Broccoli Cheddar Pie

We've been having tons of fun with the sous vide machine that Mr. DD gave me for Valentine's Day.  He's been talking about cooking fish with it forever, so last week I threw him a bone.  I'm not a huge fan of fish, but he and Little Devil love it.  He wanted to sous vide some salmon with lemon and fresh dill.  My job was to create some side dishes.  Something I knew I would like with or without the salmon.  I'm kinda tired of rice and mashed potatoes seemed too heavy.  Then I stumbled upon this Broccoli Cheddar Pie.  It's light, with lots of flavor.  It's not as egg-y as a quiche, so it makes an elegant side dish to any entree.  Shredded cheddar cheese makes the crust!  How can you go wrong with that?  I'll have to admit the salmon turned out very good, but the entire family agreed the Broccoli Cheddar Pie stole the show.  With St. Patrick's Day and Easter around the corner, it's a perfectly green, perfectly delicious recipe.  I'll be adding this to my list of regular side dishes, and it's definitely going on the menu the next time we have dinner guests. 

A wonderful new side dish.
Broccoli Cheddar Pie

Look how colorful.
St Patrick's Day and Easter are coming up.
What a great dish to serve!

It slices and serves beautifully.
As you can see, it's less egg-y than a quiche.
Although it would be quite delicious for brunch too.

Move over potatoes,
Broccoli Cheddar Pie is the new side dish
in town.

Broccoli Cheddar Pie

Cheese Crust:
1 cup grated Cheddar cheese
3/4 cup all-purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon dry mustard
1/4 cup melted unsalted butter

Filling:
1 medium onion, chopped
2 tablespoons unsalted butter
2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
1 cup light cream
1 teaspoon salt
1 head broccoli chopped and steamed until tender
3 eggs, lightly beaten

Preheat oven to 400 degrees F.  To prepare the crust, combine the cheese with flour, salt, dry mustard and melted butter.  Press onto bottom and sides of a 10-inch pie dish. 

To prepare the filling, melt the 2 tablespoons of butter in a skillet over medium high heat.  Saute the onions until they are soft and semi translucent.  Stir in flour and cook until it turns blonde in color.  Add cream and salt, simmer for 1 minute.  Remove from heat and add the steamed broccoli and beaten eggs, stirring well to blend.  Pour into the unbaked cheese crust.  Bake at 400 degrees F for 15 minutes.  Reduce heat to 375 degrees F and bake for another 20-25 minutes.  Let stand 5 minutes before slicing and serving.