The first year we planted a garden, I chose seeds with complete abandon. Orange carrots? Those sound fun. Rainbow carrots? Let’s give them a try. Another backup row of carrots in case the first row doesn’t germinate? Sure, let’s do that, just to be safe. As you might expect, when the time to harvest, we had more carrots than we knew what to do with. I eventually developed this savory carrot ricotta tart recipe to turn the basic vegetable into a fancy-feeling appetizer or vegetarian main course.
Jump to RecipeWhile I read about a lot of different carrot ricotta tart recipes, the one you see below is directly inspired by this recipe, written by Breana Killeen. She had the genius idea of incorporating the greens from fresh carrots into a pesto-like sauce, and using it to add an herbaceous flavor to this savory tart. I switched up some of the herbs for this recipe, and I recommend incorporating the pesto into our ricotta cheese base in order to distribute the flavor throughout the body of the tart.
Even if you aren’t growing carrots in your garden this year, the organic section of your local grocery store should still sell carrots with the greens still attached. I like to use rainbow carrots for their extra pop of color, but that is completely optional for this savory tart recipe. If you wanted to switch things up, you could even substitute some of the carrots for turnips – though keep in mind that they will diminish this tart’s natural sweetness.
If you only think “sweet” when you hear “tart recipe”, and you were disappointed that this tart involves vegetables – never fear. This sweet fig pear tart makes for a delicious dessert, especially when the pears are fresh and abundant.
Ingredients for a carrot ricotta tart
- 5-6 carrots – ideally rainbow carrots, for a picture-perfect tart
- Carrot green pesto – for which we’ll need carrot greens, olive oil, garlic, salt, dill, rosemary, thyme, and minced garlic
- Ricotta cheese base – to which we will add the carrot green pesto, lemon juice, and parmesan cheese
- A sheet of frozen puff pastry, thawed
- An egg wash, made from 1 egg beaten with 1 tablespoon of water
How to make a carrot ricotta tart
Preheat your oven to 400 degrees F.
Peel carrots and slice lengthwise into long, thin strips. Toss the sliced carrots with 1 tablespoons of olive oil and ½ teaspoon of salt before transferring to a baking sheet. Roast these carrots at 400 degrees for 20-25 minutes, or until tender.
While the carrots are cooking, prepare your puff pastry. Roll out your thawed pastry into a rectangle, measuring roughly 8” by 12”. Once rolled out, use a paring knife to lightly score a line demarcating a 1 inch border around the entire sheet. Use a fork to prick the area within the border. Place this pastry on a prepared baking sheet and bake at 400 for 10 minutes, until it is becoming puffy and starting to turn golden brown. After removing the puff pastry from the oven, use a fork to lightly press on the pastry within the border and reduce its puffiness.
Combine your rosemary, dill, garlic, carrot greens, and 2 tablespoons of oil in the bowl of a blender or food processor. Pulse until the mixture is finely chopped.
In a separate bowl, combine parmesan, lemon juice, and ricotta and stir to combine. Mix in 2 tablespoons of the carrot green pesto. Set aside.
In a small bowl, beat one egg together with a tablespoon of water. Use a pastry brush to spread this egg wash along the border of the partially-baked puff pastry. Then spread the ricotta mixture within the border of the puff pastry.
Top the ricotta mixture with your roasted carrots and sprinkle them with another teaspoon or two of grated Parmesan. Bake this completed tart for 10-15 minutes at 400 degrees F.
Garnish the finished tart with additional parmesan and, if desired, a few dollops of the carrot green pesto. I like to cut this savory tart into 8 slices and serve as the main dish for dinner, or as an appetizer at a larger gathering. It’s a nice vegetarian option to share with friends, and it brings so many flavors to the table that people won’t even miss the meat.
I hope you enjoyed this carrot ricotta tart recipe! Did you make it for any fun special event? Did you arrange your carrots into any sort of fun design? Feel free to tag any photos on social media with @WhiskAverseBaking, or leave a comment below with any questions you might have. If you want to save this savory tart recipe for later, click the “Pin It” button on the recipe card below.
Carrot Ricotta Tart
Ingredients
- 5-6 carrots
- 1 cup of carrot greens
- 3 tablespoons olive oil divided
- ½ teaspoon salt
- 1 teaspoon dried dill
- 2 teaspoons fresh rosemary
- 1 teaspoon fresh thyme
- 2 tablespoons minced garlic or 2 cloves garlic
- ¼ cup grated Parmesan cheese
- 1 tablespoon lemon juice
- ½ cup ricotta cheese
- 1 sheet frozen puff pastry thawed
- 1 egg
- 1 tablespoon water
Instructions
- Preheat your oven to 400 degrees F.
- Peel carrots and slice lengthwise into long, thin strips. Toss the sliced carrots with 1 tablespoons of olive oil and ½ teaspoon of salt before transferring to a baking sheet. Roast these carrots at 400 degrees for 20-25 minutes, or until tender.
- While the carrots are cooking, prepare your puff pastry. Roll out your thawed pastry into a rectangle, measuring roughly 8” by 12”. Once rolled out, use a paring knife to lightly score a line demarcating a 1 inch border around the entire sheet. Use a fork to prick the area within the border. Place this pastry on a prepared baking sheet and bake at 400 for 10 minutes, until it is becoming puffy and starting to turn golden brown. After removing the puff pastry from the oven, use a fork to lightly press on the pastry within the border and reduce its puffiness.
- Combine your rosemary, dill, garlic, carrot greens, and 2 tablespoons of oil in the bowl of a blender or food processor. Pulse until the mixture is finely chopped.
- In a separate bowl, combine parmesan, lemon juice, and ricotta and stir to combine. Mix in 2 tablespoons of the carrot green pesto. Set aside.
- In a small bowl, beat one egg together with a tablespoon of water. Use a pastry brush to spread this egg wash along the border of the partially-baked puff pastry. Then spread the ricotta mixture within the border of the puff pastry.
- Top the ricotta mixture with your roasted carrots and sprinkle them with another teaspoon or two of grated Parmesan. Bake this completed tart for 10-15 minutes at 400 degrees F.
- Garnish the finished tart with additional parmesan and, if desired, a few dollops of the carrot green pesto. Serve hot.
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