Super Scallop Quiche
A very popular contemporary Maine recipe comes from Kyra Alex who owned Lily’s Café in Stonington via that other Maine renowned cook, Brooke Dojny in her cookbook Dishing Up Maine. Naturally by the time this crab quiche recipe gets farmed scallops added, it undergoes yet another metamorphosis.
First bake or buy a pie crust, but you might be wise to either halve the recipe or make two depending on the size of the pie pan in which you intend to bake your quiche. *Below is a bit of heresy- the prize-winning New York State Fair pie crust recipe that I have used for years since the dough balls freeze beautifully.
Now for the filling:
Whisk together 8 eggs with 1 cup of Half n Half. Stir in 1 teaspoon of Penzey’s Mural of Flavors (It is salt free and contains chives and shallots. If you chose to begin with fresh onion or garlic you might want to add a spoonful of cornstarch to stabilize the mixture.) Kyra’s c version adds 2 Tablespoons of fresh chives, cilantro, and chopped parsley. There is something quite special about this combination. Flakes of dried kelp would also be a great addition. You are probably not going to want to add any salt to this seafood dish.
Stir in an 8 oz tub of picked crab meat and a similar amount of shucked and gutted farmed sea scallops, small to medium sized. Grate 8 oz of Gouda and add some grated Monterey Jack to make a full cup of shredded cheese and stir that in. Pour the mixture into your pre-baked pie shell(s) and bake for 30-40 minutes at 325 degrees until the quiche is lightly browned and still jiggly in the middle.
*State Fair Winning pie dough
4 cups flour
Cut in 1 ¾ cup butter-flavored Crisco (or as old recipes had it, 3 cups flour to 1 cup lard !)
1Tablespoon sugar
2 teaspoons salt
Mix, and add ½ cup water
1 Tablespoon vinegar
1 egg
Makes 4 crusts: divide into soft-ball or many golf-ball sized dough lumps for hand pies and wrap each in plastic film and put into a quart freezer bag. Thaw to use.