This is seriously my new favourite thing to make when I’m having a friend over for lunch.
It’s super quick and looks impressive.
And tastes like you’ve gone to the trouble of making pastry for a tart.
Which of course you haven’t.
Plus it’s Low Carb. So a winner all round!
I adore this version with blue cheese and sage, but if you’re not a blue cheese fan check the variations for other ideas.
It makes 2 very large serves (or 3 small ones). Or you could halve the cheese for a lighter meal.
And I love the convenience of using frozen kale. But you could always cook your own if you prefer.
If you are using frozen kale / spinach, make sure you squeeze it dry before using or you’ll end up with a soggy tart. No one likes a soggy tart 😉
Gorgeous Greens Tart
Ingredients
- 100 g almond meal (almond flour)
- 200 g blue cheese crumbled
- 4 eggs
- 250 g frozen kale or spinach (1 bag) squeezed dry
- handful sage optional
- 1 bag salad leaves
Instructions
- Turn your oven to 200C (400F). Line the base and sides of a 24cm (9in) spring form pan with baking paper. If you can’t be bothered you can just grease but the eggs do like to stick!
- Spread almond meal over the base of your prepared pan. Mix cheese, eggs, kale / spinach and a pinch of salt in a bowl. Pour egg mixture over the almond meal.
- If using sage, scatter leaves over the top and drizzle with some extra virgin olive oil to help the sage leaves crisp up.
- Bake for 20-25 minutes or until the eggs are set and the tart is puffing up and slightly golden. Allow to cool for a few minutes (or hours) and serve wedges with the salad / kraut on the side.
Nutrition
WINE MATCH: A big buttery Chardonnay.
Variations & Substitutions
dairy-free – replace cheese with 2 extra eggs and a few handfuls roasted walnuts or macadamias. Pitted olives or sun dried tomatoes are also delicious.
different cheese – feta, goats cheese, cheddar, parmesan. A mix of what you have in the house.
less substantial – this is quite filling for 2 people. Halve the cheese for a lighter meal.
more substantial (carb lovers) – crusty bread and butter. Serve as a sandwich filling. Serve with roast sweet potato, boiled or roast potatoes or other roast veg.
more substantial (low carb) – these are pretty big serves. But you could always add a handful of walnuts or almonds or serve with this cabbage salad.
Low FODMAP – use the spinach. And replace almond meal with ground walnuts or macadamias (just blitz them in your food processor).
nut-free – skip the almond meal and make it into a frittata instead. You may like to add an extra 2 eggs to make up for the missing nuts.
family-friendly – if your family aren’t into greens try this ham and cheese version.
different vegetables – use any home cooked greens. You’ll need about 150g (5oz) cooked veg. Roast or grilled veg are lovely as well. I can’t wait to make a Spring time version with asparagus.
carnivore – serve with some proscuitto or bacon.
different protein – I’m afraid you really need the egg for this one 🙂
Problem Solving Guide
bland – more salt. And a drizzle of extra virgin olive oil. Next time try a different cheese.
too dry – overcooked eggs will dry out. Next time check earlier. For now a little olive oil or some mayo will help.
watery / wobbly – under-cooked eggs – if you can pop it back in the oven for another 10 minutes or so. Next time touch the mixture in the middle to make sure it feels firm before getting it out of the oven. Also make sure your greens are well squeeed before using.
no oven – make gorgeous scrambled eggs by cooking the egg and cheese mixture in a frying pan on a medium heat, stirring often until set. Scoop into bowls and top with chopped roast almonds or other nuts instead of the almond meal.
Waste Avoidance Strategy
almond meal – keep it in the pantry.
blue cheese – if unopened it usually has a shelf life of a few weeks in the fridge. If it is opened, will only keep for a few days so use for another meal or freeze.
eggs – will keep in the fridge for weeks or use for another meal.
frozen kale or spinach – will keep frozen for months.
sage leaves – best to use for another meal.
salad leaves – are highly perishable. My first path would be to use them for another meal (salad for breakfast!) but if that isn’t possible you can pop them in the freezer. They will wilt down but can then be used anywhere you’d use wilted greens. At least this way they won’t go slimy.
sauerkraut – will keep in the fridge for 3 months or so in the fridge. You can freeze but it will change in texture.
Prepare Ahead
Yes! Just cook as per the recipe. Leftovers will keep in the fridge for up to 2 weeks or can be frozen. To serve, warm to room temp or warm in the oven.
Add to my Old Favourite Recipes
I tried a new version of this today: in a well-greased 7″x11″ glass baking pan I put the almond meal (100+ grams). Topped that with a layer of caramelized onions (2 good sized sweet onions), then a layer of leftover raw broccoli florets and romanesco, then a layer of crumbled goat cheese (an 8 oz.) log, and finally poured 10 eggs over the top, to make 6 servings. It took about 30 minutes to bake, and came out very well. One of the nice things I discovered is that bite-size chunks of the veggies cooked perfectly. I love feeling free to experiment with recipes.
OOH YUM Susan – I LOVE the idea of caramelised onion goats cheese and broccoli -it sounds SOO good!
Jules, I have to be on a soft diet for another 4 weeks, and it just occurred to me that I can substitute spinach for the broccoli, to make this even softer. This has become one of our favorite meals, so I’m really glad you gave me the inspiration of how to do it to meet my dietary requirements.
Hi Jules I just wonder if you can give some alternatives for nuts. I am celiac and also can’t do nuts which is rubbish it also is really hard to find soy sauce here that’s gluten free so ideas for that too please. I am a nightmare for cooking so really hoping your meal plans with alternatives will give me a new enthusiasm for food-thank you x
Celiac and no nuts IS tough Sam – but not impossible.
You could use ground sunflower seeds (or a combo of sunflower, pumpkin seeds and sesame seeds – just blitz them in a food processor until finely ground – I use ground sunflower seeds instead of almond meal when I’m making things for school and it works well.
And here’s a list of suggestions for soy sauce https://thestonesoup.com/blog/soy-sauce-substitutes/ – kikkoman make a gluten-free soy sauce that I get at the supermarket – but am sure you can order on line.
And we will get you there on the cooking front! Just keep asking questions 🙂
The almond meal base for the tart is genius! And delicious! Love it!
So glad you enjoyed it Mada!
Thanks for letting me know 🙂
Oh my goodness. This was delicious, It did take about 15 minutes longer to cook but Ibhad used a bag of fresh kale and spinach and probably didn’t squeeze it out enough after precooking. Looking forward to lunch tomorrow
Glad you enjoyed Martina!
This was quite delicious and quick and easy to make. As I love blue cheese I was looking forward to trying it out, and I kept going back for more. Great idea using almond meal as the pastry base. (I made it as an extra meal for the challenge.)
Glad you enjoyed Keryl!
As per your suggestion, I put down a layer of grated cheese between two layers of almond meal, and it did hang together as a crust. I also added some cumin and garlic powder to the egg mixture, as the feta cheese I had is quite mild, topped it with rosemary, and ate the baked result with grilled zucchini and capsicum. Good.
ooh excellent Mark!
Interesting. Instead of almond meal, tonight I used a 50/50 mix of sunflower seeds and walnuts, and although my spice grinder isn’t quite tough enough to reduce all the walnuts to meal (it makes quick work of the seeds), and also I didn’t much like the walnuts in your Hearty Walnut, Kale & Goats Cheese Frittata, they gave a real savoury boost here, with no fibrous aftertaste. The shaved Parmesan that I used to bind the meal together didn’t hurt either. Very good.
ooh that combo of ground walnuts with sunflower and parm sounds like an excellent tart base Mark!
Do you have any tips on how to best squeeze the water out of frozen spinach and kale? I always seem to make such a mess! Thanks!
Excellent question Alana!
I just out it in a sieve / strainer to and then use a spoon (or my hands) to push down on it to get rid of the liquid – it’s always a bit messy!
Jx
Hi Jules,
Would it be ok to use a ceramic quiche/flan dish to bake this, instead of a baking tin? Wasn’t sure if it would affect the consistency of the almond meal? Also would ricotta cheese work? I’m looking forward to trying this!
Thanks,
Amrita
Yes to ceramic Amrita – the almond meal doesn’t really crisp up. Just make sure you line it so it’s easy to serve because the almond crust is more crumbly than a regular pastry. And double yes for ricotta. Yum!
Excellent! Thank you, Jules. I’ll try it out this weekend! 🙂