Crustless Quiche Loaded with Kale
This post may contain affiliate links. Please read my disclosure policy.

I was so lazy this week. Looking to add a little more roughage to my diet, I piled a whole head of barely chopped kale into a pie dish, submerged it with custard, and threw it in the oven.
I suspected it would be good. I make crustless quiche nearly once a week, always with uncooked greens, always with fresh thyme, always with crème fraîche, always following the Tartine recipe. But I worried a bit about the quantity of greens this time. It was a little absurd.
The result, however, couldn’t have made me happier. My crustless quiche had in fact become crusty, thanks to the upper most layer of leaves poking though the custard surface, which, having cooked for 40 minutes unprotected by the custard, had essentially crisped into a layer of kale chips. Yum.
That said, I felt fortunate to have been cooking for one that evening. The quiche was impossible to cut — the knife snagged greens from right and left at every stroke — and it looked like total slop on the plate. Perfect for me — I love slop — not so perfect for company, not so perfect for sharing with all of you.
Aesthetics asides, I love the flavor of loads of raw greens in quiche. And so I made another one, this time with just a few fewer greens, which I chopped just ever so coarsely. The result? A delectable balance of roughage and custard, suitable even for company.
Without a crust in the equation (a traditional crust that is), this sort of quiche is effortless to whip up for a weeknight dinner. It still takes time, however — 40 minutes in the oven and an essential 20 minutes of resting, which allows its light and creamy texture to set. But if you’re looking to make the whole shebang, here’s Tartine’s quiche recipe in its entirety.



This is how I chopped the greens second time around — the smaller pieces make for a slightly nicer eating experience.


Crustless Quiche, Loaded with Kale
- Total Time: 1 hours 15 minutes
Ingredients
- 5 large eggs
- 3 T. all-purpose flour
- 1 cup crème fraîche (see recipe below)
- 1 cup whole milk
- 1 tsp. kosher salt
- ½ tsp. freshly ground black pepper
- 1 T. fresh thyme*, finely chopped
- 1 to 3 cups** uncooked coarsely chopped kale or chard or mustard greens, etc
* Thyme is amazing (seriously, so good), but tarragon, chives, basil, really whatever herb you like will work.** Aesthetically, 1 cup is perhaps the ideal amount, but if you’re looking to add some more roughage to your diet, 2.5 to 3 cups will do the trick. Definitely give it at least a rough chop.
** Aesthetically, 1 cup is perhaps the ideal amount, but if you’re looking to add some more roughage to your diet, 2.5 to 3 cups will do the trick. Definitely give it at least a rough chop.
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 375ºF.
- Place 1 egg and the flour in a large bowl and whisk until smooth. Whisk in the remaining 4 eggs until blended.
- In a medium bowl, whisk the crème fraîche until smooth. Whisk in the milk. Pour the egg mixture through a fine mesh sieve held over the milk mixture. Whisk in the salt, pepper and thyme (or other herb).
- Pile your greens into a pie plate. Pour the egg mixture over the greens, then press the greens down with a spatula so they are submerged in the custard. Place in the oven and bake for 10 minutes. Reduce the oven temperature to 325ºF and bake until the filling is just set, about 30 minutes longer. The center of the quiche should still feel slightly firm, rather than liquidy, when touched. Let cool on a wire rack for at least 20 minutes to allow the custard to set up, so that it will slice neatly. It can be served warm or at room temperature. To serve a fully cooled quiche warm, cover it with aluminum foil and reheat it in a 325ºF for about 15 minutes.
Notes
* To make crème fraîche, place 2 cups heavy cream in bowl. Add 2 tablespoons of yogurt or 2 tablespoons of buttermilk. Stir to combine. Cover bowl with plastic wrap and let sit at room temperature for 12 to 24 hours. Stir. Mixture will be nice and thick. Store in the fridge until ready to use.
- Prep Time: 15 minutes
- Cook Time: 40 minutes
This post may contain affiliate links. Please read my disclosure policy.
74 Comments on “Crustless Quiche Loaded with Kale”
After reading all the comments, I think I will make it and on top I will add extra kale rubbed with olive oil and sprinkled with sea salt. I love that it tasted like Kale chips ( a favorite of mine).
yum! that is genius.
Alexandra, I love this quiche. I added bacon to the kale and the kale on top worked out super. It got me to thinking about other ingredients. Have you made any other variations on this quiche ? I am making it again today! I will have to take a look at your other recipes.
Love the idea of bacon, too! I don’t usually do too much with it. My favorite additions are the dark, leafy greens. I think keeping it light with just one or two add-ins is the key.
Forgot to mention that I tried lemon thyme in the quiche and that gave it a wonderful spring or summer taste, sort of refreshing . I love lemon thyme- now I am putting it in everything.
Yum! Love the idea of lemon-thyme. So springy. I love lemon thyme.
This was delicious — I went rogue with the flavours and made it with leeks (that I cooked down for a couple of minutes in some butter) and cheddar, then served it with a beetroot and green salad. For such a humble dish this received a lot of approval at the dinner table. I think I actually prefer the quiche without the crust!
Yum! I love leeks in a quiche — I love leeks in any egg dish really — and I love cheddar with any egg dish. Your combo sounds divine. Trying this next time. And I’m with you — I totally prefer quiche without the crust. So much less work, and you really taste the eggs. Love it.
I have not cooked with leeks much. I will have to try this. I do love a good quiche. This one is a favorite of mine. Last week I made a gouda, bacon, broccoli and mushroom quiche with a almond flour crust. It wasn’t very eggy but very delicious as well.
Ohhh, that sounds lovely! And I am intrigued by your almond flour crust…care to share more details? 🙂
The recipe for this crust came from Splendid low-carbing — Jennifer Eloff. The recipe came from Pinterest but I have seen it on FB as well. I think it is okay to share it this way. Please check out the full recipe for Bacon, Broccoli, Mushroom and Gouda Quiche. It was very different than your crustless quiche which I love but extremely good as well.
The recipe used
1cup of almond flour
1/3 cup parmesan cheese
2 egg yolks
1Tbsp. of butter
It was mixed together and pressed in the pan. Then all other ingredients added.
ohhh, that sounds delicious. Thanks so much for sharing, Hilda!
I have been using this as a base for my quiche recipe for years now. I am so glad i found it long ago. I have also substitute chickpea flour with great results!
Wonderful to hear this! It’s one of my favorites as well.
I am going to try this today, but I’m adding BACON! I have it and it needs to be used before it begins talking to me. 🙂 Hoping it will work well~ will pre-cook bacon & chop up. Think I may use some on bottom and some on top so it’s like a crust for bottom and crumble on top. Making a cream fraiche batch with yogurt but only setting for 5 hours sadly. Supposing it will be fine. Will report if you’re interested! Thanks for your great idea!
Hi Juliane!
Bacon sounds like a lovely addition here. Please report back! I am a little worried about the unset creme fraiche — are you adding the yogurt to heavy cream? I hope it turns out OK!
I made this crustless quiche today and it was fabulous. The flavors are so much more than the sum of the parts. I think the thyme and marscapone added a wonderful dimension to this quiche. It is so light -and sophisticated. it is now my go to quiche. It does not need to be loaded down with bacon and other flavors (tho a little Parmesan throw in would be wonderful too) I used 2% milk because it is what I had and the quiche was just fine.
So happy to hear this, Carrie! This is one of my all-time favorites, too! And I totally agree — it’s all about the custard; the add-ins are not what makes it.
Has anyone tried this with almond or coconut flour? Looks very yummy but I would hate to ruin a whole quiche with a substitute.
I have not, but I think you will still have great results omitting the flour altogether.
one of the best quiche recipes I have made.. did not imagine that crustless could be so satisfying.
So happy to hear this!
Yum yum yum! This has been one of my favorite dishes for years. I follow the recipe exactly using 3 cups of kale (measured after a chop with scissors) and following cooking and cooling exactly too. Even though it always seems it won’t fit in the pie pan – it does. Today was the first time I made it using actual crème freche (rather than a substitute). Holy happiness Batman! It was even more amazing. I truly think it is the best thing I have ever cooked. And full of kale! Guests raved about it! Thank you Alexandra!
Oh yay! So wonderful to hear all of this Vicki! I find the custard of this quiche to be insanely delicious and the best texture of any I’ve tried.
I love this quiche. Ali is so right that it makes the custard the star not the ingredients. My family all love it. I do like the idea of purposely leaving some oiled kale on top to make a little additional texture.
Great to hear, Hilda! I love this custard so much. So glad you love it, too 🙂 🙂 🙂 Thanks for writing!