Indulge in this vibrant roasted carrot and whipped feta tart, a feast for the eyes and the palate! This budget-friendly dish is elevated with a zesty lemon rind and a homemade carrot-top pesto, packed with the goodness of walnuts and fresh parsley. It's so delicious, you'll be coming back for more!
with tops
or vegetarian hard cheese
drained and crumbled, vegetarian if needed
Preheat the oven to 200C/180C fan/gas 6. Trim the carrot tops from the carrots, discarding any tough stems, and set the tops aside. Halve the carrots lengthways, then place them in a roasting tin. Toss the carrots with 2 tsp of olive oil and some seasoning.
Roast the carrots for 25-30 minutes, stirring once or twice, until they are tender and golden. Stir in the za'atar and honey, then set the roasted carrots aside.
While the carrots roast, roughly chop the garlic and walnuts. Roughly chop 25g of parsley. Place the reserved carrot tops and 150ml of extra virgin olive oil into a food processor. Season and blitz, scraping down the sides occasionally, until finely chopped. Add the chopped garlic, chopped walnuts, 40g of grated parmesan, and 25g of chopped parsley to the food processor and pulse until combined. If needed, add another splash of olive oil. Transfer the pesto to a bowl and season to taste. Clean out the food processor.
Zest the lemon. Tip the 200g of drained and crumbled feta, 150g of Greek yogurt, and most of the lemon zest into the cleaned food processor. Add some seasoning and blitz until the mixture is smooth and creamy.
Place a large baking tray in the oven to heat up. Roll out the 500g block of puff pastry on a sheet of baking parchment into a rectangle approximately 40 x 30cm. Gently score a 2cm border around the edge of the pastry using a sharp knife. Beat the egg. Brush the beaten egg all over the pastry and sprinkle a large pinch of sea salt around the border.
Carefully slide the pastry, still on the baking parchment, onto the hot baking tray. Bake for 15-20 minutes until the pastry is golden and puffed up. Remove the pastry from the oven and gently press the middle down using the back of a metal spoon. Cool the pastry for 5-10 minutes.
Spread the whipped feta over the middle of the cooled pastry. Arrange the roasted carrots on top of the feta. Drizzle over the carrot top pesto. Scatter whole parsley leaves and the remaining lemon zest over the tart. Cut into slices and serve immediately.
If you don't have walnuts, any other nuts you have at home can be used as a substitute for the pesto.
To reduce food waste, use the carrot tops for the pesto. Any leftover pesto can be frozen in ice cube trays for up to three months and can be defrosted by tossing it through hot pasta over a low heat. If you don't have carrot tops, you can substitute them with parsley or use any leftover pesto you have in the fridge.