Is it possible to have a good crust without prebaking a quiche?

Question

I'm planning on making a quiche (Lorraine with leek to be exact) and I was looking up recipes for quiches. Most recipes call for blind-baking the crust in advance (or at least partly), but some skip this step and pour the filling in the raw dough and bake it like that.

I think blind-baking would prevent the dough from getting soggy since the filling is quite liquid. The other recipes look nice (judging on the picture), but won't the dough be soggy? Or should you put the temperature lower and the time higher so the liquid can evaporate?

Does it matter whether you blind-bake your crust for a quiche? Or does it mainly depend on the type of dough (puff, shortcrust...)? Or on the amount of liquid or type of veggie/meat (precooked)? Any other factors that I don't think of?

Asked by Mien

Answer

In the normal cooking time of a quiche (20 to 30 minutes), the crust doesn't really get soggy from the filling, even if it is quite liquid, as is expected for quiche Lorraine. So, you can without problem cook your quiche without first blind-baking the crust. The difference will be in the crispness of the crust: if you try to get it crispy, you should prebake, if you don't mind it being rather, well, “plain”, you don't.

The only real reason for me to blind-bake a crust is when you put something on it that won't be cooked (tartelettes), that will only get grilled or that will be baked less that it would require to bake the crust (meringue tart). Most of these examples are fruit tarts, however.

Answered by F'x

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Does adding oil and fats affect bread crust development?

Question

I had recently started baking bread and I have read up a lot on developing a great crust. Generally it involves steam in the oven at the beginning of the baking process, high even heat and etc.

I noticed something that I have not read about and was hoping someone can confirm it.

I noticed that when I added extra virgin olive oil, I developed a much nicer crust then when I made a much leaner bread that did not have any fats in it. Does the oil really affect how my crust develops, or do you think its a different factor that gave my bread a better crust. If it is the EVOO, why does it give my bread a better crust.

Asked by Jay

Answer

Oil definitely changes the crust, and whether or not it's "better" depends on what you're going for. Oil in the dough tends to give a softer and thicker crust, while a lean dough tends to give a crisper and thinner crust. Other dough ingredients that tenderize include milk and eggs, and there are plenty of web pages listing "dough enhancers" that give various effects. Again, it all depends on what type of crust and crumb you want.

Answered by amcnabb

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Crusty french bread

Question

The crust on my french bread never turns out "crusty" like it does in restaurants, what am I doing wrong?

Asked by curriegrr

Answer

To promote a crust on a bread (ie. getting it 'crusty'), the bread must be baked in two phases. First, steam must be introduced (and not vented) for about a third of the bake time. Then, you must evacuate the steam and bake the remainder of time dry. This is the trick to making crusty breads. Also critical in the promotion of crust is temperature. You must bake crusty breads at a high temp., at least 400 degrees (which is what I bake my crusty-style breads at).

Also of note, crusty breads tend to be lean doughs, that is one without a high fat content.

Answered by mrwienerdog

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How do I ensure my deep dish crust gets cooked

Question

I've made a couple of deep dish pizzas over the last several months and I occasionally get either a soggy or a not cooked crust. I've been pushing the dough into a cast iron skillet and then putting it into a 400-450 degree oven for say around 25 minutes. By then the crust around the edges is threatening on burning but the crust on the bottom might still be doughy.

I've thought of a couple things and I'd love to hear some feedback on what you may have tried and found successful:

• "sear" the pizza on the stove for a little bit (Wondering if just a minute or two would suffice
• Bake the pizza with the pan on my baking stone

I'm nervous that the cast iron might suck enough heat out of the stone to risk cracking it.

As always your feedback is appreciated.

Asked by Brian

Answer

Deep dish modifications successful.

I ended up cooking in my 10" cast iron skillet at 475 for 20 minutes directly on my preheated pizza stone.

On top of this I followed @derobert's advice and sweat the ever loving crap out of my diced tomatoes. Was able to extract a full cup of liquid out of them AFTER draining for an hour.

The crust came out golden brown from edge to edge and all along the bottom and the exposed upper rim. There was no pool of liquid pouring through during cutting either. Was great last night and was great today for lunch.

Answered by Brian

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How Does a Grocery Store “Self-Rising Crust” Work

Question

As far as I understand, frozen pizzas sold at the grocery store are par-baked and then frozen, to be fully baked when they are put into your oven at home.

I noticed that some of these pizzas describe themselves as having a "rising crust." Those crusts get quite tall, an inch or an inch and a half (probably about 3-5 cm). My homemade thin crust pizza is maybe half that height.

Yet these crusts have much more in common with a thin crust pizza than a Chicago style, or the not-too-tasty bread-y imitation of Chicago-style that passes in most Chicago-style recipes and at some chain restaurants.

How do these pizzas work? I have trouble seeing how they could rise after par-baking, so are they not par-baked? How could I duplicate this crust from scratch?

Answer

I believe they use a combination of hydrogenated oils, yeast and standard leavening agents like baking powder and baking soda.

My experience is that without hydro, the super rising crusts are just tougher to make. I have settled for a medium riser but an awesome taste. I like to use yeast in my pizza crusts. Generally, chemical reactions go faster at higher temps, so yes temperature does matter...

However, since the reaction starts immediately, I would say it is more dependent on the amount and how long you let it work. The trick is the optimize the timing so that you bake the shape you want (i.e., fluffy and big) into the crust just as it gets to that point from the leavening (the most risen and fluffy). If you wait too long it will depress...

I read a bit about this here as well:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Baking_powder

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When is it necessary to put foil over a pie's crust?

Question

In the past, when I have made pumpkin pie, I have never put foil around the edge of the crust of the pie. Yesterday, I baked a pie with someone else, and they insisted that the foil was necessary to prevent the pie crust from burning. I have noticed the a lot of recipes for pies other than pumpkin (frequently covered pies like strawberry-rhubarb) explicitly call for aluminum foil on the crust.

When does a pie crust need to be covered in foil while baking?

Answer

Generally speaking, when the length of the cooking time required to cook the filling correctly is such that the crust would burn if it wasn't covered.

It is usually more necessary when you have blind-baked the crust, but I must say I've cooked a lot of pies in my time and never covered the crust because I'm always careful to par-bake the crust just enough to seal it and no more.

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Gluten-free replacement to coat something with before roasting, to obtain crust

Question

A recipe calls for coating (slightly cooked) fennel bulbs in flour before roasting them, presumably to obtain a bit of a crust. Is there anything I could coat them with that is gluten-free?

Answer

Rice flour should work well for this; it produces very crispy crusts.

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Techniques to get a nice golden-brown crust on bread

Question

How do I make sure the crust of a baguette, etc. turns out a nice golden-brown when baking?

Answer

The trick is steam and high heat.

• Heat your oven up to 450 F (230 C).
• Bring a pot of water to boil on your stove.
• Once boiling, pour the water into a deep roasting pan on the bottom shelf of your oven. If you can place it directly on the bottom of your oven (it doesn't obstruct vents) then that is ok too. 1" (2.5 cm) of water is enough.
• Let the steam build up for 5 minutes
• Spray your baguettes with water, they should be rather nicely wet. Don't forget to slash them as well
• Put your baguettes in the oven on the top shelf. BE CAREFUL opening your oven. Don't let the steam blast you in your face or other exposed body parts. Let it dissipate a bit.
• 5 minutes into baking, spray the baguettes again (be careful)
• 10 minutes into baking, spray the baguettes again
• 15 minutes into baking, carefully remove the tin of water from the oven
• Let bake for a final 20 minutes

Depending on how even your oven is browning the crust you may need to turn the pan at the spray intervals.

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At what temperature should one bake a coconut crust for a Hershey Bar Pie?

Question

Today I plan to bake a hershey bar pie.

I have done this in the past but never really get the crust to turn out like I expect. I am wondering if I am not cooking it at the correct temperature since all the other aspects of making the crust have been followed.

What is or are the recommended temperatures for doing this?

Answer

My friend makes coconut crusts all the time and she bakes them at 350 degrees. But AllRecipes.com bakes their crust at 325 degrees for 15 minutes.

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