This simple Broccoli Tart is made with an easy brown rice crust for a delicious and healthy gluten free meal. Packed with protein and veggies, it's a perfect recipe for breakfast, lunch, or dinner.
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I think that savory tarts and pies are a vastly underappreciated meal.
With protein and veggies neatly packaged into a carby crust, it's a complete and nourishing recipe all neatly packaged into an adorable tidy form. What's not to love?
I love eggy tarts, like quiche or frittatas for their ability to span the entire day - they're perfect for a morning brunch, make an outstanding packed lunch, and there's certainly nothing wrong with a vegetable tart for dinner.
This Broccoli Tart in particular makes use of leftover brown rice, mixed with egg and cheese and pressed into a pan to form a gluten-free crust of sorts. So there's no fussing around with pastry, nothing to roll out - it's a low-maintenance tart if I ever met one.
Filled with pan-fried broccoli, softened red onions, and salty feta cheese, and then more eggs and cheese, this bakes to brown, bubbly, perfection and you'll hardly be able to wait for it to cool enough to try your first bite.
But hey - if you're looking for a more traditional tart with a pastry crust, check out our Smoky Asparagus Quiche recipe too.
Ingredients:
The ingredients list for this broccoli tart is short and sweet - and I'm willing to bet you've got almost everything on hand already. You'll find specific quantities in the printable recipe card at the end of this post, but here's a quick glance at what you'll need.
- Brown rice --> Leftovers work great.
- Eggs --> Both to hold your crust together, and as part of your filling.
- Broccoli --> This is kind of the star of the show.
- Red onions --> Except we all know they're purple, right?
- Sharp cheddar --> For both the brown rice crust and the filling.
- Feta --> For a little salty bite.
- Parmesan --> Because why not?
- Butter --> To grease your tart pan.
- Olive oil --> For cooking the veggies.
- Salt and pepper --> As per the usual.
Equipment:
You don't need any fancy equipment to make your gluten-free broccoli tart! The essentials include:
- A 10-inch tart pan (mine is from a thrift store)
- Mixing bowls
- A frying pan for the onions and broccoli
- A whisk (or a fork!)
Pro tips / recipe notes
The most time-consuming part of making this recipe is cooking the brown rice, but the good news is that day-old leftover rice works perfectly! If you're doing some batch cooking (related: Batch Cooking for Beginners) this is a perfect way to use up grains you've got ready and waiting.
If you don't have pre-cooked rice on hand, just cook one-cup of brown rice until tender, then spread it out on a sheet pan to allow it to cool quickly. I love this Instant Pot Brown Jasmine Rice because it's fast and comes out perfectly every time.
Note that this brown rice crust is not like a traditional pastry crust. Since it is porous, the eggs you pour into it are going to seep through to the bottom. This is ok, it's still going to be delicious. Just go with it.
If you're not into broccoli, you can absolutely mix up the filling per your preferences. These Semi-Dried Tomatoes would make a gorgeous filling along with some soft crumbled goat's cheese. Or perhaps some Spicy Roasted Hokkaido Pumpkin Slices for a seasonal twist?
Leftovers
Leftover Broccoli Tart is a beautiful thing! It's great eaten cold, at room temperature, or warmed up, and is perfect for packed lunches or picnics.
Leftover tart will last, covered, in the fridge for about three days.
If you want to freeze leftovers, I wholeheartedly encourage you to do so! I wrap individual slices in foil and tuck them into the freezer for up to three months.
I use the microwave to gently reheat slices of leftover tart, and it works just fine.
Is Brown Rice Healthy?
Brown rice is a whole grain, which means that all parts of the grain - including the bran, the germ, and the endosperm - are still intact. All of the dietary fiber and many of the vitamins and minerals are located within the bran and the germ, which makes brown rice a healthier option compared to refined white rice.
Brown rice is a good source of manganese, selenium, magnesium, and tryptophan, to name a few. Additionally, it contains heart-healthy phenolic compounds and other antioxidants.
Due to the fiber content, brown rice is a good choice for keeping blood sugar stable, and is shown to improve colon health and have a positive impact on blood cholesterol levels.
Other recipes you might enjoy
Roasted Pumpkin Frittata
Vegetarian Frittata with Corn and Tomatoes
Roasted Vegetable Frittata
Savory Dutch Baby
Ricotta and Spinach Egg Bake
Vegetarian Breakfast Sandwich with Spinach and Feta
Instant Pot Brown Rice Risotto
Broccoli Tart with Brown Rice Crust
Ingredients
Brown Rice Crust
- 2 cups cooked brown rice From 1 cup uncooked rice
- ⅔ cup sharp cheddar grated
- 1 large egg
- butter to grease the tart pan
Broccoli Tart
- 1 medium red onion thinly sliced
- 2 Tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
- 1 head broccoli chopped into pieces about 1 inch
- 3 large eggs
- ⅓ cup milk
- salt and pepper
- 2 ounces feta or goat's cheese crumbled
- ¼ cup Parmesan cheese or other strong cheese
Instructions
- Preheat your oven to 400°F / 200°C. Grease a shallow tart pan (mine is about 1.5 inches deep and 10 inches in diameter) thoroughly with butter or vegetable oil.butter
- In a medium bowl, thoroughly mix rice, egg, and cheese.2 cups cooked brown rice
- Press the rice mixture into prepared tart pan, and using clean wet hands, press the mixture evenly along the bottom and up the sides of the pan.⅔ cup sharp cheddar, 1 large egg
- Bake the brown rice crust for 15 min. Set aside to cool slightly while you are preparing the filling.
- Heat olive oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Add sliced red onion, and fry, stirring frequently, until onions are softened and beginning to turn brown.2 Tablespoons extra virgin olive oil, 1 medium red onion
- Add the broccoli into the pan with the onions, and toss to combine well. Pan-fry the broccoli for about 3-5 minutes, until it's bright green and you've just taken the raw edge off.1 head broccoli
- Season the broccoli with salt and pepper to taste, then remove from heat.salt and pepper
- In a small bowl, whisk together eggs and milk. Season with salt and pepper.3 large eggs, ⅓ cup milk, salt and pepper
- Place the cooked broccoli and onions into cooled brown rice shell, and distribute evenly. Scatter with crumbled feta.2 ounces feta or goat's cheese
- Pour the egg mixture over the top, and give the tart pan a little shake to even it out. Sprinkle parmesan cheese over the top.¼ cup Parmesan cheese
- Place the tart into the oven and bake until the cheese has begun to brown, and egg has set, about 20 - 30 min.
- Let cool briefly before serving.
Notes
- Nutrition values are an estimate only
- The most time-consuming part of making this recipe is cooking the brown rice, but the good news is that day-old leftover rice works perfectly! If you're doing some batch cooking this is a perfect way to use up grains you've got ready and waiting.
- If you don't have pre-cooked rice on hand, just cook one-cup of brown rice until tender, then spread it out on a sheet pan to allow it to cool quickly.
- Note that this brown rice crust is not like a traditional pastry crust. Since it is porous, the eggs you pour into it are going to seep through to the bottom. This is ok, it's still going to be delicious. Just go with it.
- If you're not into broccoli, you can absolutely mix up the filling per your preferences.
Nutrition
This recipe was first published on March 6, 2011. It has been re-tested, rephotographed, and updated with a video on March 30, 2022.
Naomi Gaia
Hey Katie,
Could I substitute chickpea eggs in both the crust and the filling? (Love your blog; I'm a subscriber.)
Thanks.
Katie Trant
Hi Naomi, I've never tried cooking with chickpea eggs so can't really say how it would turn out. But if you try, please let us know in the comments how it goes!
Heather
Friends served this to us at their place the other day. Delicious. I love the brown rice crust!
Gail
Katie, this is a novel take on a quiche-like dish/meal, and we loved it (even served it to your parents!) We added a couple more eggs for volume. It tasted like a pizza, with great texture.
Thank you once again for your inspiration.
Katie Trant
So happy to hear you enjoyed this recipe, Gail! Adding extra eggs is a great idea.
Pamela
Made this oldie but simple goodie for dinner tonight. I used wild grain rice, added chili flakes and saffron into the filling. It was good!
Allison
This is SO good. And so simple!
themuffinmyth
I'm glad you made it!
Meg
Superyum! I made this tonight for us and a guest and we all loved it. Instead of grated cheese on top, I added chunks of goat cheese before pouring over the egg custard - deelish. Thanks Katy! I think this will become a staple, and I agree that many other flavour/veggie combos will work well with it.
themuffinmyth
Mmmmm. I imagine chunks of goats cheese, or even blue cheese, would be pretty dang good.
emilytakesabreak
Yum yum, I made it and ate it. Can recommend a bit of gruyere on top instead of parmesan.
Rivki Locker
How brilliant - using brown rice for the crust! Love it! I love tarts but hate how much fat the crusts usually have with all the butter/shortening. This looks like a great substitute. And I am SO impressed that you manage to photograph and blog with everything else you have going on in your life now. Keep it up!