Stretch Out Your Burger Ingredients By Prepping Them As A Pie Instead

After a backyard BBQ or indoor football game with friends, you may find yourself with leftover burger toppings. And you don't need to throw them away. Instead, repurpose your unused ingredients like ground beef, cheese, eggs, tomatoes, and more into a pie – or, rather, a very delicious cheeseburger quiche. Skip the homemade crust here and opt for an easy refrigerated pie crust or a crescent roll crust. This is the time to use up those little bits of cheddar and parmesan, and that knob of goat cheese sitting in the fridge. Think of them as your own custom cheese blend. This is especially true for those fancy cheeses left over from your last charcuterie board, like manchego, brie, and gouda. Oh, and that goes for bits of prosciutto and salami, too. If it works on a cheeseburger, it works in a quiche.

Any one of these 10 quiche recipes can be modified into a downright delicious cheeseburger pie. Use up to 12 ounces of ground beef for each pie. Crumble it onto the bottom of the crust, along with the cheese, before pouring the egg mixture on top. Or start with your favorite cheeseburger ingredients and go from there. A mushroom Swiss burger or a bacon cheddar burger pie? Yes, please. If you're craving something spicy, try canned green chilis and Monterrey Jack cheese. Or turn a classic quiche combination on its head, like this no-mess Quiche Lorraine that uses bacon, Gruyère, and softened onions. Add crumbled and browned ground beef for a cheeseburger Quiche Lorraine worthy of all the "oohs" and  "la las."

You can skip the crust altogether if you want to consume less carbs. Use a baking dish coated with plenty of pan spray along the bottoms and sides so that the custard ingredients won't stick to the pan. And while we're on the subject of healthy modifications to a pie made of cheeseburger dreams, use all the vegetables you want. Just remember what you need to do with vegetables before adding them to quiche. Hint: Cook them. This accomplishes two goals: It adds flavor, (a little char and dry seasonings) and it removes moisture. Removing moisture from vegetables like onions, mushrooms, and spinach is crucial. The extra water can make your crust soggy, and without a crust, it can leave your carb-less quiche wet instead of luscious. This also helps your cheeseburger pie to cook evenly, and that's because eggs cook more quickly than vegetables.

However you prepare your cheeseburger pie, don't skip the opportunity to serve some fitting sides. These homemade beer-battered onion rings would take this dish over the top. Or try this crispy, homemade air fryer French fries recipe for the perfect pairing of easy and easy. And speaking of air fryers, using it to reheat your leftover cheeseburger pie slices is the way to go. Wrap them in foil and set the air fryer to 350 degrees Fahrenheit for six to eight minutes. The convection of the air fryer will crisp up the crust nicely and warm the inside evenly.