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These Roasted Vegetable Puff Pastry Tarts are best enjoyed straight from the oven but are still great served cold, making them an easy, family-friendly meal or snack. Made with store-bought puff pastry, they're flexible and simple to adapt using the vegetables you have on hand.
These roasted vegetable puff pastry tarts are a simple, family-friendly way to serve vegetables in a form kids often enjoy. My youngest has declared that he does not like snow peas (mangetout), yet when they're baked into golden, flaky pastry, he happily eats them.
Exposure is key, and presenting vegetables in different ways can help children become more accepting of new flavors and textures over time.
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Reasons to Love This Recipe
- A great way to serve vegetables to kids - flaky puff pastry makes veggies more approachable for some kids.
- Flexible and adaptable - swap the veggies to suit the season, your family's tastes, or what you have on hand.
- Easy to make - using store-bought puff pastry dough keeps prep quick and simple.
Ingredient Information
I'm sharing the combination of toppings used when photographing this recipe, but honestly, I rarely make the same puff pastry tart twice. That's part of what makes this recipe so appealing. You can mix and match ingredients based on what you have to hand and what your family enjoys.
- Vegetables: Asparagus, snow peas (mangetout), and bell pepper (capsicum). feel free to mix and match vegetables to suit the season or your family preference - see ideas below.
- Pesto: Used as a base for flavor. You can easily swap this for other spreads (see alternatives below)
- Cherry Bocconcini: A great sixe for individual tarts and melts well. See below for cheese alternatives.
- Puff Pastry: store bought keeps the recipe quick and easy, but if you prefer to make your own, you can.
- Olive Oil: Used for coating the vegetables before baking.
Alternative Topping Ideas
- Vegetables:
Onions, roasted (or caramelised onions work especially well)
Mushrooms (sauteed)
Spinach (sauteed until wilted)
Sweet Potato / Pumpkin (cubed and pre-roasted)
Eggplant/aubergine (thinly sliced and grilled/broiled or roasted)
Artichoke hearts (pre-cooked)
Beets/beetroot (pre cooked and sliced/cubed)
Zucchini/courgette (use a veg peeler to make ribbons, no need to pre cook) - Spreads: Other pesto varieties (sun-dried tomato pesto, kale pesto etc), passata or pizza sauce, hummus, cream cheese or ricotta mixed with lemon juice and fresh herbs.
- Cheese: Cheddar, Parmesan, mozzarella, feta, brie, goats cheese
- Other Toppings: Shredded chicken, ham, smoked salmon, olives, pinenuts, fresh or dried herbs.
Step by Step Instructions (with Images)
- Roast Veggies: Add the vegetables to a bowl, drizzle with olive oil and stir to coat. Spread in single layer on baking sheet and roast for 10 mins.
- Puff Pastry Squares: Cut the puff pastry sheet into 4 equal squares/rectangles and place on baking sheet.
- Score and add base: Using a small knife, score a border about ½ -¾ inch (1-2cm) from the edge (don't cut all the way through). Spread pesto into the centre of each square, staying inside the scored lines.
- Cut and Bake: Add the roasted vegetables onto each tart, then add the bocconcini. Bake until pastry is golden brown, crisp and cheese is melted.
Top Tips
- Prep ahead to save time
The vegetables can be roasted in advanced and stored in the fridge. You can also cut and score the puff pastry ahead of time, but for best results, wait to add the pesto and topping until just before baking. - Use up pre-roasted vegetables
If you regularly roast big batches of vegetables at the start of the week for salads, meals and lunchboxes, this recipe is a great way to use them up. With the vegetables already cooked, these tarts come together quickly for an easy lunch. - Let kids build their own tarts
Set out a range of cooked vegetables, herbs, cheeses and topping and let the kids create their own combinations. - Make one large tart instead
If you prefer not to make individual tarts, you can use a whole sheet of puff pastry to make one large tart. Score a border around the edge, add the toppings, bake until golden, then slice into pieces once cooked.
Storage Instructions
These puff pastry tarts are best enjoyed fresh from the oven. If you have leftovers, allow them to cool completely before storing in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 2 days.
They can be eaten straight from the fridge, however the pastry won't be quite as crisp.
To reheat, warm in the oven 350F (180C), or in an air fryer until heated through and crisp. Keep an eye that they don't burn/become too crispy. Avoid using the microwave to reheat as it will soften the pastry.
Recipe FAQs
These tarts can be offered to babies over 6 months of age, provided they are developmentally ready for solids and have experience with finger foods.
There are, however, a few things to consider when serving them to babies.
Nutrition - Puff pastry tarts are best offered occasionally rather than as an everyday food. Babies have small stomaches, so early meals should focus on nutrient dense foods. These tarts work best as a small taste of a meal rather than a main staple.
Allergens - This recipe contains common allergens, including dairy, gluten and nuts. Theses should be introduced separately and safely before offering this dish.
Texture and safety: Ensure vegetables are soft and well cooked, and cut to age-appropriate pieces. Bake the pastry until soft and avoid overly crunchy, flakey edges.
Sodium: Be mindful of added salt, particularly from pesto and cheese, when serving to babies.
As with all foods, always supervise your baby while eating.
This information is provided for general guidance only. Every baby develops at their own pace, always make informed decisions for your child and seek advice from a qualified health professional if you have concerns. 
Puff pastry can become soggy if it absorbs too much moisture before or during baking. Common reasons include:
Vegetables releasing too much moisture: Roasting or sauteeing them first helps remove excess moisture before adding them to the pastry.
Overloading the pastry: Adding too many toppings can weigh down the pastry and prevent it form puffing and crisping up properly.
Spreading toppings too close to edges: Keep fillings within the scored border so the edges rise and create a crisp frame.
Assembling too far ahead of baking: Puff pastry should be topped and baked straight away. Letting it sit with toppings on can cause the pastry to soften before it goes in the oven.
More Kid Friendly Vegetable Recipes
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Roasted Vegetables Puff Pastry Tarts
Ingredients
- 4 Asparagus Spears
- 8 Cherry tomatoes, halved
- 8 Snow Peas (Mangetout), topped, tailed and halved lengthways
- ½ Bell Pepper (Capsicum), sliced into thin strips
- ½ tablespoon Olive Oil
- 1 sheet Frozen Puff Pastry (defrosted) Mine was 9.5" x 9.5" (24.5 x 24.5cm) and weighed approx. 166g
- 4 teaspoons Pesto
- 6 (approx. 60g) Cherry Bocconcini,
Instructions
- Pre heat oven to 180℃ (Fan) / 200℃ / 400℉
- Cut the asparagus spears into 3cm pieces, discarding the end 3cm. Place in a mixing bowl along with the tomatoes, snow peas and capsicum. Toss in the olive oil.
- Place the prepared vegetables onto a baking tray and spread. Bake for 10 mins. Remove from oven and set aside.
- Cut the pastry sheet into four equal squares and then place on a baking tray, leaving a space between each.
- Using a small knife, score (making sure not to cut all the way through the pastry) the edges to create a border approx. 1-2cm in from the edge
- Using the back of a spoon, spread the centre of each square with 1 teaspoon of pesto, staying within the score lines
- Split the roasted vegetable mixture onto each pesto covered tart
- Tear the bocconcini and divide equally between each tart.
- Bake for approx. 15 mins, until the pastry is golden and crispy and the cheese has melted.
Video
Recipe Notes
Nutritional facts
Nicola Wood
We all love this super easy recipe and my son even ate the asparagus and sugar snap peas (substitute for snow peas) which was hidden under the mozzarella topping - thank you!
Amy
Thanks, Nicola! I'm so happy they were a success! It is amazing what kids will eat when it is wrapped in puff pastry and smothered in cheese 😉