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
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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.
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Roll the pastry to fit a 25cm tart tin, about 5mm thick. Chill for 2 hours. Preheat oven to 180C.
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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.
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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.
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Cool to room temperature then serve in slices