25 April 2011

Greens & Kikorangi Tart

In the fridge a bag of beautiful mixed greens...swiss chard, cavelo nero, silver beet and kale.  What to do?  With Autumn here and Winter around the corner it is time to get some green inspiration going as I know from here on in they will be making a regular appearance in my veggie box.  I happened to be over here and it gave me the necessary inspiration to rustle up a little tart of my own for the weekend. 


I do like the idea of this particular tart - it provides balance and we could all use a little of that, right? Richness from the eggs and the cream, a little indulgence from the blue cheese and then you can feel all virtuous and healthy as well, due to the abundance of greens.  I would call that one well balanced meal delivering a little of what we love and a little of what we need, all coming together in one tasty bite.

Kikorangi - Supreme Winner
You can use whatever selection of greens you like...all of them would work well here; spinach, chard, silver beet, kale.  The same goes for the cheese.  Any blue or mature cheddar would work especially well.  I like the sharpness the blue delivers, especially Kikorangi, Kapiti's Supreme Award Winner at this year's Cheese Awards. It is rich and buttery, spliced with a piquant hit from the little rivers of blue.


Greens and Kikorangi Tart

Ingredients

Serves 4-6

2 tbsp olive oil
1 onion, finely chopped
2 cloves garlic, minced
1/2 tsp chilli flakes, optional, I just like a little heat
2 cups chopped mixed greens, any mixture of chard, silver beet, spinach, cavalo nero, kale. Discard any tough stalks.  Tender stalks can be finely chopped and added to the mix.
4 eggs
250ml cream
1/4 cup chopped Kikorangi, or cheese of choice.
Salt and pepper
1 sheet store bought savoury shortcrust pastry, or of course feel free to make your own crust.

Directions

Pre heat the oven to 180C / 350F

On a floured surface roll out the pastry and then place in to a greased 25cm (9") pie dish.  Press right in to the edges and pierce the bottom with a fork. Place in the oven for 10-12 minutes until golden.  Remove from the oven and set aside.

In a frying pan heat the olive oil over a medium.  Add the onion and garlic and season with a pinch of salt. Saute until translucent.  Add the chilli flakes and the greens.  Saute for another 5-7 minutes until the greens are almost cooked, but still retain a little crunch and their vibrant green hue.  Remove from the heat and set aside to cool.


Whisk together the eggs and add the cream.  Mix well and season with salt and pepper.  Add the cooled greens and the crumbled Kikorangi.  Gently fold everything together and pour in to the pie crust.



Pop in 190C / 372F over for 25-35 minutes until the tart is cooked through but still has a little wobble factor.  Allow it to stand for a few minutes before serving.


Serve with a fresh salad for a light but satisfying lunch.  It is rich and creamy, the Kikorangi adds extra little pockets of creamy with a little piquancy from those little rivulets of blue.  The greens add a texture and that tasty yet virtuous flavour that only a pile of greens can.  All in all a little luxe and a little healthy all at the same time...balanced.  Even better it will keep well for a few days to provide a speedy lunch or supper. 

This is part of Cooksister's Topless Tart Monthly Mingle and check out the Official Monthly Mingle here.
    Enjoy!

    4 comments:

    1. Kikorangi's up there with my favourite cheeses of all time (along with truffle brie... oh my) and I've got a cavolo nero plant at my old flat that just keeps giving (8 months after moving out I'm still going back to pick some) so this tart looks ideal. I'm inspired!

      ReplyDelete
    2. Lovely, I love tarts and flans and pies made with greens and blue cheese
      :-).
      Welcome back to NZ

      ciao
      A.

      ReplyDelete
    3. Hey there fellow traveler. This looks beautiful, much sexier than a regular old quiche! That said they always make me a bit nervous so I very rarely make them...I worry that I'm going to over or under cook them and lose that crucial "wobble factor" ;)

      Looking forward to catching up with your blog!

      ReplyDelete
    4. I've never heard of Kikorangi but I adore blue cheese....sounds lovely with the super collection of chard etc.

      ReplyDelete

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