There are few things I love as much as fresh zucchini. Isn't it odd, then, that I should be the only person in the known world who isn't completely inundated with squash this time of year. I've heard all the jokes about keeping one's doors locked lest someone sneak in zucchini--and I want to be the victim of such a crime. I'm good at growing the plants--they are always lush and gorgeous and covered with blooms which, sadly, produce very little.I've been hoping for a bumper crop as I read other blogs so that I might try making these or this or even this. But what I'd really been waiting for was to make another zucchini-feta tart.
I have a subscription to Saveur magazine and I admit to feeling rather sheepish about it given the number of ads for luxury vehicles and fancy vacations that fill the pages. But once you move past all the eye candy for the well off, the articles are engaging and informative and I have a found a number of recipes which have become standards in my kitchen. Last May, the cover featured a photo of a zucchini-feta tart which looked absolutely heavenly.I love anything with feta, especially the Pastures of Eden feta which is shipped (I know, I know, using lots of fossil fuels) from Israel to my local Trader Joe's where I snap it up in alarming quantities. But really, it's the best. And then there's the tart's base--who doesn't love puff pastry? And Trader Joe's now carries an all butter, non-hydrogenated variety which I had waiting in my freezer for just such a dish.
The combination of the slightly sweet, light-as-a-feather pastry with the creamy cheese and bright zucchini is brilliant. This is a bit of a fiddly dish what with salting some of the zucchini and blanching the rest, and the pastry does require a bit of pre-baking. But every step is worth it, I promise you. The finished tart is good warm, cool, or cold and is quite pretty as well so it would make a lovely addition to a party table.
The recipe is here. I ended up having too few zucchini in my garden to make this all from homegrown but it was delicious nonetheless.
3 comments:
That looks delicious. I got your link off ORSig sometime back and have been checking your blog regularly, despite this being my first comment.
I am not being flooded with zucchini this year either. My yellow summer squash is doing moderately well, but something funky is going on with my zucchini and the leaves keep dying off and I haven't even gotten one!
I love feta passionately, and adding puff pastry and zucchini is a winner in my book! I will be trying this soon.
Mmmm....I also love zucchini and have never been inundated like the myths I hear. This year, I had a lot early, and then I thought the plant had died. I think it was the same as Lisa (above)--the leaves kept dying. But now there are two new little growth spots on the plant, and lots of little zukes! Yay! I still have a chance of being inundated. And then, perhaps I will try this recipe!
Hi Lisa--thanks for visiting! Drop by anytime :-)
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