Quiche with asparagus

Quiche with asparagus
Yield: 8 servings, 1 slice each

Ingredients:
1 recipe French Tart Dough (see note below)
1/2 lb or 8 oz asparagus, which is about 10-12 whole spears
6-8 large eggs
1/4 cup milk
1/2 cup Emmentaler or Swiss shredded
1/2 cup Gruyere cheese, shredded
salt and pepper to taste
1/8 tsp nutmeg

Directions:
1. Prepare the tart dough for a 9" round pie plate or pan.  See note below. This can be done 1 day ahead of time.
2. Preheat the oven to 350º F or 180º C.
3. Bring a large pot of water to boil. Once boiling, add the asparagus whole and cook for 2 minutes.
4. Remove the asparagus from the boiling water and place under cold water or plunge the spears into ice water to blanch them and stop them from cooking any further. When cool enough to handle cut them in half in the middle, and then split them down the center so that the halves can lie on top of the quiche.
5. Put all the eggs in a large mixing bowl, add the milk, and beat together until well incorporated.
6. Add the shredded cheese to the eggs, and season with salt and pepper, and nutmeg.
7. Pour the quiche batter on top of the prepped tart dough.
8. Carefully arrange the asparagus halves on top. Bake the quiche for 40 minutes until lightly golden on top and cooked through. Allow to cool and set about 30 minutes before serving. This quiche pairs nicely with a small side salad.

Note:
This French tart dough recipe is one of my favorites. The instructions, comments, and pictures are superbly presented so I have opted out of recreating it here.  The recipe from the link is good for an 8" or 9" pan, but anything larger than that and you will find that the dough doesn't quite make it up the sides. To me this method of tart dough is much easier to prepare than pie dough, and much more forgiving if learning for the first time. The method is to place all of the tart dough ingredients (except the flour) into the oven until the mixture becomes piping hot. Then flour is stirred into the hot mixture and the entire thing transforms itself into a dough ball that can easily be placed into a pie plate or fluted pan.