Rainbow Chard & Parmesan Tart (with a Carrot and Oat Crust).
The weather here in London is acting all silly. There are glimpses of bright sunshine and warm breezes but don’t even think about making the switch to flip flops, it’ll be raining as soon as you are too far from home to change. The garden is loving the conditions, it’s kind of humid, warm but drizzly – I’ve even managed to sprout some lemongrass in a jam jar. All this rain had me craving something comforting. I wanted pizza, but not the guilt so I started looking around for a healthy but satisfying way to enjoy the rainbow chard that arrived in the box this week.
I’m a massive pastry lover but I like it best made with half butter and half lard – that’s just not good for anyone to eat on a regular basis. I wanted something with more of a nutritional punch and lot less guilt. I found this recipe on Evelin’s site, a healthy crust recipe she adapted from a book called ’100 pirukat’. Check out her idea for using bread slices as the tart base at the end of the post – it’s awesome. Anyway, I’ve changed the recipe again, by using wholemeal flour in place of white (I was really on a health trip), which worked really well by the way – it didn’t feel like it needed the white flour at all. The texture is quite soft and gooey, the oats sort of soften so a small piece is really satisfying although I ate half of the whole thing anyway.
Next time I will experiment with reducing the butter and increasing the amount of carrots, just to see if I can make it even more saintly. This could be a great discovery. If you want crispness though, you’re not going to get it here. It’s more of a soft, gooey, wholesome unctuousness, which is fine by me – and Chris too if the way he wolfed it down is anything to go by. The filling has no cream, just two beaten eggs and a tiny splash of milk to bind the chard and caramelised onions. A good shaving of parmesan for a bit of naughtiness and it’s ready to go.
Rainbow Chard and Parmesan Tart (with a Carrot and Oat Crust)
For the crust (adapted from Bounteous Bites).
Fills a 24cm flan tin.
100g oat flakes
100g wholemeal flour
100g grated carrots
100g butter at room temperature
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/4 teaspoon salt
- Mix the carrots, oats and butter (I cut the mix together with a palette knife before going in with my hands).
- In a separate bowl, mix the flour, baking powder and salt. Add this to the carrot mix.
- Bring together to form a dough.
- Press into your tin and chill for half an hour or more.
- Bake for 15 minutes at 200C/400F/Gas6.
- Fill the tart with the filling (below) and bake for a further 20 minutes at 180C/350F/Gas4.
For the filling
Rainbow chard (I used about 10 smallish leaves), tough stems removed and sliced
2 onions, sliced
2 cloves garlic, crushed
2 large eggs, beaten
Parmesan cheese, to taste
Salt and pepper
Parsley, a sprig, leaves picked and finely chopped
50ml milk
- Add some oil to a pan and add the onions, cooking them slowly for around 10-15 minutes until the begin to caramelise. Add the garlic for 30 seconds or so, then the chard. Remove from the heat when the chard is wilted.
- In a bowl, combine the chard mix, eggs, milk, parsley, parmesan and seasoning. Pour into the tart crust and bake as above.
As you know, I celebrated my blogiversary last week! Amy has made a calendar where we can all record these dates and keep up with them.
Category: Healthy, Lunchbox, Main Dishes, Pastries, Starters, Vegetables 35 comments »
July 14th, 2008 at 7:39 am
Between you and Heather (Ms Voodoolily) I’m learning a whole lot of way to go beyond my comfort zone and play with ingredients. The pastry/crust is a great idea. Thats def on my try list. Is the chard the same as “siverbeet”…thats what we call it here. Overall another beautiful recipe Helen!
Peter Gs last blog post..Glorious Greens
July 14th, 2008 at 8:01 am
Oh yes, this looks like a brunch-lunch hit…a nice sized wedge please!
Peters last blog post..Tomato Salad With Fried Feta
July 14th, 2008 at 8:49 am
Oooh delicious! I love substituting wholemeal flour whenever I can too. If I wasn’t being saintly, I’d definitely add some bacon. Yum!
Christie @ fig&cherrys last blog post..Potatoes get a posh makeover
July 14th, 2008 at 3:00 pm
Helen – you are a talented girl. Carrot and oat crust? Genius man. Absolutely fab. And by the way, your potato with salsa verde dish is the inspiration for my tea this evening. I can’t wait!
x
David Halls last blog post..Savour The Flavour
July 14th, 2008 at 4:13 pm
This is really interesting! I’d bet it would also make a good hors d’oeuvre, cut up into little squares. And I’d never have thought of using carrots this way, but it makes a lot of sense.
July 14th, 2008 at 9:02 pm
I’m very impressed – I thought you might need a rest after all that salady inventiveness last week!
I’m intrigued by the carrot and oat flake pastry. What do reckon the chances are of it working if you swop half of the butter for a olive oil or vegetable oil? Worth a try!
Sophies last blog post..Handpicked Links July 2008
July 14th, 2008 at 11:00 pm
You are very creative! This salad looks so good. Nice way to play with ingredients!
July 15th, 2008 at 12:20 am
the weather has been kinda crazy here too, but I still feel spoiled because California weather is quite mild.
I love all the beautiful collage of veggies here! Actually we grow almost everything so I’ll have to go gather up some stuff to make it!
The carrot addition is really brilliant.
July 15th, 2008 at 12:43 pm
I like this idea of using carrots for the crust. Thanks for pointing out the method.
cookinpandas last blog post..Strawberry FRUIT pops
July 15th, 2008 at 1:21 pm
This is great Helen – something I would totally relish eating (like pretty much everything you cook up!). I adore chard, it is one of my favorite veggies and I just love your crust! It looks so flaky and delicious!
JennDZ_The LeftoverQueens last blog post..Hummus Amungus: A Spicy Taste of the Mediterranean
July 15th, 2008 at 2:21 pm
That carrot/oat crust sounds intriguing — and it looks fabulous.
I love it when I learn something new from another great blog. Thanks for sharing your technique!
Lo (Burp!)s last blog post..Blasted Broccoli
July 15th, 2008 at 4:22 pm
That crust is intense! Love how you managed to sneak in even more veg into a veggie quiche… : D
manjus last blog post..Date & Tamarind Cake
July 15th, 2008 at 8:30 pm
BEAUTIFUL job. Here in the city, we NEED some recipes for tarts that we veggies can appreciate.
My friend. chiff0nade alerted me to your wondeful website.
THANKS a millin.
July 15th, 2008 at 10:15 pm
Oh, this sounds (and looks) delicious! I love the carrot and oat crust idea. I can’t wait to try this.
July 15th, 2008 at 10:15 pm
Oh, this sounds (and looks) delicious! I love the carrot and oat crust idea. I can’t wait to try this.
Madelines last blog post..Home Again, Home Again….
July 16th, 2008 at 1:52 am
Wow, does this ever sounds fantastic! LOVE the idea for the crust–must give that one a try. Thanks!
Rickis last blog post..Sweet and Spicy Tempeh
July 16th, 2008 at 2:06 am
I love the idea of adding carrot to the crust. Adds nutrition, flavor and color.
Suganyas last blog post..Lavender Chocolate Pots de Crème
July 16th, 2008 at 2:24 am
This is amazing. Carrots! Who knew. Now, I have a new use for all the carrots I planted this year. Thank you.
July 16th, 2008 at 3:10 am
Brilliant crust! I love making quiche and tarts but dread the high fat content of the crust. I hadn’t heard of using carrots and am eager to give it a go. I sometimes make a polenta crust but it just isn’t as flavorful or sexy.
Chard is wonderful and I like how you’ve prepared it — well done!
Allens last blog post..Baked Peaches with Amaretti Stuffing
July 16th, 2008 at 7:07 am
Thanks everyone!
Peter G – Yep, chard is definitely the same as silverbeet. I’m not sure that rainbow chard is the same thing though…I must research!
David – So glad to hear you are using one of the salads as inspiration, that makes me very happy
Sophie – That is a brilliant idea. In fact, I might try substituting most or all of it. I’ll play around with the recipe and get back to you.
July 16th, 2008 at 4:16 pm
Hi Helen
Yep, this looks pretty tasty.
‘Parmesan cheese, to taste’ is a bit dangerous though – in my case that could be anything up to a bucketful.
Chard. I’ve not seen that since I cancelled my Able & Cole.
Best
R
RicardoAvocados last blog post..Almond & Grape Gazpacho
July 16th, 2008 at 5:02 pm
Hi Richard – Yep, I had that exact problem. I think that’s why it looks so yellow actually – the thick crust of cheese on top! I always tell myself it’s strong so you don’t need much although it is a high fat cheese. Ah well, good intentions….
P.S – the chard came in my Abel and Cole
July 16th, 2008 at 5:56 pm
I was searching for a good tar t for tonight´s dinner, something different than the boring tarts that I usually made. And I found here I love the dough and the filling as well
July 17th, 2008 at 3:10 am
I just love frittatas with Swiss chard. And you’ve taken me right over the top by baking all of that goodness inside an oat crust. The texture looks terrific!
Susan from Food Bloggas last blog post..Summer, Summer, Summertime. Time for Strawberry Pie
July 17th, 2008 at 7:55 pm
This looks delicious and reading about it sounds even better. I like the idea for the crust (totally new to me) and it just looks like a great rainy day kind of dish
Mikes last blog post..Blueberry Mango Mille Feuille
July 17th, 2008 at 11:19 pm
Helen, that looks sooo good! I mUuuuuust make this tart! And it’s perfect too, because the bf can’t take cream.
Ys last blog post..Tuile Cookies (Quelques Tuiles par Michel Bras)
July 18th, 2008 at 1:07 am
I love the idea of adding carrots to your crust! I will have to play around with a gluten free version!
Simply…Gluten-frees last blog post..Gluten-free S’mores Cheesecake
July 18th, 2008 at 9:26 am
Thanks all! I would love to see that gluten-free version too.
July 25th, 2008 at 4:31 pm
I love the sound of this crust – deeply satisfying AND healthy. Who woulda thought.
Jeannes last blog post..Deconstructed cherry pavlova "shots"
July 29th, 2008 at 9:39 pm
This looks wonderful – I have so many greens (Swiss /rainbow chard among them) in my garden that need eating – what a nice way to highlight them!
Heathers last blog post..Good Taste Noodle House
August 26th, 2008 at 1:42 am
Wow I really love your search for a healthy crust! I’m definitely saving the recipes.
Ashleys last blog post..Peanut Butter Pasta
December 8th, 2008 at 7:09 pm
The crust really is special – I will be using that idea lots from now on. Thanks!!
August 2nd, 2009 at 10:07 pm
This recipe is fantastic Helen, thanks for sharing.
The oat and carrot crust is great, and @Sophie – it can indeed be done with olive oil instead of butter. I used all olive oil and must have used about the same amount in weight as the recommended butter quantity and it turned out fine. I did use white flour because I didn’t have any wholemeal (*) so I don’t know if it made the difference, but it actually wasn’t that soft/crumbly at all – it was almost crisp in fact, and held together well especially cold the next day
Just one note, if you have quite big chard stems, sauté them along with the onions (maybe not from the beginning but add them about half way through) so that they soften up more, and then you can add the chard leaves right at the last minute until just wilted.
* Wholemeal flour – I suddenly can’t find this anywhere! I don’t know where I got it before, but I checked a mid-sized Tesco and a big Morrisons and the former had nothing and the latter only had self raising wholemeal flour. Which I don’t think you’d want to use here, right?
August 3rd, 2009 at 12:06 pm
Hi emily, thank you! yes that is a great tip about the chard stems if they are large. I think I must have used self-raising flour too, yes.
October 19th, 2009 at 6:55 pm
hi guys, I made something similar to this – try mixing polenta flour or cornmeal in with the wheat flour, at least half and half, this can give you the crumbly / crunchy effect you might be looking for.