Are you as excited as I am that asparagus is finally in season again?!! Spring is finally here--this as we just had another snowstorm here in the Northeast-- but no matter because somewhere it's warm enough to ship in wonderful asparagus to our local supermarket and so I've been cooking with it all week! I've been roasting it, made this wonderful chicken and asparagus skillet thing that I promise to share with you soon and then I remembered about this amazingly delicious and easy crustless asparagus and feta quiche that I quintupled and served to about 100 people for a huge brunch that we had at our house a couple of years ago. It was gobbled up in no time (I probably could've decatupled it--is that even a word?) so I can guarantee you it was a hit. And I've been meaning to share it with you for ages, but for some reason...anyway, don't procrastinate like me--make this now while asparagus are in season. You're going to love it!

This quiche is delicious and special enough to serve for even your fanciest brunches, but more often I find myself making this for dinner. It's great for those nights when life just seems too busy and overloaded and you can't seem to muster up the energy to make a full blown meal. Once you've gotten this into the oven, you can make a simple salad and you've got yourself one tasty and low-carb healthy dinner!

Each bite is full of the wonderful contrasts of flavor and texture:  the crunch and slight bitterness of the asparagus perfectly balancing out the creaminess of the egg and slight saltiness of the melted feta. Each bite reminds me that no matter what the weather condition outside, Spring is really here!! Wouldn't this make a great addition to your Easter brunch?

"No-Crust" Asparagus and Feta Quiche

Makes 8 servings but only if you're serving other things with this. Otherwise, especially if you're making this for a light dinner, it's more like 4 servings

Prep Time:  15-20 minutes: Bake Time:  35-45 minutes

Ingredients

• 1 tablespoon butter
• 16 stalks of thick asparagus or one large bunch of pencil-thin asparagus, trimmed of tough ends
• 5 large eggs
• 1/2 cup half-and-half (you could also use fat-free--it will just be less creamy)
• 1/2 cup light sour cream
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 1/4 teaspoon black pepper
• 1 cup crumbled feta cheese
• 1/2 cup chopped scallions
• 1/4 fresh parsley, minced
• additional salt and pepper to taste

The Recipe

1.  Preheat oven to 350ºF. Spray a glass or ceramic pie dish with non-stick spray and set aside.

2.  Cut asparagus into 1/2 pieces. Melt the butter in a large skillet and add the asparagus. Season with a bit of salt and pepper and saute them for about 5-7 minutes, until asparagus are crisp-tender. Transfer to a bowl and set aside to cool slightly.

3.  In a large bowl, whisk the eggs together with a wire whisk. Add the half and half, sour cream, salt and pepper and whisk again. Using a large spoon, stir in the feta, scallions, parsley and cooled asparagus until evenly incorporated.

4.  Pour the mixture into the prepared pie dish and bake for 35-45 minutes or until the quiche is golden brown and a butter knife inserted into the center of the quiche comes out perfectly clean.

5.  Let the quiche rest for at least 10 minutes before cutting so that you can have nice even slices. Serve warm or at room temperature. You can even chill it and make this up to 3 days in advance. Just cover it well with plastic wrap, keep it refrigerated and reheat in a 350ºF oven for 10-15 minutes. Also this doubles really well. You can cook it a 9x13-inch pan and cut into squares if you like instead of two pie dishes.

Enjoy!

Note:  Recipe adapted from Tori Avey. I omitted the nutmeg because none of us like nutmeg and increased the amount of feta. I also used more asparagus.