Ham, Blue Cheese and Pear Quiche

Crust:

• 1 cup all-purpose flour
• 1/3 cup cornmeal or almondmeal
• 1/2 teaspoon sea salt or kosher salt
• 8 tablespoons unsalted butter, cubed and chilled
• 1 large egg
• 
  

Directions:

To make the crust, in the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, combine the flour, corn/almondmeal, and salt. Add the butter and beat on low speed until the butter is broken up and the mixture is sandy. Add the egg and mix until the dough begins to clump and come together. Shape the dough into a disk and wrap it in plastic. Chill it for at least 30 minutes. The dough can be made up to 2 days in advance.



Filling:

• 1 tablespoon olive oil
• 4-5 shallots, peeled and thinly sliced
• Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper
• 1 large, firm, ripe pear, peeled and diced into 1/2-inch cubes
• 1 cup (4.5 ounces) diced cooked ham
• 1 cup heavy cream or half-and-half
• 8 ounces cream cheese
• 1/2 teaspoon nutmeg
• 1 Tbsp dijon mustard
• 4 large eggs
• 2 egg yolks
• 1 1/2 cups (5 ounces) crumbled blue cheese or Roquefort
• 2 tablespoons minced fresh flat-leaf parsley
• 5 pieces of bacon cooked crispy, chopped (optional)

Directions:

Roll out the chilled dough on a lightly floured surface until it’s 14 inches across. Wrap aluminum foil around the outside of a 9- or 10-inch springform pan to catch any leaks. Transfer the dough to the pan, pressing the dough against the sides and allowing it to come close to the top of the sides of the pan. Patch any cracks with a bit of dough from the edges so the filling doesn’t leak out during baking. Chill the dough in the pan while making the filling.

Preheat the oven to 375°F.
To make the filling, heat the oil or bacon grease, in a skillet over medium heat and cook the shallots with some salt and pepper until they are soft and translucent, about 3 to 5 minutes. Remove them from the heat and stir in the diced pear and ham. Set is aside.  
(I cooked my shallots in a tablespoon of the bacon grease instead of the oil.  Up to you.)

In a large bowl, blend together the cream, cream cheese, nutmeg, dijon, eggs and the egg yolks until it is all smooth. Stir in the blue cheese, the pear and ham mixture, then the parsley.

Set the springform pan on a rimmed baking sheet and pour in the filling, making sure the ingredients in the filling are evenly distributed. If using bacon, top the mixture with the bacon and lightly press it into the egg mixture.  

Bake the tart for 50 minutes, until the top is lightly browned. Cover the top with tin foil and continue to bake to an internal temperature over 160° or a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean, another 10-20 minutes. (mine took 70 minutes) Let the quiche cool until it is firm enough to slice, about 15 minutes, then serve it warm or at room temperature.