I was lucky enough to receive a beautiful bunch of Swiss chard from my friend, who is a gardener and grows wonderful vegetables and beautiful flowers. The freshly picked Swiss chard made a wonderful tasting tart.

You may use a store-bought refrigerated pie crust dough in this recipe. However, the whole wheat pastry is easy to make and the whole wheat flavor compliments the Swiss chard filling.

Ingredients

Single pie crust dough

1 cup whole wheat pastry flour (all-purpose flour or gluten-free flour)
1/4 teaspoon kosher salt
1/2 cup (1 stick) chilled unsalted butter, cut into pieces
1/2 tablespoon apple cider vinegar
2 tablespoons ice water

Tart Filling

1 cup ricotta cheese
1/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 garlic clove, finely chopped
1 shallot, minced
1 bunch large Swiss chard, ribs and stems removed, leaves cut into bite-size pieces
1/4 cup chopped flat-leaf parsley
2 tablespoons chopped fresh chives
1 teaspoon finely grated lemon zest
Sea salt and black pepper
Crispy Prosciutto Crisps, optional, see recipe below

Directions

Whole Wheat Pastry Dough

Combine the ice water and vinegar in a small bowl.

Pulse flour and salt in a food processor to combine. Add butter and pulse until the mixture resembles a coarse meal with a few pea-size pieces of butter remaining.

Drizzle with the vinegar and ice water, pulsing just a few times until the dough comes together. Place the dough on a bread board and pat into a disk.

Wrap the pastry in plastic wrap and chill at least 2 hours. Dough can be made 2 days ahead.

Tart Filling

Preheat the oven to 375°F. Season the ricotta cheese with kosher salt and pepper and, then, add the Parmesan cheese; set aside.

Heat the olive oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Cook the garlic and shallots, stirring, until softened, about 60 seconds.

Add half of the chard and cook, tossing, until slightly wilted. Add the remaining chard and season with sea salt and pepper.

Cook, tossing occasionally, until completely wilted, about 4 minutes. Remove the skillet from the heat and stir in the chopped chives, parsley and lemon zest; set aside.

To prepare the pastry:

Roll out the dough on a floured sheet of parchment into a 12” round about ⅛” thick. Add flour on top and bottom as needed to keep the dough from sticking to the paper or rolling-pin.

Transfer the rolled out dough while on the parchment to a baking sheet. Spread half of the ricotta over the dough, leaving a 1” border.

Top with the sautéed chard and spread the remaining ricotta over the chard.

Crimp the edges of the dough up around the filling as you might do with a pie; brush the dough and ricotta topping with the egg beaten with 1 teaspoon of water.

Bake for 40-45 minutes or until the crust is golden brown and the filling is firm in the center.

Slide the tart (still on the parchment) onto a wire rack and sprinkle with the prosciutto crisps, if using; cool for 15 minutes before cutting.

Serve warm or at room temperature. (Leftovers are good cold or reheated on a baking sheet at 375°F for about 10 minutes.)

Prosciutto Crisps

While the tart is baking: Place 4 slices of very thin prosciutto flat on a baking sheet covered with parchment paper.

Bake about 12-15 minutes, or until fairly crisp. Remove the pan from the oven and let the prosciutto cool slightly.

The prosciutto will get even more crispy – like bacon – as it cools.

Break the prosciutto up into pieces and set aside.


Posted by in Cheese, Healthy Italian Cooking, pastry, Prosciutto, Swiss Chard, tart, Vegetables Tags: ,