🇫🇷 French
Quiche Lorraine (Crustless)
⏱ 50 min
🍞 ~5g crustless / ~12g with almond flour crust (kid-default portion)
🍽 8 servings
⭐ 5/5
⚠️ Estimates only — not medical advice. Carb counts vary by brand and portion. Always verify with your endo or CDCES.
🌍 Cultural note
Real quiche Lorraine from northeast France is simple: eggs, cream, bacon (lardons), and originally NO cheese — gruyère is a modern addition that I'm keeping because it's delicious. The traditional buttery pastry crust is the carb trap. Going crustless gives you all the comfort with none of the glucose chaos.
Why this recipe is T1D-friendly
- Eggs + cream + cheese + bacon = high protein, high fat, near-zero carb foundation
- Going crustless eliminates ~20g of carbs per slice vs traditional pastry crust
- Almond flour crust option keeps it French-feeling at ~7g extra carbs (vs ~20g for pastry)
- Stable, predictable meal — same carbs whether eaten warm, cold, or for breakfast leftovers
Ingredients
### Crustless filling (default):
- 8 large eggs (~4g total, 0.5g per serving)
- 1 cup heavy cream (~7g total, ~1g per serving)
- 1/2 cup whole milk (~6g total, ~1g per serving)
- 8 oz bacon, diced (~0g)
- 1 small yellow onion, finely diced (~10g total, ~1g per serving)
- 1.5 cups gruyère cheese, shredded (~3g total, negligible)
- 1/4 tsp nutmeg, freshly grated if possible (0g)
- 1/2 tsp salt + black pepper to taste (0g)
- 2 tbsp fresh chives, chopped (0g)
- Butter, for greasing the pie pan (0g)
Bread / potato / base options
Quiche is a complete meal on its own. Pairings:
- Side salad (default, +2g = 7g total): Mixed greens, olive oil, vinegar.
- Niçoise-style salad (+5g = 10g total): Greens with green beans and a few olives.
- Small fruit side (+10g = 15g total): 1/2 cup berries on the side.
- Crusty bread (+14g = 19g total): One small slice of baguette.
Directions
- Preheat oven to 375°F (190°C). Generously butter a 9-inch pie pan or quiche dish.
- If making the almond flour crust: Mix almond flour, melted butter, egg, and salt in a bowl until it forms a dough. Press evenly into the pie pan, up the sides. Pre-bake 10 minutes until just golden. Let cool.
- Mise en place — dice bacon and onion, shred cheese, crack eggs.
- In a skillet over medium heat, cook bacon until crisp, 6-8 minutes. Remove with slotted spoon to paper towel.
- Pour off all but 1 tbsp bacon fat. Add diced onion, cook 5 minutes until soft and translucent. Let cool slightly.
- In a large bowl, whisk eggs, cream, milk, nutmeg, salt, and pepper until smooth — no streaks.
- Spread cooked bacon and onions evenly in the buttered pie pan (or pre-baked crust).
- Sprinkle 1 cup of the gruyère over the bacon and onions.
- Pour egg mixture slowly over the top. Sprinkle remaining 1/2 cup gruyère on top.
- Bake 30-35 minutes until the center is just set (a slight jiggle is fine — it will continue cooking) and the top is golden brown.
- Let rest 10 minutes before slicing. Top with chives.
Dash's kid tips 🐆
- Dash says: "Quiche is breakfast, lunch, AND dinner. Make it once, eat it three times — the carb count stays exactly the same."
- Crustless slices freeze beautifully — wrap individually, microwave 90 seconds. Lifesaver for school days.
- Picky kids? Swap chives for none and serve with a side of fresh fruit they pick out.
- Pre-bolus 15 minutes before eating for fewer post-meal spikes — even at only 5g, the fat slows it down nicely.