Squash, Fig & Pecorino Tart with Purple Sage

7 December 2022
6

Squash, Fig & Pecorino Tart with Purple Sage

Colour your Christmas table with this special take on a squash tart. Full of variety, it’s flavoured with lots of festive favourites from figs to hazelnuts and sage. Serve with skin-on roasties and seasonal greens for a vibrant vegetarian meal.


Serves: 6

Prep Time: 30 mins

Cooking Time: 1 hour


Ingredients:

Hazelnut Pastry:

  • 140g Plain Flour
  • 50g Ground Hazelnuts
  • 100g Butter, cubed
  • 1 Egg Yolk
  • 1-2tbsp Iced Water

Filling:

  • 350g Kabocha Squash, deseeded
  • 100g Figs, quartered
  • 1 tbsp Rapeseed Oil
  • 100g Pecorino, grated
  • 150g Mozzarella, grated
  • 1tbsp Purple Sage, chopped
  • ½ Red Onion, finely sliced
  • 150ml Double Cream
  • 3 Large Eggs
  • Cracked Black Pepper

Method

  1. Begin with the pastry. Add the flour and ground nuts to a food processor and pulse to combine. Add the butter and pulse to a breadcrumb consistency. Add the egg yolk and enough iced water to form a dough. Form into a disc, wrap and chill for 30 minutes.

  2. Roll the pastry to fit a 25cm tart tin, about 5mm thick. Chill for 2 hours. Preheat oven to 180C.

  3. Cut the squash into 1cm thick slices and mix with the oil. Tip onto a baking tray and roast for 30-40 minutes. 10 minutes before the squash is cooked, line your pastry with non-stick paper and baking beans and blind bake for 10 minutes. Remove the beans and paper and cook 5 minutes more, or until the base feels sandy to the touch and the sides are set.

  4. Whisk together the eggs, cream, sage and black pepper in a jug. Lay the squash, figs and onion inside the pastry case and scatter over both cheeses. Pour in the cream mixture. tap the case a few times to let everything settle and bake for 18-20 minutes or until cooked through with a faint wobble in the centre.

  5. Cool to room temperature then serve in slices