Photographed and styled by Kimberly L. Moore

The last time I attempted to make  a quiche, I ended up with a runny, gross mess and a burn on my arm in the shape of a Nike swoosh.  Not kidding.

This time, making a quiche was much better. It tastes one million and a half times more awesome, has an awesome texture, is very egg-esque and is a protein-packed veggie alternative to egg-based quiche! And I didn’t burn the hell out of myself.

This quiche has a couple of steps to make it, but it’s so worth it. The extra 20-25 minutes it takes to roast the potatoes and onions for that sweet caramelization is what I think makes this taste so good. And also my secret ingredients: black salt and yellow miso. The two things that add that missing “umami” flavor. I used yellow miso in a cheese ball recipe and people thought they were going to slap themselves over the fact it wasn’t dairy cheese.

It’s best to cook this in a cast iron skillet. I was lucky enough to inherit one from my grandmother. My mom finally sent it to me earlier this year and I absolutely love it. It’s most likely over 50 years old. It’s got quite a few miles on it. I believe mine is about a 10 inch pan.

It’s also crustless because ain’t nobody got time fo dat.

I also recommend to let this quiche sit at least 20 minutes before eating it to let it set up. It’s a great texture, but it still needs those extra few minutes to firm up.

Ingredients
1 and one half packages of extra firm tofu, drained and pressed
4-5 cups baby spinach leaves
2 cups potatoes, sliced thinly (I used the small golden, red and purple varieties)
1 cup baby broccoli or regular “adult” broccoli (don’t worry, it’s well behaved and won’t do a strip tease)
1 large yellow onion
1 tsp guar gum or xanthan gum (this helps bind)
1 tsp black salt
1 tbsp yellow miso
1/2 cup nutritional yeast
1 tsp sea salt
1 tsp black pepper
1/4-1/2 tsp crushed red pepper
2 tbsp olive oil + 1 tsp
3/4 cup water
2 tsp garlic powder
2 tsp onion powder
2 tbsp fresh chives
1 tsp fresh thyme
1/2 package Daiya vegan mozzarella shreds
1-2 tsp turmeric (for color)

Make Me:
Preheat oven to 450°. Slice potatoes thinly and set aside. Slice onion into medium chunks and slices. You don’t want to make the pieces too small because you want them to caramelize, not burn (like my arm). Chop fresh thyme if you are using fresh.

In a mixing bowl, add the potatoes, onions, fresh thyme, some salt and garlic powder to taste, followed by the 1 tsp olive oil. Mix to coat well. Spray a baking sheet with nonstick spray and evenly spread the seasoned potatoes and onions evenly across. Roast on the top rack for 20-25 minutes or until everything is golden.

While those babies are roasting, chop the baby broccoli and chives and set aside.

In a large mixing bowl, after draining and patting dry, begin mashing the tofu into crumbles, much like eggs would look like when making egg salad. Use a potato masher or, be backwoods country and use your hands.

Add garlic powder, onion powder, black salt, nutritional yeast, crushed red pepper, sea salt, pepper, black salt, yellow miso, turmeric, guar gum and remaining olive oil. Place in a high speed blender along with water. Whizz it until the texture is somewhat smoother. This may require you to scrape down the sides a few time as your tofu to water ratio is pretty disproportionate. You want this, however, Getting the tofu too runny will not allow it to set up and actually get browned on the top. You do not want a nasty, soupy mess. Heaven knows this happened to me before.

Once it’s whizzed up and most of the large chunks are gone, set aside and heat a skillet with some nonstick spray and get the baby broccoli wilted and almost done, followed by your spinach. Wilt it down then mix it in the tofu mixture, followed by the Daiya vegan cheese.

Potatoes and onions should be done. Remove from heat and let cool before attempting to <strike>burn yourself</strike> add it to the tofu mixture. Once cool enough, grab the spatula and add it, along with the chopped chives. You are adding them now so they didn’t get minced into nothingness in the blender. Mix well to incorporate.

Spray your cast iron skillet very well with nonstick spray. Spread into skillet and bake for 30 minutes or until the top is beginning to get golden.

Let cool on a wire rack for 15-20 before serving. Slice into wedges. Serves about 8.