Watch Neven's Spanish Food Trails on Wednesdays at 8:30pm on RTÉ One.
Ingredients
Serves 4
- 425g packet frozen puff pastry, thawed
- a little plain flour, for dusting
- 2 tbsp olive oil
- 1 large red pepper, diced
- 100g aubergine, diced
- 1 small courgette, diced
- 1 small red onion, diced
- 1 tbsp Tomato Purée
- 200g chopped tomatoes
- sea salt and freshly ground black pepper
- 2 tbsp basil pesto
- 120g goats cheese
- 2 tbsp toasted pine nuts
- Mixed salad leaves, to serve
For The Basil Pesto
- 1 large bunch of fresh basil leaves (at least 50g (2oz))
- 2 garlic cloves, peeled
- 25g blanch almonds, toasted
- 175ml olive oil
- 50g grated Parmesan
- Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper
Method
- Preheat the oven to 180°C (Gas mark 4)Unroll the two pieces of puff pastry and place on a lightly floured board. Cut out 4 x 15cm (6inch) circles and place on baking sheets lined with parchment paper.
- Prick the inner circle of pastry all over many times to prevent it from puffing up.
- Lay another sheet of parchment paper over the pastry circles and cover with a second baking sheet to prevent them from rising too much & will make them extra crispy and golden brown.
- Bake for 10–12 minutes, until slightly puffed up and light golden.
- Heat 2 tablespoons of the olive oil in a frying pan over a medium heat and sauté all the vegetables on a medium heat for 5-6 minutes, until the vegetables are beginning to soften and catch colour.
- Stir in the tomato puree and chopped tomatoes. Season with sea salt and freshly ground black pepper. Add in approximately 200ml of water to help loosen the mix.
- Cover with a lid and allow to cook for 3-4 minutes. Add in the basil pesto and stir through. Divide the sautéed vegetable mixture evenly among the pastry bases, spreading them out to the rim using the back of a spoon.
- Crumble over the goat's cheese on top of each one, drizzle over some pesto & black pepper. Return to the oven for 6-8 minutes, until the tarts have completely warmed through.
- Arrange mixed salad leaves on a plate and sprinkle with pine nuts.
For The Basil Pesto
- Place the basil in a food processor with the garlic, almonds, parmesan and oil. Blend to a light paste,Transfer to a bowl and season to tasteCover with clingfilm and chill until needed
