Crisp pastry surrounds a creamy roasted butternut squash filling, topped with caramelised squash and feta. This tasty tart is a filling and savoury vegetarian main dish.
Sometimes an idea has to wait a while for an opportunity to be put into action. So it was with this butternut squash tart, which I first thought up a while ago. It’s time finally arrived last weekend, when two friends came to stay, and found themselves as taste testers in my culinary experiment.
Savoury custard?
Fortunately for them, the butternut squash tart turned out pretty well! I’d never doubted that the flavour would be great – roasted butternut squash and caramelised onions, paired with feta cheese and a hint of spice. I mean, yum, right?
My main concern was the texture of the filling and how well it would set. It’s basically a butternut squash custard, and it came out creamy, and softly set. Firm enough to slice, but soft enough to melt in the mouth. Perfect. Rather than whizz up all the squash into a smooth custardy filling, I kept some back and dropped chunks of roasted butternut squash onto the top of the tart with the cubes of feta cheese, to add a little variety to the tart-eating experience.
Roasted butternut squash
With its creamy filling, chunks of squash, and cubes of salty feta, all enclosed in crisp, buttery pastry, this roasted butternut squash tart really is a meal in itself. We enjoyed it with nothing more than a simple salad.
My daughter Kipper wasn’t 100% convinced, but as is often the case with her food preferences, I suspect it was a texture rather than a taste thing. She ate the chunks of roasted squash, and the crisp, crumbly pastry, but wasn’t too keen on the smooth, butternut squash filling, although she agreed it was “yummy”. The adults scoffed the lot though.
It’s not complicated
One last thing – the recipe looks quite complicated and really it isn’t. You make the pastry case. Then roast the squash. Whizz up the filling and bake it in the pastry case. That’s it. Unfortunately, when I wrote it out recipe-style, it seemed to run away with me. Please don’t be put off by all the instructions. Oh, and also, most of the time involved, it’s doing it’s own thing in the fridge/oven and you’re free to put your feet up, do the crossword, whatever.
This made one 23cm roasted butternut squash and feta tart. Serves 4-6.
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📖 Recipe
Roasted butternut squash and feta tart
Ingredients
For the pastry
- 150 g plain flour
- 75 g butter
- 2-4 tablespoon cold water
For the filling
- 1 medium butternut squash (Approx 1 kg/35 oz)
- 4-5 cloves garlic
- 1 teaspoon dried thyme
- 4-5 tablespoon olive oil
- 2 eggs
- Good pinch chilli powder
- Salt & pepper to taste
- 150 g feta cheese, cubed or crumbled
Instructions
- 150 g (5 2/7 oz) plain flour, 75 g (2 ⅔ oz) butter, 2-4 tbsp cold waterFirst, make the pastry. Using a food processor, whizz the flour and butter to fine crumbs. With the motor running, add the water a little at a time, just until the pastry comes together.
- Knead lightly, wrap in cling-film, and refrigerate for at 30-60 minutes.
- Meanwhile, preheat the oven to 180°C (350°F).
- 1 medium butternut squash, 4-5 cloves garlicPeel the squash, remove the seeds, and cut the flesh into 1.5cm (approx. ¾ inch) cubes. Peel the garlic cloves but leave them whole.
- 1 tsp dried thyme, 4-5 tbsp olive oilPlace the squash cubes, garlic cloves, dried thyme and olive oil in a large baking tin and mix well. Bake at 180°C (350°F) for 45 minutes until soft and browning.
- On a floured surface, roll out the pastry to 3-4mm (⅛ inch) thickness and use it to line a 24-25cm (9-9½ inch) loose bottomed flan tin. Return to the fridge for another 30 minutes.
- Line the pastry case with greaseproof paper and baking beans, and bake at 180°C (350°F) for 20 minutes.
- 2 eggs, Good pinch chilli powder, Salt & pepper to tasteMeanwhile, remove the roasted squash from the oven. Reserve 2 tablespoon of roasted squash chunks for the top of the tart, and blend the rest, together with the roasted garlic and any oil, to give a smooth puree. Add the eggs, chilli and seasoning and mix well. Set aside.
- 150 g (5 2/7 oz) feta cheese, cubed or crumbledOnce the pastry case is baked, remove the beans and baking paper. Pour the butternut squash puree into the hot pastry case and sprinkle the reserved squash and feta cheese over the top.
- Bake at 180°C (350°F) for 35-45 minutes, until the tart is set and golden.
- Serve warm.
Nutrition
More delicious recipes with butternut squash
Other delicious recipes using butternut squash include comforting baked barley risotto with butternut squash, beautiful hasselback squash with sweet chilli and rosemary, and deliciously easy butternut squash and red lentil soup.
For more ideas to use feta, try these fabulously fluffy feta cheese pancakes, this quick and easy feta cheese dip, or this delicious caramelised onion and feta galette.
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