Zucchini Goat Cheese Tart (Tarte Courgettes Chevre) That Melts in Your Mouth

The zucchini goat cheese tart is the kind of dish that gets cut into wedges at noon in Provence, eaten under a fig tree, and left at room temperature on the counter until it disappears by evening. Salted-and-drained zucchini fanned over herbed chevre on a puff-pastry base, baked until the edges are deep gold. Pair it with a green salad, a glass of cold rosé, and a long afternoon at a south-of-France lunch table.

Tools You’ll Want

A mandoline for slicing the zucchini evenly thin (uneven slices cook unevenly and ruin the fan pattern), a sheet pan for the tart itself, parchment paper, a fine-mesh sieve or colander for the salt-and-drain step, and a clean kitchen towel for the final pat-dry. A pizza wheel cuts the baked tart cleanly into wedges or squares.

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A Provencal Summer Table

Tarte aux courgettes et chevre is Provencal home cooking, eaten across the south of France through the summer when courgettes are everywhere and fresh goat cheese sits on every market stall. It is a Sunday lunch dish, served warm or at room temperature with a green salad and a glass of cold rose. The traditional version uses pate brisee (shortcrust); the modern home cook version uses pate feuilletee (puff pastry), which is faster and lighter and what a French weeknight kitchen would reach for.

The salt-and-drain step is the difference between a tart that holds and a tart that sags. Zucchini is mostly water, and unsalted slices release that water straight into the puff pastry from underneath, turning the bottom into a wet, gummy disappointment by the time it cools. Half an hour with salt pulls the water out before it can do any damage. Skip it and the tart will look right out of the oven and collapse twenty minutes later.

A Few Notes on the Ingredients

Zucchini: About 600 g (1.3 lb) of small to medium courgettes, roughly 4 zucchini. Smaller ones have less water and more flavor; the giant end-of-season ones are watery and seedy. Mix yellow and green if you can find them; the pattern looks better.

Puff pastry: One sheet of all-butter puff pastry, about 320 g (11 oz), thawed but still cold. Dufour is the gold standard in the U.S.; Pepperidge Farm works fine if that’s what’s available. All-butter beats vegetable shortening every time on flavor and lamination.

Fresh goat cheese: 200 g (7 oz) of soft chevre, the spreadable log style. Sainte-Maure, Bucheron, or any soft American chevre. Avoid aged crottin here; you want something that softens to a spreadable cream.

Heavy cream: 2 Tbsp to loosen the chevre for spreading. Just enough to bring the cheese to the texture of cream cheese frosting.

Fresh thyme: 1 Tbsp leaves, picked from about 6 sprigs. Lemon thyme is excellent here if you can find it. Dried thyme works in a pinch at half the volume.

Lemon zest, Dijon mustard, garlic: Zest of 1 lemon, 1 tsp Dijon, 1 small garlic clove grated. The three together brighten the chevre and keep it from reading as flat.

Olive oil: A good Provencal or Italian extra-virgin to brush over the zucchini before the final bake. Good oil matters here; there is no sauce to hide behind.

Flaky sea salt and black pepper: Maldon to finish, cracked pepper just before serving.

Recipe: Zucchini Goat Cheese Tart

Prep time: 15 minutes | Salt-and-drain: 30 minutes | Cook time: 35 minutes | Total time: 1 hour 20 minutes | Serves: 6

Ingredients

• 600 g (1.3 lb) small to medium zucchini, about 4
• 1 tsp fine sea salt, for drawing out moisture
• 1 sheet all-butter puff pastry, about 320 g (11 oz), thawed but cold
• 200 g (7 oz) fresh soft chevre
• 2 Tbsp heavy cream
• 1 tsp Dijon mustard
• 1 small garlic clove, grated
• Zest of 1 lemon
• 1 Tbsp fresh thyme leaves, plus a few sprigs for serving
• 2 Tbsp extra-virgin olive oil
• 1 large egg, beaten with 1 tsp water, for egg wash
• Flaky sea salt and black pepper, to finish

Instructions

1. Trim the ends off the zucchini. On a mandoline set to 3 mm (1/8 inch), slice the zucchini into thin rounds. Lay the slices in a colander set over a bowl, sprinkle with the teaspoon of fine sea salt, and toss gently. Rest for 30 minutes. The slices will release a surprising amount of water.
2. While the zucchini drains, heat the oven to 200°C (400°F). Line a sheet pan with parchment.
3. Lay the puff pastry sheet on the parchment. Score a border 2 cm (3/4 inch) in from the edge with a sharp knife, cutting only halfway through the pastry, not all the way down. Prick the inside rectangle all over with a fork. Brush the border with the beaten egg.
4. Par-bake the pastry for 10 minutes, until the border is starting to puff and pale gold. If the center has puffed too, press it back down gently with the back of a spoon. Set aside.
5. While the pastry par-bakes, mix the filling. In a bowl, stir the chevre with the cream, Dijon, grated garlic, lemon zest, and the tablespoon of thyme leaves until smooth and spreadable. Season with a few cracks of pepper.
6. Pat the drained zucchini hard between layers of clean kitchen towel or paper towels. Squeeze gently if needed. The slices should feel barely damp; if they still feel wet, pat again.
7. Spread the chevre mixture evenly over the par-baked center of the pastry, inside the scored border. Use the back of a spoon to push it right up to the border.
8. Fan the zucchini slices over the chevre in tight overlapping rows, or arrange in concentric circles. Each slice should overlap the previous one by about half. Use the prettier yellow slices on top if you have them. Brush the zucchini with the olive oil.
9. Bake at 200°C (400°F) for 20 to 25 minutes, until the border is deep gold and the zucchini edges have curled and browned at the tips.
10. Rest the tart 5 minutes before slicing. Finish with flaky sea salt, fresh thyme sprigs, and a final crack of pepper. Cut into wedges or squares and serve warm or at room temperature.

Notes

The salt-and-drain step is not optional. Slices that go on the tart still holding water will leak into the chevre and the pastry as they bake, leaving a soggy base by the time it cools.

If your zucchini is unusually wet (large end-of-season ones), the drain time can stretch to 45 minutes. The slices should feel limp and obviously drier when you pull them out of the colander.

The tart holds at room temperature for up to 2 hours and reheats at 160°C (325°F) for 8 to 10 minutes. Do not reheat in the microwave; the pastry turns rubbery.

Tips and Variations

Shortcrust Instead of Puff Pastry

The older Provencal version uses pate brisee (shortcrust) and a tart tin. Line a 24 cm (9.5 inch) tart tin with rolled pate brisee, blind-bake at 180°C (350°F) for 15 minutes with weights, then 8 more minutes uncovered. Fill and finish exactly as above, baking at 180°C (350°F) for 25 to 30 minutes. The texture sits closer to a true French country tart; the puff pastry version is faster and lighter.

Herb Swaps That Work

Fresh thyme is the Provencal standard, but fresh oregano, marjoram, or chopped tarragon all work. Basil is too soft for the oven heat; reserve it as a garnish torn over the finished tart. A small spoonful of pesto can replace the herbs entirely if you stir it into the chevre mixture before spreading.

Add Tomato or Keep It Simple

Thin slices of yellow or red tomato can be tucked between the zucchini rows for a more colorful summer version. Salt and drain the tomato slices the same way you do the zucchini; otherwise the tart will weep. The cleaner version is zucchini alone, which lets the chevre and the pastry do the talking.

Make It Ahead, Carry It to a Picnic

The tart can be baked in the morning and held at room temperature, uncovered, for up to 4 hours. It travels well to a picnic if you transport it on a sheet pan covered loosely with foil. Reheat briefly in a low oven if you want it warm at the table, or just serve as is.

Cut It Small for an Aperitif

Cut the cooled tart into 5 cm (2 inch) squares for a passed-appetizer format. Each square reads as a single bite of buttery pastry, herbed chevre, and a few rounds of zucchini. Plate on a wooden board with cold rose and a bowl of olives.

Pairings

The wine is cold rose from Provence (Bandol or Cotes de Provence) or a Provencal white like Bandol blanc. A green salad with sherry vinaigrette is the standard alongside. For a fuller summer lunch table, add a buffalo mozzarella salad or a cantaloupe salad with prosciutto. The tart also works as a quiet starter before grilled fish or a roast chicken dinner, and slots in nicely as part of a Christmas lunch spread if you push the season.

Frequently Asked Questions

How do you keep a zucchini tart from getting soggy?

Salt the sliced zucchini and drain in a colander for 30 minutes, then pat dry hard before assembling. Par-bake the puff pastry for 10 minutes before adding the filling. Both steps are non-negotiable for a tart that holds its shape and crisp base.

Can you use shortcrust pastry instead of puff?

Yes. The older Provencal version is built on pate brisee in a tart tin. Blind-bake the shortcrust crust first, then fill and finish the same way. The result is closer to a country tart, less flaky and more biscuit-like.

Do you have to salt the zucchini?

Yes. Zucchini is about 95 percent water, and a tart built without the salt-and-drain step will sag and weep as it cools. Half an hour with a teaspoon of salt pulls out enough moisture to keep the pastry crisp underneath.

What goat cheese works best?

A fresh, soft chevre that softens to a spreadable cream when mixed with a splash of heavy cream. French Sainte-Maure or Bucheron are great; any soft American chevre log works fine. Avoid aged crottin or dry styles; they will not spread.

Can you make a zucchini tart ahead?

Yes. Bake in the morning, hold at room temperature uncovered for up to 4 hours, and serve. The tart can also be assembled (un-baked) and refrigerated for up to 4 hours before baking, but the puff pastry will lose a little lift. Same-day baking is best.

Final Thoughts

The Provencal tart sits in a different register than most American summer baking. It is not aiming for showy or layered; it is aiming for clean, herbal, room-temperature ease. The salt-and-drain step is the only part that takes patience, and the patience pays off in a base that holds when you slice it.

Pair with cold rose and a simple salad. Eat at a table outdoors if there is one. Hold a slice over a napkin and let the pastry crumb fall where it will.

The tart keeps for 2 days, covered, in the fridge, and reheats at 160°C (325°F) for 8 to 10 minutes back to its original texture. It does not freeze well; the pastry loses its structure on thaw.

Last update on 2026-08-08 / Affiliate links / Images from Amazon Product Advertising API