A Little Sweet Potato Quiche

This recipe was an adaptation from Donna Hay's book Entertaining.

Her photos and recipes are always beautiful things. I suppose she might be the Australian equivalent of Martha Stewart.

Only, there seems to be a certain casual effortlessness...

I own a couple Australian cookbooks and I've given several as gifts.
I must say there's something I love about the photography, food, and food styling.

It's so... fresh!

I've started doing some teas, and this was one of the offerings on the first day.

I thought it would be easiest to handle them in regular-sized muffin tins, this way they're all uniform in size, a perfect single serving, and no new kitchen equipment is necessary.

Everyone has a muffin tin, right?

Although the puff pastry is a great time-saver and looks beautiful, I think I'd like to try a variation of this combination in a large quiche with a regular pastry crust...

Little Sweet Potato Quiches

makes 6

1/2 lb. sweet potato, peeled and cut in a medium dice

olive oil

kosher salt

1 sheet frozen puff pastry, (gently!) thawed overnight in the refrigerator

2 lg eggs

1/2 c half and half or whipping cream

1/4 t freshly ground black pepper

1/4 t freshly grated nutmeg

1/3 c freshly grated Parmesan cheese

Fresh sage leaves, torn or chopped

Preheat oven to 400 degrees F.

Grease a 6-hole regular-sized muffin tin.

Toss the sweet potato with about 1 1/2 T olive oil, a few grinds of black pepper, and a sprinkling of kosher salt. Place on a baking sheet and bake about 15 minutes, tossing once during baking.

While the sweet potato cooks, roll out puff pastry with a rolling pin on a lightly floured surface until approximately 11 x 13 inches in size. Cut the pastry into 6 equal pieces. Line each muffin cup with a piece of pastry, pleating the sides as necessary so the pastry fits the tin. Dock the bottom and sides of the pastry and place the muffin tin in the freezer about 10 minutes.

Bake the pastry cups at 400 degrees F for about 10 minutes, or until the sides puff and begin to turn golden brown.

While the pastry cups bake, combine the eggs, cream, nutmeg, pepper, a sprinkle of kosher salt, and Parmesan cheese. Whisk until blended and set aside.

When the pastry is done, remove the pan from the oven and turn the oven temperature down to 375 degrees. Using the back of a spoon, "deflate" the puff pastry on the sides of the muffin cup to make room for the filling. Divide the egg mixture between the muffin cups, being careful not to overfill. Place roasted sweet potatoes in each cup with the eggs and top with sage leaves.

Bake for approximately 20 minutes, or until the filling is set. Let the quiches cool slightly and remove from the muffin tin. You may need to run a sharp knife along the edge between the tin and the pastry.

Serve warm.