About the Recipe
This carrot tart is a crowd favorite because of how versatile it can be. You can use any homemade sauce as the base and change the toppings accordingly. One way to make it is to toss the carrots in a honey, harissa mix and layer them on a base of whipped ricotta lemon spread. In our version, Caroline and I used a pesto sauce Caroline had made for some pasta, and then tossed the carrots in olive oil, salt, pepper, chili flakes, cumin, and coriander. I also bought the puff pastry dough because let's be honest, no one has time to hand-make puff pastry on a weeknight and the results are often less than satisfactory given the time you put in! Remember to defrost your puff pastry though well in advance.
Ingredients
Two bundles of carrots with their tops
Olive oil
Salt
Cumin
Coriander
Black pepper
Chili flakes
Puff pastry (pre-bought)
Homemade lemon pesto (more details below)
Capers
Parmesan
Preparation
Preheat the oven to 400º F and place some parchment paper on a baking sheet
Rinse your carrots and cut them in half length wise. Make sure you keep the stem tops! You'll use them later
In a bowl, toss your carrots with olive oil, salt, black pepper, cumin, coriander, and chili flakes and place them on the baking sheet. Let them cook in the oven for 20 to 25 minutes
Prep your puff pastry by laying it flat on a second baking sheet and rolling it to fit the pan if necessary. Score a one-inch border around the edges with a sharp knife, and then cross-hatch the border to get a nice design when you bake.
While the carrots finish up, cover the base of your puff pastry with your sauce, inside that border.
You can place the carrots however you like, I did a sort of quilt-like pattern above. It's flexible though - design as your heart desires!
Once the carrots are on top of the pesto, grate some parmesan and add some capers on top!
Put them bake in the oven and bake for 15 more minutes, until the puff pastry is nice and golden brown on the edges.
Serve alongside a big salad, as an appetizer to a larger meal, bring to a picnic with friends, or as one of many dishes for a potluck!