I was fortunate to spend the early part of the New Year travelling around the South Island of New Zealand with my grandparents. Under blue skies and surrounded by mountains, I consumed an inordinate amount of quiche. Settled among the meat pies and soggy sandwiches, the towering triangles of vegetable-studded egg always appeared the most appetizing. However, filled with wintry root vegetables, the dish left me longing for fresh and bright summer flavours. Although quiche is typically classified as a French dish, the name is a derivative of the German noun, kuchen, meaning ‘cake.’ This recipe for a quiche filled with sweet semi-dried tomatoes, spindly asparagus and sharp feta is both delicious and aesthetically pleasing. Perched upon a cake platter with a serving knife, the presentation alludes to the etymological origin of the dish.
Paul LaCroix, Still Life with Asparagus and Tomatoes, 1864
oil on canvas, 34.29 x 41.28 cm, Private collection
