Colmar feels like a storybook come to life. Nestled in Alsace, with its half-timbered houses, flower-lined canals, and cobblestone streets basking in the sun, it invites you to wander and savor. It was there—on a spring day fragrant with blossoms—that I first tasted Quiche Lorraine with Asparagus.
I still remember the moment. I had been strolling through the old town, admiring the pastel façades and the quiet charm of the Petite Venise district, when the scent of something warm and buttery drifted from a small bakery café. Inside, behind the glass, sat a tray of quiches—golden, rustic, and impossibly inviting. One in particular caught my eye: a Quiche Lorraine studded with tender green asparagus spears, their tips just peeking through the custard like little promises of spring.
I ordered a slice, sat by the window, and took my first bite. The crust was thin and crisp, the custard silky, the asparagus sweet and earthy. It was simple, yet deeply satisfying—exactly the kind of food that feels rooted in place and tradition. And as I savored it, I realized I wasn’t just tasting a quiche. I was tasting a piece of history.
Quiche ingredients 
Cook asparagus or savoy cabbage for 8 minutes. Cut in pieces (2″) 
Prepare the egg mixture with some melting cheese like Gruyere, white cheddar, Gouda etc 
Place dough in spring form 
Place asparagus (or/and savoy cabbage)and bacon on top of the dough 
Pour egg mixture on top of quiche 
Bake Quiche in. oven about 50 min, cover with Alu foil halfway through 
Remove Quiche from oven, let cool for 10 minutes 
Guten Appetit! 
Optional, add some cherry tomatoes or other vegetables (savoy cabbage) to the mix.
Back in the days, the Quiche was a quick snack due to the hostess’ lack of time on the day of baking the bread. The main difference with the today’s Ouiche lies in the nature and thickness of the dough; for centuries, it was a fine bread dough, whose mixture, made from everyday ingredients was reduced to the bare minimum: beaten eggs with cream and a little butter. In the summer it was harvest from the garden like Spring onions, which were chopped to enhance the taste of the mixture.
The basis is called Migaine and originated in Lorraine. It consists of a mixture of beaten eggs and crème fraîche that is seasoned with salt and pepper in which smoked prosciutto (bacon) is mixed. Nowadays, there are as many Migaines as there are variations of quiche and tart, whether savory or sweet.
The Story Behind Quiche Lorraine
Long before quiche became a brunch staple around the world, it was a humble dish from the Lorraine region—now part of France, but shaped for centuries by German influence. The earliest versions were astonishingly simple: beaten eggs, cream, and a little butter poured into a thin, crisp crust. That was it. No bacon, no cheese, no towering custard.
Even the name quiche comes from the German word Kuchen, meaning “cake,” a reminder of the region’s shared culinary heritage.
In the summer, when gardens overflowed with fresh produce, the people of Lorraine would chop spring onions and add them to the mixture, giving the custard a gentle sweetness and a hint of freshness. The medieval writer Guy Cabourdin described the quiche of his time as “thin and crispy,” emphasizing that its quality depended entirely on the freshness of the ingredients.
Interestingly, bacon—now considered essential in many modern versions—did not appear in written sources until the nineteenth century. As living standards rose and the dish moved from rural kitchens to bourgeois dining tables, the quiche grew richer, thicker, and more indulgent. What began as a frugal, rustic meal slowly transformed into the hearty quiche we know today.
The kinship of the original quiche with the Alsatian Tartes Flambée (Flammkuchen) is very obvious, because the latter has kept the practice of a thin dough similar to the historical Quiche. The people of Lorraine, who live in the regions bordering Alsace and who bake the Tarte Flambée (cooked over wood-fired ovens), know from experience that there is a difference in culinary tradition between the Lorraine and Alsatian Quiche. The people of Lorraine favor crème fraîche, while the Alsatians combine fromage blanc (Bibeleskaes) and crème fraîche with a little flour. The Alsatian Flammkuchen is therefore similar to the Lorraine Quiche.
Bringing Colmar Home: My Quiche Lorraine with Asparagus
That first taste in Colmar stayed with me long after I returned home. There was something about the combination of the classic Lorraine custard with the delicate sweetness of asparagus that felt like spring on a plate. So I began recreating it in my own kitchen—starting with a thin, crisp crust inspired by the historical version, and adding just enough richness to honor the modern one.
The asparagus brings a brightness that lifts the custard, while the simplicity of the ingredients keeps the dish grounded in its origins. Every time I bake it, the aroma fills my kitchen with the same warmth I felt in that little café in Colmar. And when I take the first bite, I’m transported back to that sunlit window, watching the world go by as I discovered a new favorite.
This quiche has become one of those recipes I return to again and again—comforting, seasonal, and full of memory. It’s a reminder that food is more than nourishment. It’s a bridge between places, between past and present, between the flavors we discover and the ones we carry home.
Lorraine Quiche with Asparagus
Ingredients
- Pie crust (store bought), like the classic Pillsbury pie crust.
- Filling:
- 1 lb green asparagus (and/or savoy cabbage)
- 8 slices bacon, fried and crumbled
- 1 cup whole cream
- 4 eggs
- 1 cup shredded cheese (white cheddar, gouda, swiss)
- 3 cloves garlic
- Dash of salt and pepper, nutmeg
Instructions
- Always pre-bake the pie crust to avoid a gummy pastry.
- I placed mine in to a 9″ spring form.
- Preheat the oven to 400 F.
- Bake pie crust for 10 min., it creates a stronger crust that can better hold a moist filling, such as the egg mixture in quiche.
- Wash the asparagus or savoy cabbage, cut into small pieces and blanch in salted water.
- Allow to cool briefly and spread on the dough.
- Fry the bacon and crumble, then sprinkle over the savoy cabbage.
- Mix the cream with grated cheese, eggs and spices and pour over the quiche.
- Bake in the preheated oven first 10 min at 400 F on the lowest shelf and then continue at 350 F top/bottom heat for approx. 45 to 50 minutes.
- Cover with foil halfway through if it gets too dark
