This is the appetizer to have on hand when everyone is milling about (6-feet apart of course) waiting on the Easter feast to be served. It's crunchy, creamy and light, plus it's dang cute to look at! This is also the perfect thing for your kids to help you make - it's easy and it just might get them wanting to eat veggies!
Refrigerated pie crust is perfect for this tart, it's sturdy enough to hold up the toppings. I used a 10-inch tart pan and one package of pie crust. Since the crust doesn't need to go to the top of the rim, I folded it down and in half to make for a more stable edge. Holes are poked into the crust with a fork and then it's popped into the oven for 10 to 15 minutes until it's slightly browned.
While the crust cools the filling is made...all good things coming together into a smooth, creamy topping for the crust. Lipton Onion Soup Mix gives this tart a zippy flavor but it doesn't over power the carrots or broccoli - just makes them so much more enjoyable. (Since Lipton Onion Soup Mix makes a great dip, think of this as a dip for carrots and broccoli, genius, no?)
Shredded carrots are scattered on top of the creamy filling, stopping about an inch away from the crusty edge. I know it doesn't look like my crust was done but it was! You can brown yours a bit longer if that's what you like. After the carrots, the chopped broccoli florets are added around the edges. Save the leftover broccoli pieces to make soup or something.
It's SO pretty! And festive and perfect for Easter brunch, lunch or for a snack after the Easter egg hunt. Yes, I'm assuming all of that will still happen - even if we have to stand far apart and wear haz-mat suits! We are going to have Easter! (At the very least we will have an egg throw, where we throw eggs at a tree trunk which might get rid of some built up angst. We will still have an Easter egg hunt because that's outside, too, and the kids will love that. The adults can stand around under umbrellas, if necessary, and we can complain to each other, which is all we seem to do lately. If worse comes to worse, I'll stick out this fresh carrot and cream tart, everyone can have a bite or two and then we'll call it good...which is won't be but if that's the only Easter we get then I'll take it!)
Fresh Carrot and Cream Tart - Adapted from Taste of Home
(You will need a 10-inch tart pan)
1 refrigerated pie crust
4 oz. cream cheese, softened
1 tablespoon sour cream
1 tablespoon mayonnaise
2 teaspoons from 1 pouch of Lipton Onion Soup and Dip Mix (2 pouches to a package)
salt and pepper to taste
1 1/4 cups shredded carrots, loosely packed, about 2 1/2 big carrots
1 1/4 cups chopped broccoli florets, about 1 large head of broccoli
Flaky sea salt for finishing, optional
Preheat oven 400 degrees. Unroll crust and put into tart pan; folding the edges down over itself and pinching into place (see picture above). Poke bottom of crust with a fork and bake for 10 to 13 minutes, or until lightly browned. Allow crust to cool completely. Make filling while crust is cooling by mixing cream cheese, sour cream, mayonnaise, soup mix and salt and pepper in a medium bowl. Whisk together until smooth. When crust is cooled, spread mixture evenly over top of crust. Scatter shredded carrots over cream filling, stopping 1-inch from edge. Scatter broccoli florets around edge of tart. Finish tart with a sprinkling of flaky sea salt. Cut into wedges and serve or refrigerate until serving time. Serves 8.
After eating several pieces I put the tart back into the refrigerator so there would be some left for the mister to enjoy later, I couldn't help myself and reached in for just one more piece...
That hurt more than you know! Suffice it to say, the only tart the mister got was me!
