Courgette & Ricotta Tarte Rustique

This rustic tarte is my go-to for a relaxed Sunday brunch. The sour cream in the dough ensures it’s not too rich, and the chilli adds a welcome kick.

Ingredients

For the tarte:

• 160g plain flour

• 110g cold salted butter, cut into small cubes

• 60ml sour cream

• 2 tsp fresh lemon juice

• 60ml cold water

For the filling:

• 2 medium courgettes (if you can find them 1 green and 1 yellow courgette)

• 120g ricotta

• 2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil

• 1 garlic clove, crushed

• 60ml sour cream

• 1 tsp salt

• 30g grated parmesan

• 1 1/2 tsp smoked paprika

• black pepper

• 1/2 fresh red chilli, very finely chopped

• 1 egg yolk

Method:

In a small bowl, whisk together the water, lemon juice and sour cream until thoroughly combined. Set aside.

In a large bowl, mix flour and salt until combined. Sprinkle the small cubes of butter into the bowl, pressing them into the flour with your hands until the mixture resembles breadcrumbs.

Pour sour cream mixture into the large bowl and mix together with the flour/butter mixture until it forms a smooth soft dough. Sprinkle with a little flour and shape into a ball. Make sure not to knead it - the dough should just hold together. Wrap in clingfilm and leave in fridge to rest for 1 hour.

Slice the courgettes to disks of 5mm thick. Lay them on kitchen towel without overlapping and sprinkle liberally with salt. Leave to sit for 30 minutes in order for the moisture to be released. Place another kitchen towel on top and press firmly, then lift. this should remove any excess moisture from the courgettes.

For the filling, in a medium sized bowl, bring together garlic, olive oil, ricotta, sour cream, parmesan, paprika, black pepper, salt and fresh chilli. Mix until a smooth paste is formed.

Pre-heat oven to 190°c

Take the pastry from the fridge and on a large surface sprinkled liberally with flour, roll it into a circle with a rolling pin, roughly to 30cm in diameter.

Transfer the pastry to a round baking dish with removable bottom, allowing the edges of the pastry to drape over and beyond the dish all around. Pour in the filling, spreading it evenly to fill the entire bottom.

Begin to place the courgette disks, starting with the outer extremities of the dish and overlapping each one half way from the one before, working concentrically until you reach the centre. Drizzle a little olive oil over the courgettes.

Fold the overlapping pastry over the filling, pleating the edges as you go, leaving the majority of the tarte filling exposed.

Brush the pastry with the egg wash evenly, and bake in the centre rack of the oven for 1 hour or until the pastry is golden brown.