Mini-Zucchini & Basil Quiche

We all know that Black Friday happens to be the craziest and busiest shopping day of the year.  I never, let me repeat, never go out that day! 

But unfortunately, my streak of not going out on Black Friday ended this year.  You see, I picked up a part-time job this Fall to help get me out of the house, meeting new people here and just having something to do.  That job happens to be in retail (one of my loves)!  I love shopping and I love working in retail so what better way to fill my days than doing something I love...not everyone gets that opportunity.

Back to Black Friday....so in all of the years I worked my hand in retail, I always lucked out and never had to work this dreaded day.  Until now.  We were open for 22 hours straight and I was scheduled from 11:45p-7:30a. 

So, Thanksgiving night, I had to go into work.  After spending all day in the kitchen.  After stuffing my face with food.  After all of that, I had to go into work waaaayyyy past my bedtime! 

Believe it or not, it was actually fun and not as bad as I thought!  I'm glad, though, that I was on the other side of the coin working the holiday as opposed to actually shopping it.  But all in all, I made it, I had fun and I made a little extra money!

Unfortunately, because we were open practically all day and really busy, we really didn't have the opportunity to get out for our breaks, so everyone was tasked with bringing in items to eat to help replenish and reboost our energy levels throughout the morning, day and night.  I decided to bring in a few different things: scones, soda bread and mini-quiches.  Oh my goodness, I cannot even begin to tell you how good these little quiches were!  I'm not normally a fan of egg-y type dishes, especially quiche, but these definitely changed my mind. 

The flavor combination of sweet basil and zucchini with tangy Parmesan cheese and light, fluffy eggs provided our mouths were the perfect bite of sweet, creamy and tangy goodness!  And they're crustless, which was really nice and convenient for popping in your mouth!  These were so good that Chris and I couldn't keep our hands off of them, so I had to make another batch to take into work that night!

Mini-Zucchini & Basil Quiche

Ingredients

1/4 cup Cornstarch

1 1/4 cup Milk

2 Eggs

2 Egg Yolks

1 cup Heavy Cream

3/4 Tsp. Salt

1/8 Tsp. Nutmeg

Cooking Spray

Olive Oil

4 Garlic Cloves, minced

1/2 Onion, diced finely

2 Zucchini, grated

1/4 cup Parmesan Cheese, grated

Fresh Basil, chopped finely

Directions
Pre-heat oven to 450 degrees.

In a medium bowl, whisk together the cornstarch and 1/2 cup of milk until smooth.  Add in the whole eggs and egg yolks, whisking again, until smooth.  Gradually add in the remaining milk, cream, salt and nutmeg; whisk until combined.  Refrigerated until ready to use.

In a large skillet, heat olive oil over med-high heat.  Add in the garlic and onion; saute until fragrant (about 2 minutes).  Add in the zucchini and cook until just softened (about 4 minutes).  Remove from heat.

Spray a mini-muffin tin with cooking spray.  Place a pinch of cheese in the bottom of each cup, topping it with a teaspoon helping of the zucchini mixture and a pinch of basil.  Pour a tablespoon helping of the egg mixture into each cup.

Bake for 15-18 minutes or until the quiches begin to puff up and turn golden brown.  Let cool for 10 minutes and carefully run a butter knife around the rim of each cup to gently lift each quiche out.

**These quiches freeze very well in a sealed Ziploc bag or resealable container.  If heating from frozen state, place them on a cookie sheet and bake for 5-10 minutes at 400 degrees.

Yields: 48 Quiches
Source: Adapted from The Kitchn, originally adapted from Fine Cooking Magazine