Potato Leek Tart

This is a favorite recipe of mine, an easy one my SO’s Ma introduced me to!

Potatoes and leeks are very traditional, easy to grow vegetables commonly paired together in Irish cuisine. This recipe was made fairly more often in my love’s household when he became a pescetarian, cutting all meats in favor of strictly seafood. But even his brothers, with their carnivorous tendencies, love this dish – it’s rich, flavorful and filling without being overtly heavy.

This recipe is from Real Simple, an American home & lifestyle magazine first launched in 2000. Their motto ‘Life Made Easier’ is perfectly encapsulated here, with such minimal prepping that you can make the filling in the time it takes to preheat your oven! This dish is especially great for those evenings where you just want to relax at home with a glass of white wine.

I’ve never altered this as it’s fantastic right off the page, but due to its simplicity I’m positive it’d still be great with diet variations. Some substitutions to try are tofu Feta cheese and vegan pie crust to eliminate dairy altogether from this recipe. I’m also sure the recipe would work with a gluten-free crust. For meat lovers, one can always add ground chicken or beef to the filling.

Shared by Kate Merker, the Senior food editor of Real Simple, this tart is absolutely delicious! The tangy sourness of the Feta complements the zucchini and leek while the potatoes bring a hearty balance — perfectly nestled in flakey pie crust.

This recipe makes one tart that can serve 4 people with a regular serving, but in our household we make an extra. It’s so good, one person can eat a whole halve if they’ve got a healthy appetite.

So without further ado, how to make this delicious tart …

How to make Potato, Leek, and Feta Tart

Serves	4
Hands-On time	20 min
Total time	1 hr 20 min

INGREDIENTS

• 1 tablespoon olive oil
• 2 leeks (white & light green parts) cut into half-moons
• 2 small zucchini, cut into half-moons
• ~ ¼ teaspoon of kosher salt & black pepper each
• ½ cup crumbled Feta (about 2 ounces)
• 2 tablespoons chopped fresh dill
• 2 Red Bliss potatoes (8 ounces), thinly sliced
• 1 store bought 9-inch pie crust

DIRECTIONS

1. Heat oven to 375º F. Heat the oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Add the leeks, zucchini, salt and pepper, stirring occasionally until just tender for 4 to 5 minutes. Stir in the Feta & dill. Add the potatoes & toss to combine.
2. Place parchment paper on a baking sheet, and roll the pie crust to a 12-inch diameter. Spoon the potato mixture onto the crust, leaving a 2-inch border. Fold the pie crust over the outer edges of the mixture. Bake—cover with foil if the crust gets too dark—until the piecrust is golden brown & the potatoes are tender (~50 to 60 minutes).

And that’s really all there is to it! While it’s baking, you can relax or work on something else to pass the time. The kitchen will smell so scrumptious as the crust cooks that you’ll want to take it out early to start devouring it, but I urge patience! You should wait for it to cool down properly; I’ve burned my tongue on this too many times to count.

The best thing about it is that if you find yourself craving this, it is so incredibly easy to make.

_{Originally published on my old blog, The Plant That Never Blooms (on Blogspot)}