Crustless Three-Cheese Tomato-Basil Quiche – Kalyn’s Kitchen

posted by Kalyn Denny on July 9, 2021

Crustless Three-Cheese Tomato-Basil Quiche is the perfect dish to make whenever you can find fresh Roma tomatoes and basil! 

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At my house I have a collection of cookbooks that take up an entire wall in my office. I have so many cookbooks I can go for a years without looking at a certain book, and then one day it will catch my eye. Recently I picked up a quirky book called Nutbread and Nostalgia, published in 1979 by the Junior League of South Bend, Indiana. And this very, very old book is where I got the idea of using fresh tomatoes and basil in a quiche, and this Crustless Three-Cheese Tomato-Basil Quiche that I’m reminding you about for Friday Favorites was the happy result.

Of course the recipe in the book wasn’t crustless, and I actually changed just about everything in the inspiring recipe except the starring ingredients. It took me several tries to come up with a keeper version, and along the way I added cottage cheese for extra protein and switched the tomatoes for less wet Roma tomatoes. But making this Crustless Three-Cheese Tomato-Basil Quiche several times to get it right really wasn’t much of a hardship, because I gobbled up even the ones that didn’t set up well enough, and by the time I had perfected the  recipe I’m sharing here, I was wondering why it took me so long to think of making this type of crustless quiche.

This is a perfect summer dish to spotlight the combination of tomatoes and basil. But you can get good Roma tomatoes even in the winter and if you don’t mind splurging on some fresh basil I’d love this for breakfast during the holidays as well. And this will keep in the fridge for a few days and reheats well, so make it for Weekend Food Prep if you’re someone who likes to do that! If you love the combinations of fresh basil and tomatoes like I do, I hope you’ll give this a try.

What ingredients do you need for this recipe?

• Roma tomatoes
• green onion
• eggs
• Italian Herb Seasoning (affiliate link)
• Spike Seasoning (affiliate link) or other all-purpose seasoning blend
• half-and-half, milk, or cream
• salt and fresh-ground black pepper to taste
• cottage cheese
• shredded Swiss cheese
• finely grated Parmesan cheese
• thinly sliced basil

What’s the difference between a crustless quiche and a frittata?

This is a custardy egg pie that’s baked in a pie dish, so it’s definitely a quiche and not a frittata or egg casserole! Frittatas can look similar, but they are an eggy combination that cooks in a frying pan, sometimes going under the broiler for a few minutes at the end. Most quiche recipes have a pie-crust type crust, but you won’t miss that with all the tasty ingredients in this low-carb crustless quiche!

What kind of cheese can you use?

I used shredded swiss cheese in the frittata, which is a cheese that’s used in traditional quiche recipes. But if you don’t have Swiss or don’t like it, this would be delicious with shredded Monterey Jack or even Mozzarella. I used cottage cheese and I wouldn’t skip that; you can’t really taste it in the finished dish but it adds creaminess and protein. And finally, some grated Parmesan Cheese added to the cheesy flavor, but any type of pungent hard grating cheese would be great.

What kind of tomatoes did I use?

After experimenting I decided that the drier Roma Tomatoes were perfect in this recipe and any kind of paste tomato will be great in this recipe that has chopped tomatoes in the quiche and sliced tomatoes on top. But if you have other fresh red garden tomatoes you want to use, I’d choose firm medium-sized tomatoes that aren’t overly ripe. It will be even more important to drain the tomatoes on paper towels if you’re using a wetter tomato variety; I would drain one side, then use another paper towel and drain the other side.

Want more ideas for crustless quiche?

I’m a fan of creamy quiche recipes and other’s I’ve enjoyed include Cheesy Crustless Quiche Lorraine, Pepperoni Pizza Keto Crustless Quiche, Bacon, Mushroom, and Feta Crustless Quiche, or Bacon Cheeseburger Keto Breakfast Quiche. Or check out Low-Carb and Keto Crustless Quiche Recipes for a great collection of crustless quiche ideas from Kalyn’s Kitchen and around the web!

How to make this recipe:

(Scroll down for complete printable recipe with nutritional information.)

1. Cut 3 small Roma tomatoes in half lengthwise and scoop out seeds, then chop the tomatoes and slice the green onion.
2. Beat the eggs with half and half (or milk or cream), Italian Herb Seasoning (affiliate link), Spike Seasoning (affiliate link) and a little salt and pepper.
3. Then gently mix in the cottage cheese, Swiss cheese, Parmesan cheese, chopped tomatoes, and green onion.
4. Pour the mixture into a 9-10″ pie dish that you’ve sprayed with non-stick spray and bake at 350F/180C for about 30 minutes.
5. While it bakes, thinly slice 3 more small Roma tomatoes and let them drain on paper towels, and thinly slice some fresh basil (or cut the basil with Herb Scissors (affiliate link) if you have some.
6. When the 30 minutes is up, remove the quiche from the oven, top with tomato slices and basil, and bake 30 minutes more, or slightly longer if the center doesn’t seem done.
7. This part is completely optional, but you can put the finished quiche under the broiler for a couple of minutes if you want to get the top a little more browned. If you do this, be sure to watch it carefully so the basil doesn’t burn!
8. Let the quiche sit for a few minutes before you cut it and enjoy.

Make it a Meal:

I’d eat this any time of day and it would taste great for breakfast of course! But I’d love it with Cauliflower Rice with Basil, Parmesan, and Pine Nuts for a low-carb summer dinner.

More Meatless Dishes with Eggs:

Asparagus and Tomato Frittata with Havarti and Dill ~ Kalyn’s Kitchen
Kale, Red Pepper, and Goat Cheese Frittata ~ Aggie’s Kitchen
Fifteen-Minute Salsa Verde Eggs ~ Kalyn’s Kitchen
Zucchini, Goat Cheese, and Basil Frittata ~ The Perfect Pantry
Low-Carb Green Chile and Cheese Egg Muffins ~ Kalyn’s Kitchen

Weekend Food Prep:

This recipe has been added to a category called Weekend Food Prep  to help you find recipes you can prep or cook on the weekend and eat during the week!

Ingredients

• 6 small Roma tomatoes (see notes)
• 1/2 cup thinly sliced green onion
• 6 large eggs, beaten
• 1/4 tsp. Italian Herb Blend
• 1/2 tsp. Spike Seasoning (optional but recommended)
• 1/2 cup half-and-half (see notes)
• salt and fresh-ground black pepper to taste
• 1 cup cottage cheese
• 2 cups shredded Swiss cheese
• 1/4 cup finely grated Parmesan cheese
• 1/4 cup thinly sliced basil (see notes)

Instructions

1. Preheat oven (or toaster oven) to 350F/180C. Spray a 9-10″ glass or crockery pie dish with non-stick spray.
2. Cut 3 small Roma tomatoes in half lengthwise, and scrape out the seeds.
3. Dry the inside of the tomatoes with a paper towel and then chop them.
4. Thinly slice enough green onion to make 1/2 cup.
5. Beat the eggs with the half-and-half, Italian Herb Seasoning (affiliate link), Spike Seasoning (affiliate link), salt and pepper in a large bowl (or extra-large glass measuring cup like I used) until whites and yolks of the egg are well-combined.
6. Then gently mix in the cottage cheese, Swiss cheese, Parmesan cheese, chopped tomatoes, and green onion.
7. Pour the mixture into the pie dish and bake 30 minutes.
8. While the quiche is doing the initial baking, thinly slice 3 small Roma tomatoes, and drain them on paper towels. (If the tomatoes seem extra wet, put between two layers of paper towel and gently press to absorb some of the liquid.)
9. Slice the fresh basil.
10. After 30 minutes, remove the quiche from the oven and arrange the sliced tomatoes and basil over the top.
11. Bake 30 minutes longer, or slightly more if the center doesn’t seem set enough.
12. Optional: When the quiche is done, you can remove it from the oven, heat the broiler, and broil the top of the finished quiche for a minute or two so it’s lightly browned. If you do this step, WATCH IT VERY CAREFULLY so the basil doesn’t burn!
13. Let the finished quiche sit for a few minutes to get firm before you cut it. (The top will sink down some, so expect that!)
14. Serve warm or at room temperature.

Notes

Any variety of paste tomato will work for this recipe; use less tomatoes for lower carbs if you prefer. Use heavy cream, half and half, or milk, whichever you prefer. I used my Herb Scissors (affiliate link) to cut the basil.

This recipe inspired by a Tomato Quiche I spotted in Nutbread and Nostalgia which is definitely one of my very oldest cookbooks.

Nutrition Information:

Yield:

6

Serving Size:

1
Amount Per Serving: Calories: 301Total Fat: 20gSaturated Fat: 11gUnsaturated Fat: 7gCholesterol: 236mgSodium: 544mgCarbohydrates: 8gFiber: 1gSugar: 4gProtein: 23g

Nutrition information is automatically calculated by the Recipe Plug-In I am using. I am not a nutritionist and cannot guarantee 100% accuracy, since many variables affect those calculations.

Low-Carb Diet / Low-Glycemic Diet / South Beach Diet Suggestions:
This Crustless Three-Cheese Tomato-Basil Quiche is a great low-carb dish, suitable for low-carb eating plans. If you’re making this for the original South Beach Diet, they would recommend low-fat dairy products, but other low-carb plans might prefer full-fat dairy, so everyone make your own choice on that. Tomatoes do have some carbs, so for Keto or extremely low-carb you might want to use less tomatoes, but if you check the nutritional information this is actually pretty low in carbs.

Find More Recipes Like This One:
Use Breakfast Recipes to find more ideas like this one. Use the Diet Type Index to find more recipes suitable for a specific eating plan. You might also like to Follow Kalyn’s Kitchen on Pinterest to see all the good recipes I’m sharing there.

Historical Notes for this Recipe:
This recipe was first posted in 2016. It was updated in 2021 with more information and featured as a Friday Favorites pick.