Italian Sausage, Pepper, Green Onion and Cheddar Quiche

Quiche is one of my favorite entrees.  It is a people pleaser regardless if you have it in the AM, brunch, or PM.  In my opinion, quiche is a great dinner staple, and I personally love breakfast for dinner.  If you use a premade pie crust, the only "hard" part about quiche is waiting for it to cook.

Kid tested, mother approved

Quick and easy meals that I can make after I put my son to bed are also a must.  And what is quicker than letting your entree come to room temperature or heating it in the oven for a few minutes until warm while you whip up a delicious side salad?  Exactly... Quiche is a great busy week night meal.

I love my Italian Sausage, Pepper, Green Onion and Cheddar Quiche recipe for a number of reasons.   You can make the sausage, peppers, and onions ahead of time and assemble the quiche the day you plan to serve it.  Or you can make it during the Super Bowl for dinner the following night... It was that or sleep.  Just saying.

Some notes before we begin.  I use the whole green onion, but if you prefer a milder taste then use the green parts only.  You can use any type of bell pepper, and while green or red peppers might be more visually appealing, I do not like the taste of either and they don't agree with my tummy.  Hey, it is my recipe and my preferences.  Feel free to substitute half and half or cream for the milk, but I find milk goes better when you have rich fillings, and Italian sausage and cheddar cheese are as rich as you get.   And while you can use any type of a sausage I highly, highly, highly recommend Premio Sweet & Hot Italian Sausage.

It is the perfectly seasoned and they sell their sausage without the casings.  I substitute Premio Italian sausage in so many recipes that call for ground beef from bolognese, to meatballs, to meatloaf.  I particularly love this Italian sausage mix.  It is the perfect ratio of sweet with a little heat. And if you are thinking that Premio sponsored this post they did not.  No one did.  But Premio, if you want to sponsor any future posts call me!

Now that I'm thinking about it I realize that most of my favorite dishes are either vegetarian or involve pork of some sort.  I mean sausage, pepperoni, bacon, pork chops, ham...  Can you be a porkatarian?  Click here for my other pork based quiche recipe.

While this is my recipe and my preferences, feel free to substitute ingredients based on your preferences.  That's the beauty of cooking.  And leave me a comment if you enjoyed this recipe. 

Italian Sausage, Pepper, Green Onion and Cheddar Quiche

Ingredients:

• 2 green onions chopped (about 1/2 cup)
• 1 cup diced orange bell pepper (about 1/2 of large pepper) 
• 1 lb Italian sausage (mix of 2 hot links and 4 sweet links)
• 2 cups shredded cheddar cheese, divided in half
• 5 large eggs
• 1 cup whole milk
• Salt and pepper to taste
• 1 frozen deep dish pie crust

Directions:
1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees and place pie crust on baking sheet
2. Remove sausage from casings.  Brown sausage (without oil, butter, or  cooking spray) in a large pan over medium high heat.  While browning sausage break into bite sized pieces

3. Once browned transfer sausage with a slotted spatula / spoon to paper towel lined bowl.  Make sure to keep the left over grease in the pan for sauteing the veggies

Yep, Rocky was waiting for a sausage sample.  How could I say no to that face?

4. In the same pan used to cooked the sausage, saute peppers and onions in sausage grease over medium heat until soft, about 5 minutes
5. Remove paper towel from bowl with sausage.  Add cooked peppers and onions to bowl with sausage and mix to combine ingredients

Be careful, your family might try to eat the filling when you're not looking 

6. Whisk together eggs and milk until incorporated and season with salt and pepper to taste

7. Fill pie crust with half of the sausage mixture

8. Top sausage filling with 1 cup cheese

9. Add remaining sausage mixture over cheese

10. Pour egg mixture over sausage filling

11. Top with remaining 1 cup of cheese

12. Bake quiche at 350 degrees preheated oven for 50-55 minutes until eggs are set (a toothpick inserted should come out clean) and cheese is browned
13.  Allow quiche to rest for 20-30 minutes before serving
 
Or if you made the quiche the day before like I did, allow it to come to room temperature.  I know some people like cold quiche, but I'm not some people.  I personally cut a slice and let it warm in a 350 degree oven for 10 minutes, but my husband and son like it room temperature.  What's your quiche temperature preference?  Are you a warm, room temperature, or "some people" cold type?