Duck Egg Quiche: The Richest Custard You’ll Ever Slice
This is what happens at our house when the duck eggs pile up faster than the cartons go out: quiche. If you’ve never baked with duck eggs, it’s the place to start. A duck egg carries a bigger yolk relative to its white than a chicken egg, with more fat and protein behind it, and that’s exactly what a custard wants. The filling sets up silky instead of spongy, richer in color, and it holds a clean slice without turning rubbery. People who try a duck egg quiche tend not to go back. We make two at a time and eat the second one cold out of the fridge all week — this is what fresh eggs and whatever vegetables came off the stand that day are for.
From the farm: Duck eggs are $4 a dozen, gathered the morning we head your way. The peppers, squash, and sweet onion in this recipe ride along from the stand — green peppers $1 each, summer squash $1 each.
Free delivery in the Norwich and Syracuse areas; Binghamton area free on orders of $20 or more. Order from the shop or message us and we’ll add it to your route day.
Treat the filling below as a starting point, not a rulebook. A quiche takes whatever meat or vegetables you hand it — leftover chicken, bacon, corn cut off the cob, tomatoes, green beans, whatever came off the stand that week. It is one of the most seasonal things you can bake: whatever is fresh fits perfectly, which is why ours never comes out the same way twice.
Ingredients
- 1 unbaked 9-inch pie crust (store-bought is fine)
- 4 duck eggs
- 1 cup whole milk or half-and-half
- 1 cup shredded cheese — cheddar or swiss
- About 2 cups of whatever is fresh — this week for us that’s a green pepper, a small summer squash, and half a sweet onion, all diced
- 1 tablespoon butter
- Salt, pepper, and a pinch of nutmeg
Method
- Heat the oven to 375°F. Soften the onion, pepper, and squash in the butter over medium heat until the moisture cooks off — wet vegetables make a weepy quiche. Let them cool a few minutes.
- Whisk the duck eggs well with the milk, salt, pepper, and nutmeg. Duck egg whites are a little thicker than you’re used to; whisk until fully smooth.
- Scatter the vegetables and cheese over the crust, pour the custard over, and bake 35 to 45 minutes, until the center barely jiggles and a knife comes out clean.
- Rest 15 minutes before slicing. It’s just as good cold out of the fridge the next day.
One note for anyone who finds chicken eggs don’t agree with them anymore: duck eggs carry different proteins, and plenty of folks who’ve grown sensitive to chicken eggs find duck sits fine. A true diagnosed egg allergy is its own matter — check with your doctor first.
