Lobster Quiche

The holiday madness has moved on (hasn’t it?). After a year of stress and missing holiday events, this Christmas season seemed like such a whirl of activity – family and friends – parties and events – all celebrated in beach friendly weather instead of last year’s unwanted snow flurries for necessary outdoor gatherings. Oh well – it was just nice to be together without cold noses and mittens. Now we have New Year’s Eve on the horizon and whether you are celebrating quietly at home or with a group of friends I have a perfect dinner idea – Lobster Quiche!

How elegant and decadent does that sound? (It is!)  I am one of those people who reads constantly and if food is involved in the story, it is inevitable that I will want to have it. What we are getting to here is that I recently read a book about a place that served Lobster Quiche. The book was fictional and apparently so was the quiche because the novel did not contain a recipe and an online search did not reveal what I thought that quiche should be. So, I did what any sensible hungry person would do – I made it up by adapting a recipe I already liked. By now this Lobster Quiche has made several appearances – most recently for Christmas Eve and it has been an amazing success. You will have noticed that everything in the grocery costs a million times more than it did a year ago and that most assuredly extends to lobster. This quiche is a marvelous way to serve a pricey ingredient and stretch your budget a bit further. The lobster is undoubtably elevated by the creamy cheesy filling. Since a quiche has a crust and is quite substantial your meal can be rounded out by a delicious salad with a light fresh dressing. We like a spinach salad with your regular oil and vinegar dressing perked up by a spoon of marmalade or apricot jam – just shake it all up in a jar. Add orange sections (those canned ones are fine) plus toasted walnuts and you have a crowd pleaser.

The quiche can be made ahead and served at room temp or gently reheated. That gives you time to enjoy company if they are invited, or sit in front of the fire, if it isn’t 75 degrees, or maybe just enjoy the festivities on TV. If you can still manage dessert after a lobster quiche, ice cream drizzled with a little liqueur of choice is a cinch to pull off. Throw a couple of raspberries on top and it is positively elegant. There it is – New Year’s Eve does not need to be a stressful experience, indeed It needs to be a reset for what will hopefully be a wonderful year for you all. I hope you try this delicious recipe and celebrate yourself along with the coming of a new year – you know you deserve it. Enjoy!

Ingredients:

One unbaked pie shell – you can purchase for ease (the roll up ones are best) or make quickly in a food processor

Directions:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

In a bowl beat eggs together with cream and salt.

Stir in cheese and lobster.

Pour filling into prepared crust.

Bake 45-50 minutes until filling is set.

Allow to cool slightly before serving. (May be refrigerated for several hours and gently reheated.)