Featuring a shredded potato crust, this asparagus quiche is a deliciously paleo, Whole30, dairy free, and gluten free springtime breakfast or brunch centerpiece!
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Paleo quiche with a potato crust!
If you love asparagus as much as I do, you’ll love my healthier take on asparagus quiche. My paleo and dairy-free version uses a shredded sweet potato (or shredded russet potato) crust and a creamy filling dotted with tender-crisp asparagus, diced ham, and fresh herbs. I promise: you won’t even notice that the dairy is replaced with almond milk, nutritional yeast, and extra yolks!
Although I miss the flaky crust of a traditional quiche, I don’t want the hassle of forming a grain-free crust using alternative flours and pie weights. As I noodled over a good (and easy) crust replacement, it dawned on me that a par-baked potato crust would make for a simple and delicious substitute!
Before you get too excited, note that this potato crust won’t turn out crispy like a hash brown, but it will form a sufficiently sturdy base so you won’t feel like you’re eating yet another crustless quiche AGAIN. Besides, any time you can replace grains with vegetables is a good thing—especially if your kids don’t complain!
Ingredients
- White sweet potato or russet potatoes: Any sweet potato will work to form the crust, but I like using white sweet potatoes (e.g. Hannah sweet potatoes). Russet potatoes also work great, but make sure you squeeze the shredded potatoes well to release all the liquid before baking the crust.
- Large eggs
- Egg yolks: I add additional egg yolks to this asparagus quiche recipe to add extra richness to the filling.
- Diced asparagus: It’s the star of the show, so make sure you pick firm, snappy bright green asparagus spears that have tight buds at the end.
- Diced ham: I think ham pairs perfectly with asparagus, which is why it’s my favorite protein for this recipe. You can easily replace the ham with another cooked protein (e.g., crispy bacon, cooked crab, diced chicken) or add more sautéed vegetables (e.g., mushrooms, bell peppers, cooked broccoli).
- Diced shallot: I love the mild flavor of shallots, but feel free to use half a small onion if you don’t have one on hand.
- Minced fresh garlic
- Unsweetened almond milk or non-dairy milk: To keep this paleo-friendly, I use unsweetened almond milk in this recipe to replace the heavy cream or half-and-half that’s traditionally in quiche filling. Feel free to use your favorite non-dairy milk in place of almond milk.
- Nutritional yeast: Missing cheese? Nutritional yeast is what’ll give your quiche a cheesy (and pleasantly funky) umami boost!
- Garlic powder
- Diamond crystal kosher salt
- Extra virgin olive oil
- Freshly ground black pepper
- Minced fresh chives
How to make asparagus quiche
Make the potato crust
Heat the oven to 400°F with the rack in the middle position. Shred the potatoes on the large holes of a box grater or in a food processor.
Toss the shredded potatoes with ½ teaspoon of Diamond Crystal kosher salt and transfer the salted potatoes to a clean kitchen towel. Wring out the liquid very thoroughly.
In a bowl, toss the drained potatoes with 1½ teaspoons of extra virgin olive oil. Then, transfer the potatoes to a greased 9-inch pie plate.
Line the sides and bottom of the greased 9-inch pie pan with the potatoes, forming a thin crust that reaches the top ledge. Please note that russet potatoes shrink more after baking than white sweet potatoes so you’ll definitely want to add enough potatoes to the sides of the pan. To create a uniform potato crust, use a dry measuring cup to press the potatoes into an even layer.
Pop the crust in the oven for 25 minutes or until the “pie dough” is cooked though and lightly browned.
Take the crust out of the oven and cool to room temperature. Turn down the oven heat to 350°F.
Make the dairy-free quiche filling
Heat a large skillet over medium heat. When the pan is hot, add 1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil. Toss in the shallots and a sprinkle of salt and cook until tender.
Add the asparagus along with a sprinkle of salt. Cook until bright green and crisp tender. Then, stir in the minced garlic and transfer to a plate to cool slightly.
In a large bowl, add the eggs, yolks, almond milk, nutritional yeast, 1 teaspoon Diamond Crystal kosher salt, garlic powder, and black pepper. Whisk until uniform.
Add the cooked asparagus and diced ham to the baked potato pie crust.
Pour the egg mixture on top and sprinkle the fresh minced chives on top.
Bake the quiche
Bake the quiche in the oven for about 45 minutes or until the center is completely set.
Cool on a wire rack for at least 15 minutes. Cut and serve!
How to save leftover quiche
You can save the leftover quiche in the fridge for up to 4 days. When I reheat it, I like to zap a slice in the microwave for about 45 seconds and then finish cooking it in an air fryer or toaster oven at 375°F until the crust crisps up a little. I don’t recommend storing leftovers in the freezer because the quiche can release a lot of liquid when thawed.
More paleo breakfast recipes
Looking for more recipe ideas? Head on over to my Recipe Index. You’ll also find exclusive recipes in my cookbooks, Nom Nom Paleo: Food for Humans (Andrews McMeel Publishing 2013), Ready or Not! (Andrews McMeel Publishing 2017), and Nom Nom Paleo: Let’s Go! (Andrews McMeel Publishing 2022).
Asparagus Quiche (Paleo, Whole30, Gluten Free, Dairy Free)
Ingredients
- ¾ pound white sweet potato or russet potato, peeled
- Diamond crystal kosher salt
- 4½ teaspoons extra virgin olive oil divided
- 1 large shallot diced or ½ small onion, diced
- 2 cups chopped asparagus cut into 1½-inch pieces
- 3 garlic cloves minced
- 1 cup diced ham or cooked meat of choice
- 5 large eggs
- 2 large egg yolks
- 1 cup unsweetened almond milk or dairy-free milk of choice
- 3 tablespoons nutritional yeast
- ¼ teaspoon garlic powder
- ¼ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
- 2 tablespoons minced fresh chives
Instructions
- Heat the oven to 400°F with the rack in the middle position.
- Shred the potatoes on the large holes of a box grater or in a food processor. Toss the shredded potatoes with ½ teaspoon of Diamond Crystal kosher salt and transfer the salted potatoes to a clean kitchen towel. Wring out the liquid very thoroughly.
- In a bowl, toss the drained potatoes with 1½ teaspoons of extra virgin olive oil. Then, transfer the potatoes to a greased 9-inch pie plate.
- Line the sides and bottom of the greased 9-inch pie pan with the potatoes, forming a thin crust that reaches the top ledge. Please note that russet potatoes shrink more after baking than white sweet potatoes so you’ll definitely want to add enough potatoes to the sides of the pan. To create a uniform potato crust, use a dry measuring cup to press the potatoes into an even layer.
- Pop the crust in the oven for 25 minutes or until the “pie dough” is cooked though and lightly browned. Take the crust out of the oven and cool to room temperature. Turn down the oven heat to 350°F.
- Heat a large skillet over medium heat. When the pan is hot, add 1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil. Toss in the shallots and a sprinkle of salt and cook until tender.
- Add the asparagus along with a sprinkle of salt. Cook until bright green and crisp tender. Then, stir in the minced garlic and transfer to a plate to cool slightly.
- In a large bowl, add the eggs, yolks, almond milk, nutritional yeast, 1 teaspoon Diamond Crystal kosher salt, garlic powder, and black pepper. Whisk until uniform.
- Add the cooked asparagus and diced ham to the baked potato pie crust. Pour the egg mixture on top and sprinkle the fresh minced chives on top.
- Bake the quiche in the oven for about 45 minutes or until the center is completely set. Cool on a wire rack for at least 15 minutes. Cut and serve!
Video
Notes
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
Looks terrific, Michelle. I have seen, but never tried, recipes using grocery frozen hash brown pototates as a crust. Have you tried that? If not, what are your thoughts of using these as a replacement?
They should work! I’d thaw them first before using them.
Quiche is my favorite and this looks incredible!
Do you know of a substitute for nutritional yeast?
That’s a hard one to replace because it’s already a cheese substitute. Maybe use Magic Mushroom Powder in place of salt to add more umami?
I can’t wait to make this with beef pastrami… Can someone tell me what it is about nutritional yeast that they like? I’ve been dairy-free for over a decade but I still think nutritional yeast tastes horrid!
Made this today. Was easy to make and delicious !! Will definitely be making it again 🙂
Easy to make, delicious, and good leftover. I omitted the ham for meatless Monday. Didn’t miss it.
Great cheese-less quiche! Substituted cubed pancetta to dodge the nitrites and other undesirables and it was perfect!
Can the quiche be made in a springform pan?
Yes! It makes it easier to remove!
Absolutely delicious! The garlic is the secret yummy ingredient.