Remember when kale was an under-the-radar vegetable–the woody stemmed leaves making an appearance only as decoration for the honey hams and turkey breasts in your supermarket’s deli case? Kale has experienced an extreme resurgence in the last couple years…coming out of the shadows and exhibited in everything from soups, salads, and stuffings to pastas, smoothies, and side dishes. Once the food blogging world embraces an ingredient, the world embraces it.
In other words, we all basically attacked you with kale chip recipes until you finally flew the white flag and started eating it. Same thing happened with quinoa. And pomegranates. And an excessive use of mason jars.
Well, we’ve actually never included a kale recipe on the Woks of Life, so we might be coming late to the party. But if you’re looking for a new way to use the kale that’s wheedled its way into your weekly grocery cart, try out this Cheesy Kale Sweet Potato tart. It’s a somewhat new way to use the antioxidant-rich veg, paired with sweet potatoes, cheese, and lovely pastry. It also makes an awesome seasonal side for Thanksgiving, if you’re thinking about adding something new to the table this year.
Here’s what you need:
Recipe Instructions
Start by making the crust. In a large mixing bowl, combine the flour, sugar, and salt. Cut in the butter with a pastry cutter or two knives until the mixture resembles coarse crumbs.
Whisk together the egg yolk and water, and add it to the flour mixture. Mix everything together with a fork until the dough comes together. Flatten into a disk…
Cover tightly with plastic wrap, and place in the refrigerator to chill for at least an hour. Take out of the refrigerator about a few minutes before you’re ready to roll it out.
Roll out the dough and fit it to your tart pan. You may have to patch it up a bit, but don’t worry, it’ll turn out great. Pierce the dough all over with a fork and place the tart shell in the freezer for 30 minutes.
Meanwhile, melt 2 tablespoons of butter in a large skillet over medium heat. Add the chopped leeks and cook for about 10 minutes.
Add the kale, crushed red pepper flakes, and a couple drizzles of olive oil. Season with salt and pepper to taste. Cook for another couple minutes, just until the kale is wilted. Remove from the heat.
Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F (210 degrees C). Blind bake the tart shell for 10 minutes, and remove from the oven. If you see it starting to puff up at all, poke the dough with a fork again!
Prep your potato by peeling it and slicing it paper-thin. A mandolin helps, but a sharp knife will do the job.
Add the thyme and ricotta (or cream cheese) to the kale mixture. Place a layer of sweet potato slices in the bottom of the tart shell.
Spread the kale and cheese mixture evenly over that, and top with another layer of sweet potato slices.
Brush the top thoroughly with olive oil and sprinkle the cheese over the tart.
Bake for about 20 minutes, until golden brown.
Cheesy Kale Sweet Potato Tart
Ingredients
For the pastry:
- 1 ¼ cups all-purpose flour
- ¼ cup sugar
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- 1 stick butter (cold, cut into small cubes)
- 1 egg yolk
- 1 tablespoon cold water
For the filling:
- 2 tablespoons butter
- ½ cup leeks (finely chopped)
- 1 bunch kale (stemmed and chopped)
- ½ teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes
- olive oil
- salt and pepper
- 1 small sweet potato
- 2 sprigs fresh thyme plus more for garnish
- 1 cup ricotta (or softened cream cheese)
- 1/2 cup shredded cheese (gruyere, aged cheddar, or manchego work great for this)
Instructions
- Start by making the crust. In a large mixing bowl, combine the flour, sugar, and salt. Cut in the butter with a pastry cutter or two knives until the mixture resembles coarse crumbs. Whisk together the egg yolk and water, and add it to the flour mixture. Mix everything together with a fork until the dough comes together. Flatten into a disk, cover tightly with plastic wrap, and place in the refrigerator to chill for at least an hour. Take out of the refrigerator about a few minutes before you’re ready to roll it out.
- Roll out the dough and fit it to your tart pan. You may have to patch it up a bit, but don’t worry, it’ll turn out great. Pierce the dough all over with a fork and place the tart shell in the freezer for 30 minutes.
- Meanwhile, melt 2 tablespoons of butter in a large skillet over medium heat. Add the chopped leeks and cook for about 10 minutes. Add the kale, crushed red pepper flakes, and a couple drizzles of olive oil. Season with salt and pepper to taste. Cook for another couple minutes, just until the kale is wilted. Remove from the heat.
- Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F (210 degrees C). Blind bake the tart shell for 10 minutes, and remove from the oven. If you see it starting to puff up at all, poke the dough with a fork again!
- Prep your potato by peeling it and slicing it paper-thin. A mandolin helps, but a sharp knife will do the job. Add the thyme and ricotta (or cream cheese) to the kale mixture. Place a layer of sweet potato slices in the bottom of the tart shell. Spread the kale and cheese mixture evenly over that, and top with another layer of sweet potato slices. Brush the top thoroughly with olive oil and sprinkle the cheese over the tart. Bake for about 20 minutes, until golden brown.
This tart is absolutely delicious! Even my non-vegetarian family love it.
I made this with feta cheese and it was really good. Used same recipe but added feta. Really nice.
Glad you liked it Mandy!
I have made this twice and it is delicious!!!
Thanks Donn!
Beside kale what other vege I can use for this recipe? I can’t find kale here in Melaka.
Hey Angie, you could also use spinach! Just make sure to cook out the liquid before adding it to the tart.
This looks wonderful and we love kale here. Sweet potatoes too! Pinning and yumming! Thanks for sharing it with us at Foodie Fridays! After our week off for Thanksgiving, we’ll be back this Thursday night! Hope to see you then!
Two ingredients I don’t usually go out of my way to use, but together they look SO good! I’ll have to try for sure! Thank you for sharing at Merry Monday.
Outstanding as always!
Thanks for coming and linking up at The Weekend Social. Please be sure to come back next week starting Thursdays at 9PM EST The Midnight Baker ! I hope to see you there!
[email protected] http://www.bakeatmidnite.com
Gah, if I see another mason jar, kale chip or quinoa cookie, I’m going to hide under my bed. This is so refreshing – I love savory tarts + CHEESE. well done, lady.
Thanks lady! :)
I’m definitely going to try this, and the best part is that I’m pretty sure nobody in my family will eat it — which means I can have it all to myself!
hahaha go Lydia!
This looks delicious! I’m so looking forward to trying it, thanks for sharing.
Thanks Natasha!