Zucchini, Pumpkin & Goat’s Cheese Tart
I love making any kind of tart, and if you’ve seen my heirloom tomato pesto tart or my sweet strawberry and whipped ricotta tart, you know that already.
This recipe however, is really designed as a great base savoury tart recipe that can be used for any roasted vegetable filling that is in season. I’ve used zucchini, pumpkin and shallot here, but it would work with carrots, capsicum, tomato, onion, potato, asparagus, leek and more. As long as the vegetables are roasted prior to baking the tart, you can use anything!
Tips For Making This Roasted Vegetable Tart
- Use small zucchinis over large ones. Small ones have less water content, and water is the enemy of tart making as it makes the base and filling soggy and undercooked.
- After roasting the vegetables, gently squeeze out some of the water from the zucchinis, while still preserving the integrity of the zucchini.
- Cover the base with foil while blind baking to prevent the edges from burning or over-browning. Since the edge will be the only exposed part when baking the filled tart, it will get lots of heat exposure here, so you don’t want to overdo it when baking the tart shell.
- Neatly pack in the vegetables but don’t overcrowd them inside the tart.
- Top with fresh herbs like basil or parsley and serve with a simple side salad.
- I’ve used dried oregano, fresh thyme and fresh basil in this recipe, but you can use any combination of herbs.
This is a great recipe to make for a picnic, and it’s a beautiful vegetarian centre piece to an outdoor table. Even though tarts like a little effort and time, to me nothing beats a homemade tart, and I personally love the process of making them. And I hope you do too!
It’s a beautiful way to elevate seasonal vegetables and give them a new life outside of salad. Enjoy!
Zucchini, Pumpkin & Goat’s Cheese Tart
A simple, healthy and fresh savoury tart for a picnic or outdoor lunch.
Serves:
6
Prep time:
2 hours
Cook time:
1 hour
INGREDIENTS
- 2 cups diced pumpkin
- 5 shallots, peeled and halved
- 3 small zucchinis, sliced into chunks
- 1 tbsp olive oil
- 2 eggs
- ⅔ cup cream
- ¼ tsp nutmeg
- 100g goat’s feta, crumbled
- 10 sprigs thyme, leaves picked
- Salt and pepper, to taste
Base
- ½ cup coconut flour
- 1 ½ cups blanched almond meal
- 2 tsp oregano, dried
- ¼ tsp fine salt
- 110g unsalted butter, melted, plus more for greasing
- 1 egg, beaten
METHOD
- First prepare the vegetables. Preheat the oven to 200ºC.
- Place the pumpkin and shallots on a large baking tray and coat with half a tablespoon of olive oil. Sprinkle it with salt and pepper. Place in the oven for ten minutes.
- Meanwhile, coat the zucchini in the remaining half tablespoon of olive oil. After the pumpkin has been in the oven for ten minutes, add the zucchini to the tray and return to the oven for a further 20 minutes.
- When the vegetables are cool enough to touch, take the zucchini and very gently press it between your fingers over a paper towel or bowl. You should see watery liquid come out. Continue to press gently until the liquid stops running, while still maintaining the integrity of the zucchini. Set aside.
- Reduce the oven heat to 180ºC while you prepare the base.
- Prepare the base by combining coconut flour, almond meal, salt and oregano in a bowl. Whisk until no lumps remain. Add in the butter and beaten egg and combine with your hands until a dough forms.
- Grease a 20-23 cm removable bottom tart tin with butter, then press the dough into the tart tin, making an even crust.
- Place a sheet of baking paper over the top and pour in pastry weights or uncooked rice or legumes to weigh it down. Place a sheet of foil over the whole thing to prevent burning.
- Blind bake (with the pastry weights) for 12 minutes, then take it out and carefully remove the weighted baking paper and foil. Place back in the oven for 3 minutes until mostly baked. Remove from the oven.
- In a bowl, combine the eggs, cream, nutmeg, salt and pepper. Set aside.
- Fill the tart base with the roasted vegetables. Sprinkle over goat cheese and thyme leaves. Carefully pour in the cream mixture and bake in the oven for 20 minutes until the filling is set. If the top is browning too quickly before the filling is set, simply place a sheet of foil over the top.
- Remove from the oven and leave to cool for 15 minutes then remove from the tart case carefully and leave to cool on a wire rack.
About Liv
I’m a holistic nutritionist (BSc) and healthy chef and I’m obsessed with waking up every day happy to be alive and excited for the day ahead, and eating incredible nourishing food!
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