This summer tart is an absolute showstopper! Ricotta-stuffed zucchini flowers are nestled in a quiche-like filling with thinly sliced zucchini. Fresh herbs and lemon zest really add brightness to this Zucchini Flower & Ricotta Tart.
This recipe was created in collaboration with Town Hall Brands and Blue Grouse Estate Winery and features their 2019 Quill Q White wine.
The Perfect Use for Abundant Summer Zucchini
I am currently drowning in zucchini in the garden and I am always looking for new ways to use it up while it is in season. While I love grilling it or turning it into zucchini bread, I wanted to come up with an elegant way to serve this humble garden veggie.
I came up with this idea through my love of fried zucchini flowers. Rather than frying them, I wanted them to be a stunning part of this zucchini tart. Once you cut into the stuffed zucchini flower, you can see all of the yummy ricotta filling inside. This filling is lightened up with fresh chopped basil and lemon zest, that adds great flavour and texture.
The filling is based on a traditional quiche filling made with eggs and milk. However, I love the addition of ricotta cheese as it makes the tart a bit more substantial without making it too heavy for those hot summer days! Sliced zucchini and fresh basil also round out the filling and lend great flavour to the tart filling.
How to Avoid a Soggy Pastry
We all know that zucchini contains a lot of water, so there are some quick tricks that I use to reduce the water content in the tart.
First is to salt the sliced zucchini that is going into the filling. I sprinkle the zucchini with salt to draw out any moisture. The water immediately starts coming out of the zucchini and you can easily wipe it away with a paper towel.
Another trick is to blind bake the tart before adding the filling. This blind-baking process allows the crust to get a head start on the cooking process and helps create a bit of a barrier to hold all the filling in. Definitely do not skip out on this step or else your tart crust will not cook through by the time the quiche filling is cooked!
The Perfect Wine Pairing
Blue Grouse’s Quill Q White has always been one of my favourites coming out of their winery. It’s crisp, light and really refreshing on hot summer days. This wine is made with a combination of grapes including Riesling, Schönburger, Pinot Blanc and Gewürztraminer and yields a bit of tropical flavour, with notes of peach and pineapple. You can purchase the 2020 Quill Q White now online for $19.99 per bottle!
I hope that you enjoy this Zucchini Flower & Ricotta Tart with a cold glass of Quill Q White this summer!
Get the Recipe!
Zucchini Flower & Ricotta Tart
Ingredients
For the Dough:
- 1 ¼ cup all-purpose flour plus ¼ cup for rolling out the dough
- 1 tablespoon granulated white sugar
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1/2 cup unsalted butter cubed and cold
- 1 tablespoon vegetable oil
- 1 tablespoon lemon juice
- 3 tablespoons cold water
For the Stuffed Zucchini:
- 5-6 fresh zucchini flowers
- 1 cup ricotta cheese
- ¼ cup Parmesan cheese finely grated
- ¼ cup Italian basil chopped
- 1 teaspoon lemon zest
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- ¼ teaspoon ground black pepper
For the Egg Filling:
- 4 large eggs beaten
- 1 cup ricotta cheese
- ½ cup 2% milk
- ¼ cup Italian basil chopped
- ¼ cup fresh chives finely chopped
- 1 + ¼ teaspoon salt
- ¼ teaspoon ground black pepper
- 1/3 cup green and yellow zucchini thinly sliced
Instructions
For the Dough:
- Begin by preparing the pie dough. Add the flour, sugar and salt into a large mixing bowl and stir to combine.
- Add the vegetable oil and cubes of butter into the bowl. Working quickly, cut the butter into the dough until the butter becomes the size of peas. Add the lemon juice and water then mix just until the dough comes together.
- Dump the dough out onto a lightly floured work surface. Use your hands to form the dough into a large disc and wrap with plastic wrap. Chill in the refrigerator for 1 hour.
- Next make the stuffed zucchini. Combine the ricotta, Parmesan, basil, lemon zest, salt and pepper in a mixing bowl.
- To stuff the zucchini, gently open the flower and remove the stamen. Add 1-2 tablespoons of the ricotta filling into the center using a small spoon. Wrap the flower petals around the filling to seal in the ricotta filling. Repeat for the rest of the zucchini flowers and set aside in the refrigerator for later.
- Next make the egg filling. Combine the eggs, ricotta cheese, milk, basil, chives, salt and pepper into a bowl and mix to combine. Set aside in the refrigerator for later.
To Blind-Bake the Tart:
- Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F.
- Remove the pie dough from the refrigerator and roll it out on a floured surface to a thickness of 3-4 mm. Ensure that you roll the dough out larger than your pie tin by at least 3 cm on all sides, as the dough will shrink slightly when baked. Transfer the dough to a pie tin and gently press it into the sides, leaving the 5cm of dough overhanging all the sides.
- Use fork to prick the bottom of the tart to avoid bubbling up later on in the baking process.
- Add a layer of parchment paper on top of the pie dough and fill the tart with pie weights.
- Bake in the oven for 10 minutes. After 10 minutes, remove the parchment paper and pie weights. Return the tart to the oven to bake, uncovered, for another 10 minutes.
- While the tart is blind baking, slice the zucchini and add 1 teaspoon of salt over top. After 15 minutes, the majority of the moisture will be drawn out. Wipe away the excess moisture and leftover salt with a paper towel and set aside.
To Fill and Bake the Tart:
- After 10 minutes of cooking uncovered, remove the tart from the oven and reduce the heat to 350 degrees F.
- Add half of the salted slices of green and yellow zucchini to the bottom of the tart, followed by the stuffed zucchini flowers. Gently pour the egg filling into the tart and place the remaining green and yellow zucchini slices between the zucchini flowers, pressing them down into the egg filling slightly.
- Bake the tart in the oven for 45 minutes, or until the egg filling has set.
- Remove from the oven and let cool for 10 minutes.
- Trim any excess dough from the edges with a serrated knife before slicing and serving!
