What 'Real Men' Want

“What ‘real men’ want is…” If  in the eighties a cook was asked to complete this sentence the answer would probably comprise a list of spicy, grilled, barbequed, broiled or roasted proteins that had parents; Never! sushi, salad, Perrier- white wine spritzers or quiche. ‘Real Man’ food as described by a self-professed fully paid-up, Real Man Club member and acquaintance of mine is hefty, chewy, starchy, meaty, greasy with lots of garlic and sauce of any brown, red or orange variety, never hollandaise, béarnaise or béchamel.

Real Men, he advised, do not like greens as such; onions, tomatoes, mushrooms and potatoes exist as a marginal class of vegetables, playing only a supporting role to the main meat or battered, deep-fried fish or shellfish. They are fond of blue cheese only as a dip, and melted orange cheddar or stringy ‘mozz’ and lots of it, but not fondue (too cuddly).

Real men also like eggs and considering quiche is at least two thirds eggs, why did “real men don’t eat quiche” become the mantra of this movement? Was it that French food seems too fussy and effete or was it the frilly fluted pastry crust? Perhaps it was disdained because of its popularity with the ‘girlfriend brunch’ crowd. Now, Real Men, like the twentieth century, have turned a page into the new millennium, willing to brandish their forks where they’ve never dug-in before, the New Man Quiche! It has eggs and cheese, ham and a hefty, crispy potatoe crust with a rugged crunchy edge, just don’t serve it with sushi.

Hash- Brown Crust Quiche

Based on a Martha Stewart Everyday Food recipe 



photo by L. Gatto-White



Ingredients:

For filling

·         5 eggs

·         150g. soft goat cheese

·         ¾ cup sour cream

·         1 tsp. each: salt and pepper 

·         8 raw asparagus stalks, diagonally sliced in ¼” pieces

·         ½ cup finely sliced ham (3 slices)

·         ¼ cup either chopped cilantro leaves, parsley, tarragon or basil

For crust: 

·         7 McCain’s frozen hash brown patties, thawed

·         1 egg

·         1 tbsp. softened butter

·         1 tsp. olive oil

·         1 cup finely shredded parmesan cheese

·         ½ cup chives cut in ¼” pieces

·         ½ tsp. pepper

Method:

·         preheat oven to 375

·         in a medium bowl, using your hands break-up the defrosted hash browns until they are coarse and crumbly

·         add the parmesan and chives, mix well

·         in a small bowl, whisk together oil and butter, add pepper, whisk in the egg until the fat breaks-up into small pieces

·         add the egg mixture to the hash browns and mix well

·         line a 7”x 2 ½” spring-form pan with greased parchment paper

·         using your hands, firmly press the crust mixture in the pan, covering the bottom and up to the top of the sides, leaving the top edge uneven for a rustic effect

·         place on a baking tray and bake for approx. 20mins to set crust

·         in a large bowl beat together sour cream, goat cheese, salt and pepper, add eggs a few at a time and beat well

·         stir-in ham, asparagus and chopped herb

·         pour filling into set crust, return to oven and bake for approx. 40 mins. until filling is set