The dried shiitake mushrooms impart a cozy warmth and savory flavor to the filling of these individual quiches, making it a perfect match for their oil-free, tahini-based spelt flour crust. They even received the approval of definitely-not-vegan eaters: If that isn’t a great endorsment, we don’t know what is.
Ingredients
For Crust
- Nonstick cooking spray
- 11⁄2 cups (210 g) whole spelt flour
- 1⁄4 teaspoon fine sea salt
- 1⁄4 cup (64 g) tahini
- 1⁄4 cup (60 ml) vegetable broth, more if needed
For Filling
- 1⁄4 cup (6 g) packed dried shiitake mushrooms, rinsed if gritty
- 1⁄4 cup (60 ml) warm vegetable broth
- 12 ounces (340 g) silken firm tofu
- 1 clove garlic, minced
- 2 teaspoons onion powder
- 1⁄4 teaspoon fine sea salt
- 1⁄8 teaspoon grated nutmeg
- Freshly cracked rainbow peppercorn, to taste
- 1 tablespoon (15 ml) olive oil
- 1 tablespoon (8 g) cornstarch
- 3 tablespoons (23 g) nutritional yeast
- 1⁄4 teaspoon turmeric
- 1⁄2 teaspoon baking powder
- 1 cup (40 g) packed chopped kale (without ribs)
How to Make It
- Preheat the oven to 375°F (190°C, or gas mark 5). To make the crust
- Lightly coat six 5-inch (13 cm) wide x 11⁄4-inch (3 cm) deep tart pans with cooking spray.
- Add the flour, salt, and tahini to a food processor. Pulse a few times to combine. Add the broth, 1 tablespoon (15 ml) at a time, until the dough is moist enough to hold together when pinched. Divide the dough equally among the 6 prepared pans, using approximately 1⁄3 cup (60 g) crumbled crust per quiche. Press down at the bottom and approximately 3⁄4 inch (2 cm) up the sides, and level the edges with your fingers for a more even, cleaner look. To make the Filling
- Soak the mushrooms in the warm broth until tender, about 2 minutes. Do not squeeze out the liquid from the mushrooms, and reserve any of the broth that might not have been absorbed. Add the mushrooms to a food processor along with the tofu, garlic, onion powder, salt, nutmeg, pepper, oil, cornstarch, nutritional yeast, and turmeric. Process until smooth. If the preparation is too thick, add a little of the reserved mushroom soaking broth until it is more manageable: It should not be liquid, but not too dry, either. Pulse the baking powder into the preparation. Pulse the kale into the preparation, just so that it is evenly distributed throughout and no large pieces remain.
- Divide the filling among the 6 crusts, spreading it evenly with an offset spatula, and bake for 25 minutes, or until the top of the filling is set and light golden brown. Place on a wire rack to cool just a few minutes before serving.
