Summer Vegetable Tart

, from Issue #64. January, 2016
Photography by Aaron McLean.
Summer Vegetable Tart

Filo is a very easy pastry to work with, providing you don’t let it dry out. This light and very tasty filling can be varied using whatever vegetables are in season.

Serves: 6

INGREDIENTS

8 large silverbeet leaves, tough stalks removed
2 spring onions, thinly sliced including some of the green tops
2 medium zucchini, thinly shaved or sliced
8 cherry tomatoes, halved (I used a mixture of colours)
½ cup purchased onion jam
Filling
4 large eggs, size 7
½ cup cream
2 teaspoons purchased spice mix (I used Jonathan’s Spices Persian Seasoning)
small handful mint, chopped
2 cloves garlic, crushed
sea salt and ground pepper
1 cup grated tasty Cheddar cheese
200 grams ricotta
To assemble
6 sheets filo pastry
¼ cup melted butter
38cm x 25cm shallow lipped metal baking tin, lightly oiled

METHOD

Preheat the oven to 160°C fan bake.

Filling: Blanch the silverbeet in a saucepan of boiling water until tender. Drain and refresh in cold water. Place in a clean tea towel and wring out the excess water.

Fluff out the leaves and chop roughly.

Whisk the eggs, cream, spices, mint and garlic together and season generously. Stir in both cheeses.  

To assemble: Brush each sheet of filo with the melted butter and layer up in the tin. 

Scatter the silverbeet, spring onions and zucchini over the pastry then spoon over the filling. Dot over the tomatoes and several spoonfuls of the onion jam.

Bake for about 30 minutes until the filling is set and the pastry is golden and crisp. Serve warm.