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Crustless Broccoli Quiche

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Crustless Broccoli Quiche

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Omitting the crust in this crustless broccoli quiche cuts down on prep time, cook time, and carbs — and the cheesy custard is the best part anyway.

crustless broccoli quiche

There really is no other way to put it: this crustless broccoli quiche is insanely delicious. Whether you serve it for brunch, dinner, or any time in between, it’s worth every single calorie. Doing away with the crust cuts down on prep time, cook time, and carbs — and everyone knows the cheesy custard is the best part anyway. To hold the quiche together, I spread the broccoli out on the bottom of the quiche to create a crust-like layer, making the quiche sturdy and easy to serve.

If you’d like to substitute other vegetables, like asparagus or mushrooms, feel free but keep the ratio of veggies to custard the same – and, of course, always cook and season the vegetables before adding them. As with any quiche, the oven temperature is key. Quiche should be cooked at 325°F (not 350°F as most recipes direct) for the creamiest, silkiest custard. Eggs like to be cooked gently, and those 25 degrees really do make a difference. Finally, this quiche reheats beautifully so don’t hesitate to make it ahead of time and warm up as needed.

What you’ll need To Make Crustless Broccoli Quiche

Quiche ingredients including heavy whipping cream, broccoli, and shallots.

How To Make Crustless Broccoli Quiche

To begin, melt the butter in a large sauté pan over medium-low heat. Add the shallots and cook until soft and translucent, about 4 minutes. Do not brown.

Shallots and butter in a skillet.

Add the broccoli, 1/4 teaspoon of the salt, and 1/3 cup water.

Broccoli in a skillet with shallots.

Increase the heat to medium and cook, stirring occasionally, until the broccoli is al dente and the water has evaporated, 3-4 minutes more. Set aside.

Skillet of steamed broccoli.

In a large bowl, whisk the eggs with the cream, nutmeg, remaining 3/4 teaspoon salt, and cayenne pepper.

Whisk in a bowl of egg and cream mixture.

Spread the broccoli and shallots evenly over the bottom of the prepared pie plate.

Broccoli and shallots in a pie pan.

Sprinkle the cheese over top. I think Gruyère is perfect here — it melts nicely and has a nutty, earthy flavor — but Comté, Beaufort or Cheddar would also work well.

Shredded cheese in a pie pan with broccoli.

Then pour the egg mixture over the cheese.

Egg mixture in a pie pan.

Bake for about an hour, or until the custard is set and the top is golden brown.

Crustless broccoli quiche in a pie pan.

Let cool for about 10 minutes, then slice into wedges and serve. For more quiche recipes, check out my spinach quiche and my leek and parmesan quiche. Enjoy!

Slice of crustless broccoli quiche on a plate.

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Crustless Broccoli Quiche

Omitting the crust in this crustless broccoli quiche cuts down on prep time, cook time, and carbs — and the cheesy custard is the best part anyway.

Servings: 4-6
Prep Time: 15 Minutes
Cook Time: 1 Hour 10 Minutes
Total Time: 1 Hour 25 Minutes

Ingredients

  • 2 tablespoons unsalted butter, plus more for greasing the pan
  • ½ cup chopped shallots, from about 2 shallots
  • 10 oz broccoli florets, cut into 1-inch pieces or smaller
  • 1 teaspoon salt, divided
  • 6 large eggs
  • 1¾ cups heavy cream
  • Pinch ground nutmeg
  • ⅛ teaspoon cayenne pepper
  • 1½ cups (about 5 oz) shredded Gruyère

Instructions

  1. Preheat the oven to 325°F degrees and set an oven rack in the middle position. Grease a 9-inch deep dish pie plate with butter.
  2. Melt the butter in a large sauté pan over medium-low heat. Add the shallots and cook, stirring occasionally, until soft and translucent, about 4 minutes. Do not brown. Add the broccoli, ¼ teaspoon of the salt, and ⅓ cup water. Increase the heat to medium and cook, stirring occasionally, until the broccoli is al dente and the water has evaporated, 3-4 minutes more. Set aside.
  3. In a large bowl, whisk the eggs with the cream, nutmeg, remaining ¾ teaspoon salt, and cayenne pepper.
  4. Spread the broccoli and shallots evenly over the bottom of the prepared pie plate. Sprinkle the Gruyère over top. Pour the egg mixture over the cheese.
  5. Bake for about an hour, or until the custard is set and the top is golden brown. Let cool for about 10 minutes, then slice into wedges and serve.
  6. Make Ahead: This quiche can be made a day ahead of time and refrigerated. To warm up individual slices, simply reheat in the microwave for about a minute. To reheat the entire quiche, cover with aluminum foil and bake in a preheated 300°F oven until hot in the center, about 30 minutes.
  7. Freezer-Friendly Instructions: The cooled quiche may also be wrapped tightly in foil and frozen for up to 3 months. Remove the quiche from the freezer about 24 hours prior to eating and reheat it, covered with foil, in a 300°F oven until hot in the center.

Pair with

Nutrition Information

Powered by Edamam

  • Per serving (6 servings)
  • Serving size: 1 slice
  • Calories: 483
  • Fat: 43 g
  • Saturated fat: 25 g
  • Carbohydrates: 8 g
  • Sugar: 4 g
  • Fiber: 2 g
  • Protein: 17 g
  • Sodium: 492 mg
  • Cholesterol: 321 mg

This website is written and produced for informational purposes only. I am not a certified nutritionist and the nutritional data on this site has not been evaluated or approved by a nutritionist or the Food and Drug Administration. Nutritional information is offered as a courtesy and should not be construed as a guarantee. The data is calculated through an online nutritional calculator, Edamam.com. Although I do my best to provide accurate nutritional information, these figures should be considered estimates only. Varying factors such as product types or brands purchased, natural fluctuations in fresh produce, and the way ingredients are processed change the effective nutritional information in any given recipe. Furthermore, different online calculators provide different results depending on their own nutrition fact sources and algorithms. To obtain the most accurate nutritional information in a given recipe, you should calculate the nutritional information with the actual ingredients used in your recipe, using your preferred nutrition calculator.

Gluten-Free Adaptable Note

To the best of my knowledge, all of the ingredients used in this recipe are gluten-free or widely available in gluten-free versions. There is hidden gluten in many foods; if you're following a gluten-free diet or cooking for someone with gluten allergies, always read the labels of your ingredients to verify that they are gluten-free.

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Comments

  • looked beautiful….but…didn’t have the heavy Cream so as suggested, used full fat half ‘n half and a really good cheese. I suspect that is the reason it was too mushy and soft. Your thoughts please

    • — charlene on March 14, 2024
    • Reply
    • Hi Charlene, I’m sorry the texture wasn’t quite right for you! While you can get away with half-and-half here, it does make the quiche less sturdy than if you were to use cream. Also, it sounds like it may have been a touch underbaked.

      • — Jenn on March 15, 2024
      • Reply
  • I have made this recipe twice. The first time it was perfect. The second time I forgot to set the oven temp to 325. The default on my oven is 350 degrees which definitely changed the creaminess of the custard. It was very good but not as delicious as the first. I wont make that mistake again-on this recipe….!
    I would like to add a bit of “kick” to it, any suggestions? Thank you

    • — Marie M on March 14, 2024
    • Reply
    • Glad you liked it and understand how you preferred the texture the first time around. To add more of a kick, I’d double the cayenne pepper.

      • — Jenn on March 14, 2024
      • Reply
  • Can I substitute half and half for heavy cream?

    • — Jessie A Georges on March 13, 2024
    • Reply
    • Yes, you can get away with using half and half here. Enjoy!

      • — Jenn on March 13, 2024
      • Reply
  • Hi Jenn

    What can I use other than heavy cream and can I cut down on the eggs. ?

    Thank You

    Anthony

    • — Anthony D on March 12, 2024
    • Reply
    • Hi Anthony, You should be able to get away with half and half in place of the heavy cream, but I don’t recommend reducing the eggs.

      • — Jenn on March 13, 2024
      • Reply
  • I used smoked Gruyere cheese, because I thought it sounded good. It was amazing! I have been asked for the recipe several times. Thank you for sharing with us!

    • — Dorothy Purtle on March 6, 2024
    • Reply
  • Re: Crustless Broccoli Quiche – Bought an oven thermometer to ensure the oven temp was correct. Baked this for 55 minutes. It was special. First time I made a quiche that had the proper consistency.

    Thank you Jen

    • — Bill on February 6, 2024
    • Reply
  • Absolutely love this! I sometimes substitute ham cubes for the broccoli and it’s also very good. I love all of your recipes, they’re delicious and always turn out great!

    • — Lainey on January 24, 2024
    • Reply
  • This is a go-to brunch recipe for me, made as is for perfection. I’d like to try it as mini crustless quiches though for a fancy tea party. Do you think that could work?

    • — tartanhabit on January 16, 2024
    • Reply
    • Glad you like it! You can make these as minis in a muffin tin, but they will be very delicate. (Several readers have commented that they have made mini versions successfully.) I would guess they’d need 30 to 35 minutes in the oven. Hope the tea party is nice!

      • — Jenn on January 17, 2024
      • Reply
  • Followed the recipe exactly and it was perfect! I haven’t been disappointed in any recipe that Jenn has published! She is my go-to menu guru. Happy New Year!

    • — Betsy on January 2, 2024
    • Reply
  • I love this and have made it several times. I’m curious as to whether I could make this and pour into a cupcake tray for a hiking trip. Thanks for your input!

    • — Glenna Ross on December 31, 2023
    • Reply
    • Hi Glenna, It might be a bit delicate to unmold from a cupcake tray. I would try my egg bites instead.

      • — Jenn on December 31, 2023
      • Reply
      • And I did and the egg bites were delicious! Thank you for your reply!

        • — Glenna on January 14, 2024
        • Reply
  • So easy. So elegant. Absolutely delicious!

    • — Laura Farwell Blake on December 6, 2023
    • Reply
  • This is very good! But my broccoli was mush. I much prefer some crunch. I may add it raw next time I make this. Very yummy!

    • — Kathy Ferguson on December 5, 2023
    • Reply
  • I made it. A little bland. It needs bacon& sriracha. Would make it again.

    • — Karen on December 5, 2023
    • Reply
  • How would using whole milk versus heavy cream work? Has anyone tried?

    • — Lynne on December 4, 2023
    • Reply
    • Hi Lynne, I think you could get away with half & half here, but I wouldn’t recommend whole milk.

      • — Jenn on December 5, 2023
      • Reply
  • This was easy to make and really delicious. Even my spouse who doesn’t normally like quiche took seconds 😊

    • — Angela on December 4, 2023
    • Reply
  • Wonderful, balanced recipe! I can’t consume heavy cream — can I swap it out for buttermilk instead? If so, should I add a tablespoon of flour to help thicken it during baking or leave it alone? Thank you!

    • — Linda Anderson on December 3, 2023
    • Reply
  • Can I freeze this quiche before baking & bake when it’s ready to be served?

    • — Roslyn on December 2, 2023
    • Reply
    • Hi Roslyn, I’ve never frozen it before baking, so I can’t say for sure how it will work, but you can definitely freeze it after.

      • — Jenn on December 4, 2023
      • Reply
  • This recipe was just what I was looking for. I love how flexible it is. I used a few different ingredients (Swiss, broccoli and mushrooms with cardamom and cloves). I’ll experiment with different flavors next time, too. So creamy and you don’t miss the crust whatsoever. The cheese forms a type of crust on top. Keeper!

    • — Stacey on December 1, 2023
    • Reply
  • This is delicious! I brought it to a brunch and everyone raved about it, including my husband who wanted to know why I hadn’t made it before!

    • — Laurie Rokakis on November 5, 2023
    • Reply
  • TOO MANY ADS! I can’t even get to your recipe without being popped out of place. Please add a PRINT link so we can read recipe without interference. Thank you

    • — Jody on November 4, 2023
    • Reply
    • Hi Jody, I’m sorry about your frustration with the ads! I do have a print link – when you’re viewing the full recipe (near the bottom of the page), look in the upper righthand corner of that box – you’ll see an icon there that looks like a printer. Hope that helps!

      • — Jenn on November 4, 2023
      • Reply
  • Love this recipe. Pair it with a salad with your Balsamic Vinagrette. The best. Your recipes and measurements are spot on. Thank you

    • — Cindy Olcott on October 19, 2023
    • Reply
  • A great recipe for a delicious, homemade vegetarian dinner. I’ve made it with spinach and broccoli on separate occasions. I’ve even substituted whole milk for half of the cream, still delicious. You don’t even miss the crust. A keeper.

    • — Linda on October 16, 2023
    • Reply
  • Can I double the recipe and bake in a 9″ X 13″ casserole? If so, how long should it bake.

    • — Mary Jane O'Brien on September 26, 2023
    • Reply
    • Hi Mary Jane, I think you could double it and use a 9 x 13“ pan. The baking time may be a little different but probably not much so just keep a close eye on it. Enjoy!

      • — Jenn on September 26, 2023
      • Reply
      • Thanks, Jenn. I’ll give it a try!

        • — Mary Jane O'Brien on September 27, 2023
        • Reply
  • Made this quiche this afternoon. Wonderful recipe-so creamy and light. Husband loved it!
    Thank you Jenn!

    • — margaret williams on September 21, 2023
    • Reply
  • BTW I used Manchego cheese but next time I will go with 50/50 Manchego, good Cheddar and perhaps canned wild sockeye salmon.

    • — David on September 16, 2023
    • Reply

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