Portable Gourmet Mini-Quiches

I altered my herb-crusted sun-dried tomato quiche recipe for use as mini-quiches, because sometimes you want to make something fancy, but you want to be able to control the amount. I whipped up a dozen of these cuties for someone who recently had a baby, and I feel good that they can be eaten, hot, lukewarm, or even cold, in a few bites, and can be refrigerated or frozen for later.

Crust:

2 cups all purpose flour
1/2 cup oil (canola or vegetable)
5 tbsp water
1 tsp kosher salt
2 tsp fresh thyme
1 tsp dried basil
1 tsp dehydrated or granulated garlic

Filling:

6 eggs, beaten (or the same amount egg substitute)
1/4 cup unsweetened almond milk (or milk)
1/2 cup sun dried tomatoes, minced
4-5 tbsp fresh chives, chopped
6 oz. part skim ricotta cheese
1/2 cup (or more) chedder, colby or monterey jack cheese, grated
1 tsp dried basil
1 tsp ground pepper
1 tsp salt (not kosher salt)

For the crust, combine the ingredients and mix with a fork. Place about a tablespoon in each cupcake tin. (For me, this made 14 cupcake-sized quiche crusts). Flatten enough to have some of the dough crawling up the sides. Bake for 10 to 12 minutes in a 375 degree oven until slightly browned. Remove from oven.

In a bowl, beat the eggs and combine with almond milk and ricotta and mix with a fork until smooth. Add the rest of the ingredients to the bowl and mix until incorporated and spoon into the crusts. Bake for 15-25 minutes until firm on top and slightly browned.

Note: If you use this recipe in a regular piecrust, your cooking time will be longer, approximately 45 minutes to an hour, and you may have extra filling, which is delicious as an omelette.