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By Jennie Guido

Each year, I get to host Christmas Eve dinner at my house for my family of four. I usually start studying Pinterest for new and interesting recipes involving my crock pot or possibly tackling a new bread dough recipe sometime early fall.

We’ve enjoyed bacon-wrapped venison tenderloin, Delmonico potatoes, ciabatta bread with an oven-roasted garlic spread, stuffed artichokes, and an array of desserts. I like to keep it non-traditional and something that we won’t be having on Christmas day.

The past couple of years, we have made a feast out of breakfast for supper on Christmas Eve. Let’s be honest though; breakfast on the day of Christmas is usually liquid in our house. Since it’s my favorite type of food, I like that we don’t skip it and have fun with it the night before.

I pull out all of my Christmas China, my Spode glasses, and use only the gold flatware to really put us in a festive spirit. We usually enjoy a cocktail or two around the tree, spend time with the Guido pups, and get to bed early.

Usually, I share one of my recipes from the year before on the next year’s Christmas card. This year is no different. I’m sharing the recipe I found for a delicious and hearty Breakfast Quiche. It’s not only a simple recipe, but it paired perfectly with those cheesy hash brown potatoes and fresh fruit.

The thing about my Christmas cards is that the recipe is usually the easiest part to put together. It’s the photo on the front that I worry over all year. We’ve bribed the Beagles with an embarrassing amount of Milk Bones over the years to get the perfect shot in Memorial Park, on my front steps, and in front of our flocked Christmas tree.

I’ve come to the realization that I cannot be in the picture. I’m usually under the camera waving treats frantically or begging my girls to smile. (I know. Don’t even start.) This year, we decided to take full advantage of the tree being already up and decorated on Main Street with a late Sunday afternoon photo session. I’m sure that Darby and Dennis Short got a kick out of watching us.

 

Breakfast Quiche

 

1 pre-made pie crust

6 strips bacon

8-ounce breakfast sausage roll

1 cup white cheddar cheese, shredded

1 cup half and half

2 large eggs

2 tablespoons Dijon mustard

2 tablespoons green onions, chopped

Salt and pepper to taste

 

Press the prepared dough against the bottom and sides of the greased pie plate, crimping the edges. Pierce holes all over the dough, line with foil, and place in the freezer to chill. In a 375-degree oven, bake the crust with pie weights added to the foil and the pie plate set on a baking sheet for 20 minutes until starting to brown on the edges. Take out of the oven. Remove foil and weights. In a large skillet, cook the bacon until crispy and drain. Cook the sausage in the same pan until no longer pink, and set aside. Working in layers, crumble a couple of slices of the bacon into the dough-lined pan. Next, add a layer of the cooked sausage and then a layer of cheese. Repeat. In a medium bowl, whisk together the half and half, eggs, mustard, onions, salt, and pepper. Carefully pour the mixture over the layers of meat and cheese. Return to the oven and bake until the quiche is puffed and slightly golden on top, about 35 minutes.