Satisfied Cravings: Favorite recipes from cookbooks I've reviewed.



Tomato-Zucchini Tart in Potato Crust

Serves 4 to 6


Go To Recipe Archive






From Smith & Hawken Gardeners' Community Cookbook

One 10-inch Potato Crust, prebaked (see recipe below)

2 ½ cups grated white cheddar, Swiss, or provolone

2 medium zucchini, trimmed and thinly sliced (8 to 10 ounces)

2 large tomatoes, thinly sliced (1 pound)

½ small onion, finely chopped

1 tablespoon chopped fresh basil leaves or 1 teaspoon dried basil

1 tablespoon chopped fresh oregano leaves or 1 teaspoon dried oregano

Prepare the crust and bake while preparing the filling. Oven should be at 375.

Spread the bottom of the crust with one-third of the cheese. Place a layer of zucchini slices over the cheese, overlapping them to cover well. Next, arrange a slightly overlapping layer of tomato slices with another third of the cheese. Continue with a second layer in the same order, ending up with tomatoes.

Sprinkle the top layer of tomatoes with the onion, basil, and oregano. Finally, spread the remaining third of the cheese over the top. Bake for 45 minutes, or until the top is golden. Serve right away.

Potato Crust
Makes one 10-inch pie crust

2 cups grated raw russet or Idaho potato, squeezed as dry as possible

1 small onion, very finely chopped

1 egg, lightly beaten

¼ cup all-purpose flour

½ teaspoon salt

vegetable oil, for greasing the pie tin

Preheat the oven to 375.

Combine the potato, onion, egg, flour, and salt in a medium bowl, and mix well. Oil a 10-inch pie pan and transfer the mixture to it, spreading evenly across the bottom and up the sides, as for a pastry crust.

Bake until well browned around the edges, about 30 minutes. Remove, fill, and bake right away.

It's important to go directly from the making and baking of the rust to the filling and baking of the pie. Otherwise, the bottom becomes soggy.

I found that two zucchini weren't enough and ended up using four. -MWF