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Lightened-up tart

Lighten this Savory Summer Tart by replacing the refrigerated pie crust and substituting egg whites and fat-free half-and-half for the real thing. (Courtesy of the Recipe Doctor / The Spokesman-Review)
Elaine Magee recipedoctor.com
Lighten this Savory Summer Tart by replacing the refrigerated pie crust and substituting egg whites and fat-free half-and-half for the real thing. (Courtesy of the Recipe Doctor / The Spokesman-Review)

Dear Recipe Doctor: I found this recipe for Savory Summer Pie in Southern Living magazine. I really need to lighten this up because almost everyone in my family eats lower fat meals due to various health conditions. But I really want to try this dish.

A: I’ll lighten it as far as I can and still have it look and taste terrific, that’s my promise. The first thing we have to do though, if we are truly trying to make this dish low-fat, is lose the refrigerated piecrust. Instead we are making a thinner crust using wheat crackers (2 ounces) ground into crumbs, some shredded Parmesan and Mrs. Dash Garlic and Herb and about 1 1/2 teaspoons of olive oil.

We are lightening the rest of the tart by using half eggs and half egg substitute, fat-free half-and-half instead of the real deal, switching to reduced-fat Jack cheese and cutting the olive oil from 2 tablespoons to one. To help punch up the flavor, we doubled the fresh basil, purple onion and garlic and to bring down the sodium, I cut the salt in half.

Savory Summer Tart

The original recipe contains 475 calories, 35 grams of fat, 14 grams saturated fat, and 198 milligrams cholesterol per serving.

For the crust:

2 ounces of wheat crackers, ground into crumbs (about 8 crackers)

1 teaspoon Mrs. Dash Garlic and Herb seasoning blend

2 tablespoons shredded Parmesan

1 1/2 teaspoonw olive oil

Filling:

1 tablespoon olive oil

1 1/4 cups chopped red bell pepper

About 1 cup of chopped red onion

2 teaspoons minced garlic

1/4 cup chopped fresh basil

2 large eggs (higher omega-3 if available)

1/2 cup egg substitute

1 cup fat free half-and-half (lowfat or whole milk can also be used)

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/2 teaspoon white pepper

2 cups reduced-fat shredded Monterey Jack cheese (cheddar can be substituted)

1/4 cup shredded Parmesan cheese

3 Roma or plum tomatoes, cut into 1/4-inch thick slices

Preheat oven to 425 degrees. Blend cracker crumbs with Mrs. Dash and shredded Parmesan in a small food processor or mixer. Coat a 9-inch deep-dish pie plate generously with olive oil. Add crumb mixture and tilt the pie plate to evenly distribute. Bake in hot oven for about 8 to 10 minutes. Remove from oven and set aside.

Meanwhile add a tablespoon of olive oil to a large, nonstick frying pan and heat over medium-high heat. Add the bell pepper, onion and garlic and sauté until lightly brown (about 5 minutes). Stir in the fresh basil.

Place the eggs and egg substitute in a large mixing bowl along with the fat-free half-and-half, 1/2 teaspoon salt and 1/2 teaspoon white pepper. Beat on medium-low speed to combine.

Stir in the vegetable mixture and Jack and Parmesan cheeses. Pour mixture into the cracker crust. Lay tomato slices on top in circles. Bake for 40 to 45 minutes or until brown on top and the tart is set in the middle. Let stand about 5 minutes before serving.

Yield: 6 servings

Approximate nutrition per serving: 304 calories, 13 grams fat (7.9 grams saturated, 39 percent fat calories), 22 grams protein, 23 grams carbohydrate, 102 milligrams cholesterol, 4 grams dietary fiber, 686 milligrams sodium.

Weight Watchers POINTS = 6