Winter has officially landed in Sydney and all I can think of is comfort food.
I love warming up the house by turning on the oven and bake something for me and my partner.
I have been making lots of sweet recipes recently and I really wanted to create something savoury this time. So I started thinking about all my favourite wintery recipes that I grew up with and I have realised that what I have been missing most, since switching to a more healthy and plant-based diet, are tarts. Any type of savoury tart!
I used to buy pre-made puff pastry to make my tarts. It was such an easy meal to have every week. My favourite was with egg, spinach and parmesan cheese.
Today I am recreating a delicious but healthy version of a classic, the vegetables quiche.
The challenge this time was to create a creamy sauce without using dairy, nutritional yeast, chickpeas, tofu and/or cashew nuts. Most of the vegan healthy tarts out there, use one or more of these ingredients which are delicious but not good for my tummy.
To create the crispy base, I went for a mix of healthy flours with a touch of walnuts. I love the oily texture that walnuts add.
And for the filling nothing but vegetable broth and flours. That’s it!
And for the filling nothing but vegetable broth and flours. That’s it!
Get ready to discover your new weekly meal!
Earthy Quiche with Walnut Base
VEGAN, DAIRY FREE, GLUTEN FREE, YEAST FREE
SERVE: MAKES 1 QUICHE
Ingredients
Base
1/2 cup walnut meal
1/2 cup buckwheat flour
1/2 cup brown rice flour
1/2 cup quinoa flour
5 tbsp plant based milk
1 1/2 tbsp olive oil
3/4 tsp Himalayan salt
2 tbsp ground flaxseed
4 tbsp water
Filling
1 cup broccolini
1/2 cup mushrooms
1/2 spinach
1/2 brown onion
1 cup heirloom tomato
2 tbsp olive oil
Fresh thyme
Pinch Himalayan salt
250ml vegetable stock
70gr quinoa flour
1 tbsp semolina
Pinch Himalayan salt
Instructions
Start making the tart’s base.
Mix ground flax seeds with water in a small bowl and set aside for 10 minutes.
Mix ground flax seeds with water in a small bowl and set aside for 10 minutes.
In a large bowl, combine the dry ingredients. Add in olive oil, plant based milk and the flax seed mixture. Mix all together to form a dough.
Greece a tart pan and transfer the dough into the pan.
With your finger, press the dough into the bottom and the sides of the pan. Using a fork, poke few holes across the bottom.
With your finger, press the dough into the bottom and the sides of the pan. Using a fork, poke few holes across the bottom.
Bake for 10 minutes at 180°.
Meanwhile, heat 2 tbsp of olive oil in a fry pan. Chop the onion and add it to the fry pan when the olive oil is hot.
Wash and chop broccolini, mushroom and heirloom tomatoes.
Once the onion is nicely brown, add broccolini and mushroom and let it cook for 5/6 minutes or until the vegetables are soft. Last add in the spinach.
Once the onion is nicely brown, add broccolini and mushroom and let it cook for 5/6 minutes or until the vegetables are soft. Last add in the spinach.
In a blender, mix the vegetable stock with quinoa flour, salt and semolina.
Fill the half baked tart with your vegetables and top it with your sauce, heirloom tomatoes cut in half and fresh thyme.
Transfer in the oven for 35 minutes at 180°. Enjoy while it is still warm.
Notes
You can use any vegetables that you like or have in the fridge.
