This plant-based lamb and roasted eggplant tart is simple yet delicious combining spiced eggplant, flaky puff pastry and a tangy lemon mayo with flavourful lamb style strips. This is the perfect recipe for when you’re looking for something different but don’t want to spend too long in the kitchen as the oven does most of the work for you!
This is one of those recipes that was made up from things I just happened to have in my fridge at the time and morphed into something that I chose to make again and again because it was so easy to throw together and tasted delicious.
I originally made this tart with leftover lamb roast but as I stopped eating lamb, this dinner dropped off my regular rotation. But one day while grocery shopping I noticed the Birds Eye plant-based greek lamb style strips in the freezer section and knew that I would have to give them a try with this tart.
As I introduce more plant-based foods into my diet, I am often using things like canned beans, legumes and vegetables rather than processed ‘meat’ substitutes, especially as they can often be quite expensive and honestly, they don’t always taste great.
But these lamb-style strips are actually pretty delicious and somehow not only the taste but the texture mimics lamb very convincingly therefore they work so well in this recipe. So if you’re vegan, looking to cut back on meat or like me, finding certain red meat doesn’t make you feel great but you still want that flavour, then these are a great alternative.
The real hero of this dish however is the roasted and spiced eggplant that forms the base of the tart. The eggplant is elevated with a few pantry staples giving this tart incredible flavour.
This ‘lamb’ and eggplant tart is perfect as an entrée or for a light dinner or lunch paired with a simple green salad on the side.
Key Ingredients
You have three key components to this vegan eggplant tart. The roasted, spiced eggplant, the tart itself and the creamy lemon mayo dressing.
Note all ingredients and their quantities are laid out in the recipe card at the bottom of this post.
- Eggplant – select one about medium size. You don’t want to go too large as these can become more bitter in taste.
- Garlic – fresh garlic gives the eggplant a punchy flavour. My cloves were quite large so I found one enough but you can use as much as you like.
- Lemon – adding tang and brightness to the eggplant as well as flavouring our creamy dressing.
- Parsley – adds freshness and flavour to the tart.
- Spices – to give the eggplant a smoky, spiced flavour we’re using a combination of ground cumin and smoked paprika.
- Puff pastry – most supermarket bought brands of puff pastry are vegan. Make sure to check your ingredients.
- Plant-based lamb style strips – I am using the Birds Eye brand which is found in the frozen section of both Coles and Woolworths. These have already been seasoned and will help add extra flavour to the tart, but they will need to be defrosted before using.
- Vegan mayonnaise – I usually use a vegan mayonnaise combined with lemon juice and salt and pepper for the creamy dressing. But if you can find a vegan greek-style yoghurt (that isn’t flavoured) then that also works really well but vegan mayo is usually much easier to find.
Step-By-Step Instructions
I love this recipe for busy nights because it’s super easy to make (I mean, yes to using that puff pastry in the freezer) and most of the cooking time is just letting your oven do the work.
Start with making the roasted eggplant. Cut the eggplant in half lengthwise and brush the cut side with olive oil and place the eggplant cut side down on a baking tray lined with baking paper. Roast the eggplant for 30 minutes until the eggplant is very soft.
Carefully remove the eggplant skin (without burning your fingers) and discard.
Eggplant has a lot of liquid which we don’t want on our tart as this is going to result in the bottom of the tart becoming soggy and not crispy. So to easily remove this, place the roasted eggplant flesh into a fine metal sieve over the sink and press the eggplant to strain out any excess liquid before placing it into a bowl.
To the eggplant, add the garlic, lemon juice, parsley, cumin, paprika and salt and mix well with a spoon, mashing up the eggplant making sure everything is combined.
Turn the oven down to 200°C and line a large baking tray with baking paper and a light spray of cooking oil.
Lay the sheet of puff pastry onto the baking tray and brush the edges with plant based milk. Fold in all 4 edges approximately 1 cm and prick the base of the tart with a fork to allow the pastry to release steam while cooking and brush the top edges with more plant-based milk.
Spread an even layer of the eggplant mixture over the base of the tart and then place the lamb style strips over the top. Bake the tart for 15-20 minutes or until the pastry edges are golden and flaky. At this stage, the smell of the spices is also going to fill your house and start making you feel very hungry!
Before serving, mix together the vegan mayonnaise or yoghurt with lemon juice and season with salt and pepper to taste. I like the dressing to be super lemony and tangy as I find it just cuts through the richness of the lamb style stips and the spiced eggplant bringing everything together. It’s so delicious.
Drizzle the sauce over the top of the tart (be generous!) and garnish with more chopped parsley before slicing and serving.
Prefer to eat meat? Simply make the recipe as is, replacing the plant-based lamb strips with leftover sliced roasted lamb. Or why not try my greek-style lamb pitas instead!
More easy vegan weeknight dinners:
10 Minute Peanut Butter Noodles
Vegan Black Bean Burgers
Zucchini Fritters
Vegetarian Fresh Spring Rolls
Turmeric Fried Rice
Vegan Mac and Cheese (without cashews)
Plant-based Lamb and Roasted Eggplant Tart
Ingredients
For the roasted eggplant:
- 1 medium eggplant
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 1-2 cloves garlic
- Juice of one lemon
- 1 tablespoon chopped fresh parsley
- ¼ teaspoon ground cumin
- ¼ teaspoon smoked paprika
- ¼ teaspoon salt
For the tart:
- 1 sheet puff pastry thawed
- 1-2 tablespoons plant-based milk
- 200 grams plant-based lamb style strips thawed
For the dressing:
- ¼ cup vegan mayonnaise or greek-style yoghurt
- 1-2 tablespoons lemon juice
- Salt and pepper to taste
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 220°C and line a small baking tray with baking paper.
- Start by roasting the eggplant. Cut the eggplant in half lengthwise and brush the cut side with olive oil. Place the eggplant cut side down on the baking tray and place into the oven for 30 minutes until the eggplant is very soft.
- Remove the eggplant skin and discard. Place the roasted eggplant flesh into a fine metal sieve and strain out any excess liquid before placing into a bowl.
- Add the garlic, lemon juice, parsley, cumin, paprika and salt to the bowl and mix well with a spoon until well combined.
- Turn the oven down to 200°C and line a large baking tray with baking paper and a light spray of cooking oil. Lay the sheet of puff pastry onto the baking tray and brush the edges with plant based milk. Gently fold in all 4 edges approximately 1 cm. Prick the base of the tart with a fork to allow the pastry to release steam while cooking and brush the edges with more plant-based milk.
- Spread an even layer of the eggplant mixture over the base of the tart. Place the lamb style strips over the top. Place the tart in the oven to cook for 15-20 minutes or until the pastry edges are golden and flakyy.
- Before serving, mix together the vegan mayonnaise or yoghurt with lemon juice. Season with salt and pepper to taste.
- Drizzle the sauce over the top of the tart and garnish with more chopped parsley before slicing and serving.
Nutrition
Nutritional information is provided as a guide only and is calculated using automated online tools, therefore we cannot guarantee the accuracy. We encourage you to make your own calculations based on the actual ingredients used in your recipe.
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