Forget rolling out a pie crust or blind baking; our secret weapon for an effortless homemade quiche is a store-bought graham cracker crust. Yes, you read that right. This unexpected quiche base pairs perfectly with salty Parmesan cheese, flavorful browned sausage, tender diced zucchini, and a thick, creamy egg filling seasoned with an Italian herb seasoning mix. Whether you’re searching for a sweet and savory breakfast idea, a show-stopping brunch recipe, or a uniquely satisfying idea for a weeknight dinner, this easy-to-assemble quiche is about to become your new secret weapon.

Several years ago, B.O.B. Bob and I went to see a concert with friends at Wolf Trap. For those not familiar with Northern Virginia, Wolf Trap is a performing arts venue that hosts outdoor concerts in its Filene Center from May to September. At one point in time, it was a favorite place of ours to see a show because they had bands we really enjoyed, it was located somewhat close to our home, and it was always an enjoyable place to hang out with friends on the lawn and share a picnic. Due to some changes over the years, it’s no longer one of our favorite places to see a show; however, I still check the schedule each spring in hopes that they will suddenly start to put new and exciting bands on their somewhat repetitive calendar. I mean, seriously, one can only see the same artist play over and over again before they are finally forced to move on to bigger and better pastures. Or, in this case, music arenas. The only exception, of course, would be if the returning artist happened to be Harry Connick, Jr. For him, both B.O.B. Bob and I are always willing to make an exception.

Anyway, at this particular concert, we just so happened to have lawn seats, which meant that we brought along a small picnic, since Wolf Trap allows guests to bring both food and alcohol onto its property. On this memorable evening, Betty-La, a dear friend who sadly no longer lives in Virginia, brought a graham cracker quiche for us to share with one another. Y’all, I am not lying when I say that that insanely delicious quiche has been in my thoughts ever since taking the first bite. The rich egg filling, along with the saltiness of its added cheese and crumbled bacon, paired so freaking fantastically with the quiche’s sweet graham cracker crust. Finally, all these years later, after thinking and drooling over that quiche, I finally took the leap of experimenting with my own version. And let me just tell you now, this quiche sure as heck did not fail in comparison. The only change I would even possibly consider would be to use spicy sausage or add hot sauce or crushed red pepper flakes to the filling.  It seems that after all of these years, I’m apparently becoming rather fond of a little bit of heat.

Ingredients:

• 8-oz. Regular Pork Sausage
• 1 10-oz. Store-Bought Graham Cracker Crust
• 4-oz. (Approximately 2 Cups) Freshly Grated Parmesan Cheese
• 1 Medium Zucchini, Diced (Approximately 2 1/4 Cups or 12-oz.)
• 5 Large Eggs
• 1/2 Cup Heavy Whipping Cream
• 2 Teaspoons Italian Herb Seasoning Mix
• 1/4 Teaspoon Kosher Salt
• 1/4 Teaspoon Finely Ground Black Pepper

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees.
2. Brown the sausage over medium heat until cooked through. This should take between 9 to 12 minutes, depending on the heat of your stove. Make sure to break the sausage apart with a wooden spoon and stir the sausage often to prevent burning. Transfer the browned sausage to a paper towel-lined plate to drain and cool.
3. Place the graham cracker crust on a foil-lined baking sheet. Evenly spread 1/2 cup of the grated Parmesan on the bottom of the graham cracker crust. Next, evenly spread half of the browned sausage on top of the cheese, and then evenly spread half of the diced zucchini over the top of the sausage.
4. In a small bowl, whisk together the eggs, cream, seasoning mix, salt, and pepper until well combined. Evenly pour half of the egg mixture over the zucchini layer.
5. Evenly spread 1 cup of the grated Parmesan on top of the egg mixture. Next, evenly spread the remaining half of the browned sausage on top of the cheese, and then evenly spread the remaining half of the diced zucchini over the top of the sausage.
6. Evenly pour the remaining half of the egg mixture over the zucchini layer. Evenly spread the remaining 1/2 cup of grated Parmesan over the top of the quiche.
7. Bake for 40 to 50 minutes or until cooked through.
8. Allow to cool for at least 15 minutes before cutting and serving.

Suggestions:

• To make this recipe, I browned an entire 16-oz. roll of Jimmy Dean Regular Pork Sausage. I used half of the sausage for this quiche and froze the remaining browned sausage to use in a future recipe. It’s always nice to have pre-cooked sausage on hand for a last-minute recipe.
• I used a larger 10-inch graham cracker crust for this recipe so that I would not have to worry about it overflowing.
• Placing the quiche on a baking sheet will make it easier to get in and out of the oven, and lining it with foil will help with cleanup if the quiche filling does somehow manage to spill over.
• Do not use pre-grated store-bought cheese. Freshly grated cheese has a much better taste and texture, and will also help you save money. This recipe requires half of an 8-oz. wedge of Parmesan cheese.
• Use this Homemade Italian Herb Seasoning Mix (No-Salt) to make this quiche. If you are using a store-bought Italian herb seasoning that contains salt, you may want to omit the 1/4 teaspoon of finely ground sea salt suggested in this recipe.

Improvements:

• Use sweet or spicy Italian sausage for this recipe.
• For extra spice, add hot sauce or crushed red pepper flakes to the egg mixture.
• If zucchini is not in season, replace it with eggplant or very finely diced green pepper or sweet potato.
• This quiche is sweet, rich, and savory. If you are serving this quiche for breakfast or brunch, serve it with a side salad, fresh fruit, or this Blackberry & Cucumber Salad. If you are serving this quiche for dinner, serve it with a side salad, steamed vegetables, or this Fennel & Tomato Italian Vinaigrette Salad.

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Italian Zucchini & Sausage Graham Cracker Quiche

Ingredients:

• 8-oz. Regular Pork Sausage
• 1 10-oz. Store-Bought Graham Cracker Crust
• 4-oz. (Approximately 2 Cups) Freshly Grated Parmesan Cheese
• 1 Medium Zucchini, Diced (Approximately 2 1/4 Cups or 12-oz.)
• 5 Large Eggs
• 1/2 Cup Heavy Whipping Cream
• 2 Teaspoons Italian Herb Seasoning Mix
• 1/4 Teaspoon Kosher Salt
• 1/4 Teaspoon Finely Ground Black Pepper

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees.
2. Brown the sausage over medium heat until cooked through. This should take between 9 to 12 minutes, depending on the heat of your stove. Make sure to break the sausage apart with a wooden spoon and stir the sausage often to prevent burning. Transfer the browned sausage to a paper towel-lined plate to drain and cool.
3. Place the graham cracker crust on a foil-lined baking sheet. Evenly spread 1/2 cup of the grated Parmesan on the bottom of the graham cracker crust. Next, evenly spread half of the browned sausage on top of the cheese, and then evenly spread half of the diced zucchini over the top of the sausage.
4. In a small bowl, whisk together the eggs, cream, seasoning mix, salt, and pepper until well combined. Evenly pour half of the egg mixture over the zucchini layer.
5. Evenly spread 1 cup of the grated Parmesan on top of the egg mixture. Next, evenly spread the remaining half of the browned sausage on top of the cheese, and then evenly spread the remaining half of the diced zucchini over the top of the sausage.
6. Evenly pour the remaining half of the egg mixture over the zucchini layer. Evenly spread the remaining 1/2 cup of grated Parmesan over the top of the quiche.
7. Bake for 40 to 50 minutes or until cooked through.
8. Allow to cool for at least 15 minutes before cutting and serving.

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Use this Homemade Italian Herb Seasoning Mix (N0-Salt) to make these Italian Zucchini & Sausage Graham Cracker Quiche. Making your own Italian herb seasoning mix is a real game changer, especially when there is no salt added. Not only does it give you the ability to control the salt content in your recipes, but it also allows you to customize the blend of herbs and spices to your liking. If you’re crazy about garlic, add more garlic powder. If you prefer food a little bit spicier, add additional crushed red pepper flakes. The best part about this homemade seasoning is that it only takes a few minutes to make and can be stored for use in all of your favorite Italian recipes. CLICK HERE for the recipe.