Veggie & Goats Cheese Tart

I have provided steps for making pastry, however if you are short on time or simply could not be bothered to make the pastry, you can pick up some pre-made pastry from most supermarkets.

Serves 4

Ingredients:

175g plain flour

75g butter, cubed

2-4tbsp. water

tender stem broccoli*

butternut squash, peeled and cut*

red pepper, deseeded and sliced*

pesto

60g goats cheese

6 eggs

55ml double cream

*Note - quantities have not been provided because you can just eye it depending on how full you want your tart to be.

Method:

1). Firstly, make to pastry by rubbing the butter with the flour using your fingertips until the mixture represents coarse breadcrumbs. Then add the water to bind the mixture together - bring it together using a fork and then use your hands to bring the dough together, adding a little more water if the mixture is too dry to come together. Without kneading the dough, carefully shape it into a round, 1–2cm thick, using your hands to flatten it. Cover with cling film and place in the fridge to chill for about 30 minutes.

2). Next, preheat the oven to 180C. Place the red pepper and squash onto a roasting tray, drizzle with a little oil and season with salt and pepper. Roast for 40 minutes - mixing once.

3). After 30 minutes, remove the pastry from the fridge lightly dust a surface with flour and roll out the pastry. Alternatively, if you do not want to get flour everywhere place the pastry between two sheets of cling film and roll out the pastry to approximately 3mm thick. Ensure the pastry is keeping the round shape and it needs to be large enough to cover the tart tin.

4). If using cling film, remove just the top layer of cling film, place the pastry upside down (cling-film side facing up) in the tart tin. If using the old fashion method of flour, carefully lift the rolled out pastry and place into the tart tin.

5). Press the pastry into the edges of the tin and remove any excess, overhanging pastry. If there are any holes or gaps in the pastry, simply patch them up with some of your spare pieces of dough.

6). If using the cling film, remove and chill the pastry in the fridge for 15 minutes.

7). Meanwhile, remove the veg from the oven.

8). Next, remove the pastry from the fridge and line with greaseproof paper or baking parchment, leaving plenty of paper to come up over the sides. Fill the lined tart case with baking beans or dried pulses (you can use these over and over again), and bake 'blind' for 15–20 minutes or until the pastry feels just dry to the touch on the base.

9). Take the pastry out of the oven and remove the paper and beans.

10). Next, whisk the eggs with the cream and salt and pepper in a large bowl.

11). Using the back of a spoon spread some pesto over the base of the tart case. Then carefully layer the vegetable over the base, finally topping with some rounds of goats cheese.

12). Next, pour the egg mixture over the veggies. Bake in the oven for approximately 30 minutes, or until the egg mixture is cooked.

13). Serve with a salad and enjoy!

Nutritional Composition (per serving):

Energy (kcal): 587

Fat (g): 38

Saturates (g): 19

Carbohydrates (g): 39

Sugars (g): 4.5

Protein (g): 20

The Sports Chef