Recipe: Wilted Greens Tart

Makes one 9-inch tart, or 6 servings

Another wonderful way to use all those fresh greens from your garden. For those of you hesitant to make pastry, phyllo is your friend! I always have a box in the freezer for a variety of uses, but this tart shell is one of my favourites. Not only does it save tons of time, there is also something rather lovely about the randomness of the folds and edges of the finished tart. If pie crust had a laid-back, easygoing cousin, this would be it.

Ingredients

• 6 to 8 sheets phyllo pastry
• ½ cup butter, melted
• 2 tbsp butter
• 1 shallot, peeled and finely diced
• 1 big handful kale, washed, spines removed and roughly torn
• 1 big handful fresh spinach, washed
• 1 big handful fresh arugula, washed
• Sprinkle plus 1 tsp salt
• Sprinkle plus ½ tsp pepper
• ½ cup crumbled feta cheese
• 4 large eggs
• 1 cup whipping cream

Method

Preheat the oven to 350°F. Place a piece of phyllo on a clean work surface and use a pastry brush to gently coat it with some of the melted butter. Transfer this piece of phyllo into a 9-inch quiche pan, carefully pushing it down to the bottom of the pan. Allow the excess to slightly hang over the edge of the pan. Repeat with the next sheet of phyllo, giving it a 10-degree turn every time you layer a piece. Don’t worry if it tears; just paste it together with a brush of melted butter and carry on until you have completed the whole shell. Set aside.

Melt the 2 tablespoons of butter in a large frying pan over medium-high heat. Add the chopped shallot and cook until it is translucent and has started to soften. Add the kale, spinach and arugula and continue to cook until all the greens are soft and wilted. Sprinkle with salt and pepper and place in the prepared shell.

Sprinkle the crumbled feta over the greens.

In a medium bowl, whisk together the eggs, cream,  1 teaspoon salt and ½ teaspoon pepper and pour over the cheese and greens.

Bake on the centre rack of the oven for 20 to 25 minutes, until the centre is puffed and the phyllo is a lovely golden brown.

Remove the tart from the oven and allow it to cool slightly before removing it from the pan and placing it on a serving plate. It can be served warm or at room temperature.

The tart will keep, covered, in the refrigerator for several days.

 

Excerpted from The Side Gardener by Rosie Daykin. Copyright © 2024 Rosie Daykin. Photographs by Andrew Montgomery. Published by Appetite an imprint of Random House®, a division of Penguin Random House Canada Limited. Reproduced by arrangement with the Publisher. All rights reserved.

 

This recipe was originally published in the May/June 2024 print issue of Western Living magazine. Get your free subscription to the print edition here.