Spam Quiche

Every year, the Alaska State Fair hosts a competition for home cooks to create a delicious dish utilizing an ingredient that will make the average gourmand instantly grimace: Spam.  For the past several years, I've had a strong hankerin' to showcase my Alaskan cooking skills and participate in the prestigious contest.  Work schedules and other interferences made it impossible to get involved- until the 2011 Fair, that is.

Each competition has a different theme.  This year's was breakfast.  Various ideas floated through my mind: Spam gravy and biscuits?  Eggs Benedict with Spam instead of Canadian bacon?  Breakfast skillet or breakfast burrito: too easy and simple.  Wait, what about quiche?  Hmm, that just might work!  Since judging points were given to the recipe's title, I un-Frenched it a bit and christened the creation "Ultimate Spam Breakfast Pie".  Full disclosure: I didn't want the classic stigma of the word 'quiche' to deter potential male judges.

I tried a completely new-to-me technique in preparing the quiche, which was a huge risk since I wouldn't have the chance to taste my recipe before it was submitted to the judges.  Yes, you read that correctly.  I had never made anything similar to this type of quiche before, so all recipe development was a one-time shot.  I held my breath as one of the competition's coordinators gingerly cut and removed a slice- and it held together beautifully, with the cheese, Spam, and specks of parsley creating a gorgeous array of visual texture.

Ultimately, I didn't win- but a sample slice of my entry was the only entry I saw the celebrity judge eat every single bite of!  It must have made some kind of impression, because mine was one of only two non-winning dishes mentioned in a feature newspaper article.

The other dishes were stunning.  If you want to broaden your culinary view- and completely change your mind about Spam products- attend a state fair competition. Most of all, try the dishes that sound the strangest.  The highlight of my entire visit to the carnival was sampling one of my competitor's entries: Spam inserted into a Twinkie on a stick, then battered and deep-fried, and daintily peppered with powdered sugar.  Unhealthy as all-get-out, but surprisingly and utterly delicious.

ZESTY ZAFTIG'S AUTHENTIC ALASKAN SPAM QUICHE  

This year's "celebrity judge"
Jackie Purcell, the chief
metereologist for the
Anchorage NBC
news affiliate.

Recipe yield: 6 servings
Can be served warm or at room temperature.

- ½ cup sweet onion (Vidalia or Walla Walla), chopped       

- ½ cup (heaping) fresh crimini mushroom caps, chopped

- 1 can Original SPAM, coarsely chopped

- ½ teaspoon garlic powder

- ½ teaspoon white pepper

- 5 medium eggs

- 1 cup light whipping cream

- 1 frozen pie shell

- 1 tablespoon dried parsley

- 1 cup shredded sharp cheddar cheese

- Tabasco sauce (optional)

Remove pie shell from freezer to defrost; remove eggs, cream, and cheese from refrigerator to bring to room temperature.  Preheat oven to 400°F.  Meanwhile, lightly sauté the onions, mushrooms,  garlic powder, and white pepper in a skillet over medium-heat until the vegetables take on some color, 7-10 minutes.  Turn the vegetable mixture onto a paper towel or paper plate to absorb excess grease.  In a second skillet, fry the chunks of SPAM over high heat until the meat becomes moderately seared, also 7-10 minutes.  In a large bowl, combine the eggs, cream, parsley, and Tabasco sauce (if using); whisk vigorously until the volume of the liquid has slightly increased.

When the pie shell is defrosted, place in preheated oven for 10 minutes.  Remove the pie shell from the oven and increase the oven temperature to 425°F.   Begin layering the pie:evenly lay the chunks of fried SPAM on the bottom of the pie shell, sprinkle ¼ cup of cheese evenly on top, then add all of the mushroom and onion in a single layer.  Add another layer of SPAM, then top with remaining cheese.  Pour in egg and cream mixture.  Place pie in oven.  After 1 0 minutes, reduce temperature to 375°.  Bake for 45 minutes.  Check for doneness by inserting a clean knife in the center (it should come out clean), or when the temperature in the middle of the pie has reached 170°F.