This recipe is inspired by the vegetables from the Hearty Squirrel food co-operative, which provides local, organic, and affordable food from ethical sources. This week the vegetables on offer included a little squash, leeks and fresh sage, so I thought I would experiment and make a tart with them. I received so many compliments from the potluck that I took it to, so I wrote up the recipe for more people to enjoy!
Ingredients:
1 sheet ready-rolled puff pastry
1 small squash
1 tbsp olive oil
1 leek
1 tbsp butter
4 cloves garlic
Handful of fresh sage leaves
1 egg
60g grated parmesan
Instructions:
- Preheat the oven to 200 degrees Celsius. Peel, deseed, and chop the squash up into roughly 3cm cubes. Toss the cubes with 1 tbsp olive oil and season generously. Spread them out on a baking tray lined with baking paper and roast them for 20 minutes, or until you can easily insert a fork into them with no resistance.
- Meanwhile, crush and mince the garlic, then slice across the body of the leek to form circular discs. Melt the butter in a pan over a medium heat. Add the leeks and garlic and cook gently for five minutes. Finely chop up the majority of the sage (leaving behind a few leaves for later), then add it to the pan and cook for two more minutes.
- Roll out the puff pastry sheet on a baking tray. Use a knife to score a border all around the rectangle about 3cm from the edge of the pastry. Use a fork to prick the inner base of the pastry all over. Crack the egg into a small bowl and beat it with a fork until it is a smooth consistency, then brush the outer border of the pastry with the beaten egg.
- Once finished roasting, spread the squash evenly on the inner base of the pastry. Use a fork to gently press down the cubes so that they become a kind of mashed layer of squash over the pastry. Then spread the leek and garlic mixture evenly over the squash. Sprinkle salt and pepper all over.
- Bake the tart in the oven for 10 minutes then remove and sprinkle over the grated parmesan and the remaining sage leaves. Return to the oven for another 15 minutes (the pastry border should be puffed up and golden brown, and the cheese melted and becoming crispy).
- And voila! Slice up the tart and enjoy it whilst it is still warm.
Image by Maddie Everett-Heath for The Student.
