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If you love quiche, but don’t love the extra effort of making a pie crust, this veggie crustless quiche is for you. It’s made with spaghetti squash, onion, and kale, but you’d never guess how many veggies are actually inside because it tastes so good.
I start with Instant Pot spaghetti squash most often, but you can also cook spaghetti squash in the oven. And if you want more crustless recipes, try my crustless pumpkin pie next.
Why You’ll Love this Crustless Quiche
- It tastes unbelievably good. My top priority, especially with so many veggies hidden inside. The key to the flavor is using a good cheese (like Gruyere) and plenty of salt to balance out the sweetness from the onion and squash.
- It’s heavy on the veggies. There are 2 cups of spaghetti squash inside, but since it’s yellow just like the eggs, it’s not visually noticeable.
- It’s low effort. Assuming you cooked spaghetti squash ahead of time (I always cook that part the night before), this takes about 15 minutes of prep before it’s ready to bake.
Ingredients You’ll Need
- Eggs. I only use 4 large eggs in this entire quiche because there are so many veggies inside. I think you could add an extra one if you really want to, but I hope you’ll try this as-written first!
- Spaghetti Squash. If you’ve ever been to Andres in Kansas City, their quiche is actually the best I’ve ever had. Theirs has “strands” of cheese inside, and adding spaghetti squash gives this quiche a similar texture with a lot less cheese. You do need to cook this in advance, and you’ll only need about half of the squash for this recipe. Save the other half for a batch of Spaghetti Squash Soup!
- Onion. Adds subtle sweetness and depth of flavor. Feel free to use red onion, shallot, or green onion if you prefer.
- Kale. When spaghetti squash is in season, so is kale. And when you chop it small, it cooks down into tiny pieces and is almost unnoticeable. But, you’re getting bonus nutrients and a pop of green, which looks pretty! (Spinach would be fine here, too.)
- Cheese. I originally tested this recipe with sharp cheddar, which is great, but I love it even more with Gruyere. If you would rather use cottage cheese for extra protein, check out my crustless quiche with cottage cheese.
Want to use a whole spaghetti squash? Try my Spaghetti Squash Breakfast Casserole, which bakes in a larger 9×13-inch casserole dish. It has “Quiche Lorraine” flavor, but can be customized with other veggies.
How to Cook Veggie Crustless Quiche (Step by Step)
- Preheat the oven to 350ºF and lightly grease a 9-inch pie plate. Heat a large skillet over medium-high heat and add a drizzle of olive oil. Cook a chopped yellow onion until it’s translucent, about 8 minutes.
- Add 1 cup of chopped kale to the skillet and cook until it wilts, about 5 more minutes. Remove the pan from the heat and let it cool briefly.
- While you wait for the veggies to finish, crack 4 large eggs into a large mixing bowl. Season with 1 teaspoon of salt and 1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper.
- Add 2 cups of cooked and cooled spaghetti squash to the bowl, along with 1/2 cup of shredded Gruyere cheese. Stir well, so the spaghetti squash is evenly distributed throughout the eggs.
- Add the slightly cooled onion and kale to the bowl and stir to combine.
- Transfer the mixture to the pan and spread it out evenly with a spatula. Then sprinkle the remaining 1/2 cup of shredded Gruyere over the top.
- Bake at 350ºF for 35 to 40 minutes, or until the center looks firm and the edges are golden brown.
- Let the quiche cool for at least 15 minutes, then it’s ready to slice and serve warm.
Veggie Crustless Quiche FAQs
Generally, yes. Most vegetables won’t become tender from 35-40 minutes in the oven when submerged in an egg mixture. (I tested this with my broccoli crustless quiche, too.)
The main difference is in the cooking method. With a frittata, the eggs start cooking on the stove and finish in the oven (usually in the same pan), while a quiche is fully baked in the oven.
Yes, but the ratios may need to change if you don’t use spaghetti squash. I recommend try my vegetarian breakfast casserole for an egg dish with black beans and spinach. Or try my cottage cheese breakfast casserole for a version with seasoned ground turkey and extra fiber inside.
More Veggie Recipes
If you try this veggie crustless quiche recipe, please leave a comment and ⭐ star rating below to let me know how you like it. Thanks for visiting!
Veggie Crustless Quiche (Shockingly Good!)
Ingredients
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 1 yellow onion , chopped
- 1 cup kale , chopped and stems removed
- 4 large eggs , beaten
- 1 teaspoon sea salt
- ¼ teaspoon ground black pepper
- 2 cups cooked spaghetti squash (about 1/2 of a 3.5 lb squash)
- 3 ounces Gruyere cheese , shredded
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350ºF and grease a 9-inch pie plate with cooking spray.
- Add a drizzle of olive oil to a skillet over medium-high heat and sauté the onion until tender, about 8 minutes. Add in the chopped kale, and sauté until bright green and tender, about 3 to 5 more minutes.
- Crack the eggs into a large mixing bowl and season with the salt and black pepper. Whisk well with a fork, then stir in the spaghetti squash and half of the shredded cheese. (My squash is usually cold from the fridge because I bake it ahead of time; if yours is freshly baked let it cool first.)
- Transfer the cooked onion and kale to the bowl. Stir well then pour the mixture into the greased pie dish. Top with the remaining shredded cheese, then bake at 350ºF until the top is golden, about 35 to 40 minutes. (The center will rise with baking, but will later deflate when you remove it from the oven.)
- Allow to cool for 15 minutes and serve warm. Leftovers can be stored in a tightly sealed container in the fridge for up to one week.
Notes
Nutrition
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Made this without the cheese and my husband and I loved it! I have added this to our healthy menu. Thanks for sharing your recipes!
I was a little leery of this for the same reasons that everyone below has been leery: the spaghetti squash. But I made it over the weekend and I thought it was absolutely delicious! I have a sensitivity to eggs and I’m allergic to gluten, so I haven’t had quiche in about a decade, but the first bite took me back to a happier time. I used goat milk cheddar instead of raw cheddar, added in some sauteed mushrooms and topped it with Tapatio, and I love how the spaghetti squash adds a bit of heft to it without it feeling heavy. (Not sure if that makes any sense.) Anyway… Highly recommend it. I would definitely make this again.
I made this recipe this morning and it turned out just perfect and delicious. Even my husband who has never eaten spagetti squash before like it (i didnt tell him the sq was it in) I will def make this again however I will decrease the amount of the spagetti squash a bit.
I was surprised to find SIX EGGS in your quiche recipe! . Granted it’s a quiche, but I though this was a vegan SITE, or at least a healthy site.
While I do share hundreds of vegan recipes on this site, it’s not exclusively vegan.
eggs are healthy
I just made this – doubled the recipe in 9×13 as I have lots of mouths to feed. Then I just decided to not measure my squash and throw in the whole thing, it looked like it might be more like 5 cups? I think that was a mistake, it made it a bit too watery tasting. Also we may have pulled it out of the oven a bit too early, it wasn’t as brown all over yet like the picture. I think my guys thought it was a little boring but I will definitely try it again, if no one else eats it, I still thought it was a yummy way to eat my veggies!
I made this for a girls’ lunch I had. One of my friends has Celiac disease. I have to say, it was awesome!!! Thank you very much for sharing such a wonderful, healthy and tasty recipe!
I just made this last night…it is amazing!! I’m fairly new to eating spaghetti squash with any frequency, but this was the perfect way of using up some leftover from a recent dinner. Delicious and I love that your recipes always turn out!! thank you!
Just made this with the addition of a bunch of garlic, because we feel like we’re coming down with a bug! It was delish- thanks!!!
This was a HUGE hit in our family. We LOVED it. Will make again for sure.
Amazing recipe! I just made this and everyone loved it! The quiche was just firm enough, and the cheese on top was nice and golden. I also added in some diced tomato, bell peppers, and zucchini, as well as some mixed herbs. Will definitely be making this again! Thanks for the great recipe 🙂