cooked, shuffle them around about half way through.
While the veg are roasting, put the eggs into a jug with the cream or crème fraîche and make up to 250ml with the milk. Add salt and pepper and beat with a fork until combined.
When the veg are cooked, divide between four ramekins and add a piece of cheese to each one. Pour over the eggy liquid, being careful not to overfill. Drop half a cherry tomato on top of each one and return to the oven for about 20-25 minutes until puffed up and set.
Serve warm.
Serves 4.
Sounds like an excellent starter to me and a good use for the last of the courgettes. After a very decent season I had to admit this weekend that my courgette plants had finally succumbed to the dreaded mildew.
ReplyDeleteLike the sound of these, Jean. Would do me nicely as a main course.
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