The first time I tasted this Beet, Goat Cheese & Walnut Tart with Walnut Oat Crust, I felt like I had been missing out on life until that one moment, that first taste. The flavor is so many things all at once: savory, sweet, rich, complex and alluring. The color alone is enough to entice you to try a slice, but the mix of flavors and textures is absolutely heavenly.
I want you to know that statement is coming from an ex-beet hater (yes, that’s me!)
Now I’m going to warn you right now, this recipe takes some time (and several steps) to make, but it’s not hard. And I promise you it’s absolutely worth the effort. It’s easier than “pie”.(Although one could argue this IS pie, especially if you make it in a pie pan.) I make this claim because the crust is a simple pat in the pan kind of crust. No worries if it doesn’t roll out perfectly or puff up like pastry crust. This crust is crumbly, nutty, and savory. There’s a bit of thyme hiding in there and some extra virgin olive oil along with oats and whole wheat flour. It stays together quite nicely as well, so you can actually scoop it out of the pan without it falling apart. Always a plus, right?
If you’re looking for a gluten free crust, I think you could sub brown rice flour (or your fave gluten free blend) for the whole wheat flour. Although I have not actually tried that, so if you do, please let me know how it turns out!
The beets are caramelized in the oven with onion, garlic, just a tish of brown sugar, salt & olive oil. Tender, sweet, savory. These beets alone are absolutely a worthy dish work making. But we’re taking them a bit further this time.
To add to the filling, we then top these lovely caramelized beets with toasted walnuts and creamy goat cheese then drizzle on a surprisingly rich tasting mix of sour cream, milk and eggs to pull it all together. I swear it’s like a symphony of flavors at the end. It’s fantastic fresh out of the oven or warmed up several days later. It’s also quite good at room temperature. The only thing I think I would change is to adjust the filling to crust ratio to up the filling and downplay the crust. I tend to always want more filling in my pie, though. You can adjust the filling by simply adding more caramelized beets and goat cheese, piling them a bit rather than just laying them in the tart.
I wish oh I wish I could share this dish with my dad. He wasn’t a fan of beets, but I have a feeling he still would have tried and probably loved this tart. I am planning to share this with my mom, though, who is still with us AND she loves beets. I hope she loves it as much as I do.
Adapted from Cook Eat Live Vegetarian who adapted it from Alexandra’s Kitchen who adapted it from Gordon Hamersley. I love that each recipe along the way added their own variation on it … and, just like them, I added my own twist to this as well. What can I say? Gordon, you’ve inspired us.
Beet, Goat Cheese & Walnut Tart
- Prep Time: 30 min
- Cook Time: 1 hour 40 min
- Total Time: about 2 hours
- Yield: 6 – 8 servings 1x
- Category: Breakfast, Lunch
- Method: Baking
- Cuisine: French
- Diet: Vegetarian
Ingredients
For the crust:
- 3/4 cup whole wheat flour (135g)
- slightly heaping 1/2 cup old fashioned oats (67g)
- 1/2 cup walnut bits & pieces (56g)
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1/2 teaspoon dried thyme
- 4 Tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
- About 1 1/2 Tablespoons very cold water (or a bit more, if needed)
For roasting the beets:
- 2 – 4 large beets, peeled & sliced or roughly chopped (about 1 – 1 1/2 lb.)
- 1 large purple onion, peeled & thinly sliced
- 2 – 3 garlic cloves, peeled & chopped
- 2 Tablespoons olive oil
- 1 Tablespoon brown sugar
- 1 teaspoon salt
For the rest of the filling:
- 1/3 cup walnuts roughly chopped
- About 2 oz. goat cheese, crumbled by hand
- 2 large eggs
- 1/4 cup light sour cream (or Greek yogurt)
- 1/2 cup milk
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
- 1/4 teaspoon dried thyme
- freshly ground pepper
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350 F. Oil a 10 inch pie or tart pan.
- In a food processor or other chopper, add the flour, oats, walnuts, salt and thyme. Blend to a fine crumb resembling flour. Add in the olive oil a Tablespoon at a time, pulsing between additions. Turn the mixture into a medium mixing bowl, sprinkle on some cold water and mix with your clean hands, adding a bit more water until the dough starts sticking together. Shape the dough into a ball, wrap with plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least 15 minutes.
- While the dough is resting, peel the beets, then set them on a baking sheet lined with a silicon liner. Sprinkle on the onions, garlic, olive oil, brown sugar and salt and toss gently until all the veggies are coated in oil and well mixed. Spread the mixture out over the prepared pan and bake for 45 – 60 minutes, stirring every fifteen minutes or until the beets are tender and the onions are caramelized.
- While the beets are roasting and after the dough is done resting, pat the dough down into the pie or tart pan, trying for an even thin layer of crust across the pan and up the sides. Bake the crust for 10 – 15 minutes.
- Once the beets are done roasting and the crust is ready, fill the crust with the caramelized beets. Sprinkle the chopped walnuts and goat cheese on top. In a small bowl, whisk together the egg, sour cream, milk, salt & thyme until the egg is fully incorporated. Pour the egg mixture over the tart. Bake at 350 F. for 35 to 40 minutes or until the top is a nice golden brown. Remove from oven and let sit for at least 10 minutes before cutting. Enjoy!
Notes
I used garlic & herb flavored goat cheese, but plain (or other flavor) would work as well. I do recommend crumbling the goat cheese by hand as you’ll get better flavor and texture.
RECIPE SOURCE: Sumptuous Spoonfuls – https://www.sumptuousspoonfuls.com/ … © Copyright 2026, Sumptuous Spoonfuls. This recipe was made by a REAL person with REAL ingredients. The photos are real photos taken by me personally. There is nothing AI here. This is real food made by real people for real people. All images & content are copyright protected. Please do not use my images without prior permission. If you want to publish any of my images, please ask first. If you want to republish this recipe as your own, please re-write the recipe in your own words or link back to this post for the recipe.
Nutrition facts are an estimate based on ingredients for 8 servings per tart. Your results may vary.
