Asparagus Goat Cheese Tart with Phyllo Dough (Crinkle Style)
This Asparagus Goat Cheese Tart with Phyllo Dough solves a problem you didn’t know you had: a dish that looks stunning on the table, tastes like spring in every single bite, and is genuinely easy to pull together. It’s creamy, herby, and packed with tender asparagus and bright peas tucked into crispy, buttery phyllo. No pastry skills required!
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RECIPE SNAPSHOT
- PREP TIME: 20 minutes
- COOK TIME: 45 minutes
- SERVINGS: 8
- DIFFICULTY LEVEL: Easy!
- TECHNIQUE: Crinkle phyllo assembly, baked custard
- WHY YOU’LL LOVE IT: It looks incredibly impressive, uses simple spring ingredients, and the crinkle phyllo technique is so forgiving that you really cannot go wrong!
I love teaching recipes that give you a serious technique return on a minimal time investment. The crinkle phyllo method is one of my absolute favorites, because it sounds complicated, but it is honestly one of the most forgiving things you can do with phyllo.
You’re literally scrunching it.
And it comes out of the oven looking like something from a bakery window. It also makes the phyllo extra crispy in all the right places, which is exactly what you want against that soft, creamy custard.
The filling here is a combination that just makes sense for spring. Pencil asparagus, sweet peas, spring onions, tangy goat cheese, and a generous handful of fresh herbs all go into a simple egg custard.
It’s bright, it’s satisfying, and it works equally well as a weekend brunch centerpiece or a light weeknight dinner alongside a simple salad. If you love this style of cooking, my asparagus and leek tart with phyllo dough uses a similar approach and is just as crowd-pleasing!
Let’s get into it!
Recipe Ingredients
You’ll need the following ingredients to make this asparagus goat cheese crinkle tart:
Ingredient Notes & Substitutions
The ingredients to make this tart are easy to find at any grocery store. For the freshest asparagus, check your local farmers market in the spring when pencil-thin spears are at their peak.
Here are a few ingredient notes:
The Technique: What Is a Crinkle Tart?
What It Is
A crinkle tart is a method of working with phyllo dough where instead of carefully layering the sheets flat, you scrunch and gather each sheet like an accordion, then arrange them in the pan to create a ruffled, textured look. It’s the approach I also use in my corn and shiitake crinkle tart – and once you try it, you’ll want to use it for everything.
Why It Works
The scrunching creates layers within layers. Those folds and ruffles trap butter between the sheets, which means more surface area gets golden and crispy in the oven. It also means more textural contrast against the creamy custard underneath – which is a big part of what makes this tart so satisfying to eat.
Why You Should Know This Technique
Once you understand the crinkle method, you can use it as a base for so many different fillings depending on the season. Swap in different vegetables, different cheeses, different herbs, and you have a completely different dish every time. It’s one of those foundational techniques worth having in your back pocket.
Keys to Success
- Keep your phyllo covered. Sheets that dry out become brittle and crack, making them much harder to work with.
- Work sheet by sheet. Brush with butter, add your fillings, scrunch, and transfer. Don’t try to prep too many sheets at once.
- Pour the custard slowly and evenly after assembly so it settles into all the layers.
- Don’t skip the resting time. Letting the tart rest for at least 15 minutes after baking allows the custard to set fully, which makes slicing so much cleaner.
Let’s Make It Together: STEP BY STEP
Be sure to check out the full recipe and ingredient list in the recipe card below.
1. Finely chop the herbs and set them aside.
2. In a bowl, whisk the eggs, millk, cream, mustard, sour cream, salt and pepper until well combined.
3. Add all of the finely chopped herbs to the custard mixture and set aside.
4. Prepare the spring onions by thinly slicing both the white and green parts.
5. Remove the bottom woody part of the asparagus by snapping a spear at it’s natural breaking point and use it as a guide to trim the rest.
6. Butter the bottom and sides of your pie dish or springform pan.
7. Brush a sheet of phyllo with melted butter, working from short end to short end.
8. Scatter asparagus, peas and goat cheese the length of the phyllo sheet.
9. With your hands, gently scrunch the phyllo together like an accordion.
10. Transfer the accordion-folded phyllo to your buttered dish along the outside perimeter.
11. Repeat this process making concentric circles to fill the pie dish.
12. Next, slowly pour the custard over the whole tart.
13. Finally, butter a sheet of phyllo dough and crumble it into a loose ball.
14. Set that crumbled ball of phyllo on top of the tart.
15. Repeat this process until the tart is fully covered and then bake at 350 for 45 minutes or until golden brown and the custard is set.
Natalie’s Expert Tips
- Don’t rush the butter. Every sheet needs a good brushing. The butter is what gives you that golden, crispy finish and also prevents the sheets from sticking together into a solid block instead of beautifully distinct layers.
- Thin asparagus is your friend here. Pencil asparagus bends and curls easily, which makes the assembly much more forgiving. If you can only find thicker spears, just snap them into really small pieces before placing them on the phyllo. *Alternatively, you can blanch the spears in boiling water for a few minutes, followed by a quick ice bath to stop the cooking, to par-cook them.
Serving Suggestions
This tart is a great centerpiece for a spring brunch alongside a simple green salad with my double lemon vinaigrette – bright and clean, and the perfect match for all those herbs in the custard.
For a light dinner, pair it with a simple arugula salad or a warm bowl of asparagus potato soup with leeks, peas, and mint for a full spring meal that feels really special without a lot of extra work.
If you’re serving it at a dinner party, it is equally at home as a starter before a roasted chicken or alongside other side dish recipes on the table. It also slices and holds beautifully at room temperature, which makes it a low-stress hosting option.
Frequently Asked Questions
You can prep the herb custard up to a day ahead and store it covered in the refrigerator. The tart itself is best baked fresh and served the same day for the crispiest phyllo. That said, leftovers are still delicious – just know the phyllo will soften a bit as it sits.
No! That’s one of the things I love about the crinkle technique. You assemble everything, pour in the custard, add the crumpled top, and bake. No blind-baking, no pie weights, no extra steps.
Yes. A deep pie dish, a springform pan, or a square or rectangular baking pan all work well here. Just make sure whatever you use is deep enough to hold the custard without it overflowing.
Most likely it dried out before you got to it. This is a really common issue. Keep the unused sheets covered with a slightly damp towel the entire time you’re working, and move quickly when brushing and assembling each sheet.
Yes. Feta is a great substitute and gives a slightly saltier, more briny flavor. Ricotta works too, but will be milder and creamier – make sure you season it well with salt and pepper. Either way, it will still be delicious. Another different, but delicious, option would be to use Gruyere cheese.
Absolutely. This crinkle tart technique is so flexible. Once asparagus season is over, try it with zucchini, roasted corn, spinach, or whatever looks best at the market. I do exactly that with my corn and shiitake crinkle tart during the summer months!
For even more delicious recipes, you may like these
Easy Corn and Shiitake Crinkle Tart
Asparagus and Leek Tart with Phyllo Dough
Sauteed Asparagus and Peas with Buratta & Mint
I hope you love this Asparagus Tart!
If you make it, be sure to leave a rating so I know how you liked it!
The Recipe
Asparagus Goat Cheese Crinkle Tart
Ingredients
- ¼ cup mint (finely chopped)
- ¼ cup parsley (finely chopped)
- 2 tablespoons dill (finely chopped)
- 4 eggs
- ⅓ cup whole milk
- ⅓ cup heavy cream
- ¼ cup sour cream
- 1 tablespoon Dijon mustard
- 1 ½ teaspoons kosher salt
- ½ teaspoon black pepper
- 1 lb. pencil asparagus
- 3 spring onions (finely chopped)
- 1 cup frozen peas
- 4 oz. goat cheese
- 5 tablespoons butter (melted)
- 1 package phyllo dough
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit.
- Prep the herbs. Remove the leaves from the mint, parsley and dill. Finely chop them and then set them aside.¼ cup mint, ¼ cup parsley, 2 tablespoons dill
- Prepare the egg mixture. In a large bowl, add the eggs, milk, heavy cream, sour cream, Dijon, salt and pepper and whisk until everything is well combined. Add the chopped herbs, whisk, and set aside until ready to use.4 eggs, ⅓ cup whole milk, ⅓ cup heavy cream, ¼ cup sour cream, 1 tablespoon Dijon mustard, 1 ½ teaspoons kosher salt, ½ teaspoon black pepper
- Prep the asparagus. Remove the woody ends of the asparagus by snapping one spear at its natural breaking point. Then, line up the rest of the spears and cut them using that one spear as a guide.1 lb. pencil asparagus
- Prep the spring onions. First, remove the root end by slicing it off, and then remove any outer leaves that don’t look good. Next, thinly slice the spring onions and then finely chop them.3 spring onions
- Prepare the pie dish. Brush the bottom and sides of your pie dish with melted butter (or if you haven’t melted the butter yet, grab a little with your fingers and rub the bottom and sides of the pie dish).
- Assemble the tart. On your cutting board or countertop, place your asparagus, peas, spring onions, goat cheese, and melted butter around the edges, leaving enough room for a piece of phyllo dough in the middle.1 cup frozen peas, 4 oz. goat cheese, 5 tablespoons butter, 1 package phyllo dough
- Place a piece of unrolled phyllo dough on your cutting board (short end closest to you) and brush it with butter, and then working from short end to short end, scatter pieces of asparagus, followed by a scattering of peas and spring onions, and finally dotted with goat cheese. Next, push both short ends toward each other like an accordion as close as you can, and transfer them to the outer ring of the pie dish. Repeat this process, working toward the center of the pie dish. *Please note: if your asparagus is not as thin as mine and you are having trouble bending it in a circle, then snap the spears into smaller pieces as you place them on the phyllo dough.
- Next, re-whisk the egg mixture and slowly pour it all over the assembled tart.
- Lastly, brush remaining sheets of phyllo with butter and loosely crumple them and place them on top of the tart until the tart is fully covered.
- Bake. Bake for 40-45 minutes. The phyllo should be golden brown, the custard should be set, and it should smell of buttery goodness! Let rest for at least 15 minutes and then ENJOY!
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Notes
Nutrition
Nice to meet you!
I’m Natalie and I love to create seasonal and interesting elevated food for busy everyday real life! Dinner doesn’t have to be boring and I’m here to help. This is where busy meets delicious!
