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Thanksgiving Leftover Green Bean and Mushroom Tart
Holiday season is officially upon us. The weather is cooler, leaves are falling, and many of us are beginning to plan dinner parties and Thanksgiving celebrations—long lists of delicious food we plan on serving our friends and loved ones. I always have a much bigger imagination and make way too much food for holiday dinners, and then am stuck with a ton of leftovers. This year, I'm elevating my leftovers and pairing them with La Crema Sonoma Coast Pinot Noir and Chardonnay, and a delicious recipe for a Green Bean and Mushroom Tart made from leftover side dishes!
This leftover tart is not only unbelievably easy- it is actually incredibly adaptable as well. While I am making mine with some simple roasted green beans and my recipe for perfect sauteed mushrooms, it could also be made with this amazing recipe for green bean supreme casserole, or even this recipe for charred green beans with smoked bacon and persimmons!
Elevating Your Holiday Leftovers
The chaos of the kitchen usually settles down once the final slice of pie is served, but the real culinary opportunity begins the next morning. Most people view the containers filling their refrigerator as a puzzle to be solved through simple reheating, yet these ingredients are already seasoned and cooked to perfection. By taking your favorite side dishes and reimagining them as the star of a golden, flaky crust, you turn a chore into a creative celebration.
Elevating your leftovers is also an excellent strategy for hosting guests staying for the weekend. It requires minimal effort since the heavy lifting of roasting and sautéing is already finished. You simply focus on the assembly and the pairing, allowing you to spend more time with loved ones in a relaxed, post-holiday atmosphere.
Key Ingredients
The beauty of this tart lies in its simplicity and the fact that most of the components are likely already sitting in your kitchen. While the recipe is built around specific leftovers, the quality of the base and the creamy binder are what truly transform these remnants into a gourmet lunch.
- Puff Pastry: This is the shortcut to a professional looking meal. It provides hundreds of thin, buttery layers that shatter when you bite into them, offering a much needed textural contrast to the soft vegetables.
- Ricotta Cheese: Using a dollop of ricotta creates a mild, creamy barrier between the pastry and the toppings. It prevents the dough from becoming soggy while adding a hint of richness that ties the earthy mushrooms and green beans together.
- Leftover Vegetables: Whether you have simple roasted green beans or a more complex mushroom sauté, these are the heart of the dish. Because they have already been cooked, their flavors have had time to meld and intensify overnight.
How to Make a Green Bean and Mushroom Tart
Transforming your holiday side dishes into this elegant pastry only takes a few minutes of active preparation. Since the vegetables are already cooked, your primary goal is to achieve a golden, crisp crust while warming the toppings through to the center.
- Prepare the Pastry: Preheat your oven to 350 degrees and lightly coat a baking sheet with nonstick spray. Unroll your thawed puff pastry and use about two thirds of the sheet, laying it flat on the prepared pan.
- Layer the Base: Spread a thin, even layer of ricotta cheese across the surface of the dough, leaving a small border around the edges. This cheese acts as a savory glue for your vegetables and adds a creamy element to every bite.
- Add the Toppings: Arrange your leftover green beans and sautéed mushrooms over the ricotta. You can be as generous as you like here, but try to keep the layer relatively flat so the pastry can rise properly around the sides.
- Finish and Bake: Use a fork to crimp the edges of the tart, which gives it a rustic, professional look. Place it in the oven for about twenty minutes until the pastry is beautifully puffed and the bottom is a deep golden brown.
Leftover Green Bean and Mushroom Tart Recipe
Author: Courtney O'Dell
Prep time: 2 mins
Cook time: 20 mins
Serves: 4
Ingredients
- 2/3 of a sheet puff pastry, thawed
- 1/4 cup ricotta cheese
- 1/2 cup leftover green beans (or as many as you like/have)
- 1/4 cup leftover mushrooms
Instructions
- Prep a baking sheet with nonstick cooking spray.
- Add 2/3 of a puff pasty sheet to the baking sheet (I simply remove one of the folds form the sheet when unwrapping it as most brands come folded into thirds).
- Spread ricotta cheese on puff pastry.
- Layer green beans and mushrooms on pastry.
- Add a little crumbled ricotta to the top.
- Go around the tart with a fork, making indentations around the edges.
- Bake at 350 for 20 minutes, or until puff pastry is puffy and brown.
Pairing Your Green Bean and Mushroom Tart with Wine
Finding the right wine to serve with a savory tart involves balancing the buttery pastry with the earthy profile of the vegetables. Since this recipe is a second act for your holiday flavors, the wine should feel just as celebratory as the main event itself.
Our Sonoma Coast Chardonnay is a fantastic partner for the creamy ricotta and flaky crust. The wine features a bright acidity that cuts through the richness of the butter, while its subtle fruit notes enhance the sweetness of the roasted green beans. If you prefer a red, a glass of Sonoma Coast Pinot Noir is an equally elegant choice. The forest floor aromatics and red berry flavors of the Pinot Noir are a natural match for the umami of the sautéed mushrooms, creating a pairing that feels grounded and sophisticated.
