These little crustless courgette and tomato puffs are packed with courgettes, cheese and tomatoes, which give them a delicious flavour. They are perfect for a mid-morning snack or for packing into a lunch box. And because they are made without oil or fat they are low on calories too!
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A quick mix-and-bake snack
It takes less than 10 minutes to mix up these crustless courgette and tomato tartlets and get them in the oven. This has long been my go-to recipe for when unexpected guests arrive and I need a quick snack. As long as you've got a spare courgette or two lurking in the refrigerator, and a packet of my homemade passata in the freezer (or store-bought passata in the cupboard), plus one or two pantry staples, you can whip up these tasty morsels in no time at all.
Tomato and courgettes just go together, like bacon and eggs, or fish and chips. If you don't believe me, try my recipe for baby marrows with tomato and onion. For information, baby marrow is the South African name for courgettes, just as they are called zucchini in the US.
(I've always wondered why different countries have different names for the same thing).
But getting back to the courgette and tomato puffs - let me tell you about the taste. Apart from the flavours of tomato and courgettes, there's also the creamy taste of cheese. And as if that isn't enough, I've added chopped basil for freshness.
What I also love about this recipe is how quick it is to mix. There's no fat in this recipe so you don't have to cream the butter and sugar as you would with a cake. You just put the ingredients into a mixing bowl, give them a quick whisk and the courgette puffs are ready for the oven.
There is also no milk in this recipe. The liquid component comes from the tomato passata, which not only gives a delicious flavour, but combines with the flour to make a sort of 'pastry' when the tarts are baking.
When these puffs first come out of the oven they will be quite puffed up, but once they have cooled they sink down slightly giving a slightly crumpled appearance. They don't rise very much - these are not muffins, and they are less than an inch in height. They are more like a 'slice' or a crustless quiche, but in cupcake form, and with a moist chewy texture.
Other than tasty, delicious, and 'omg these are so good', I'm not sure how else to describe these courgette tomato puffs. You'll have to try them for yourself to see.
And this is how you make them:
What you will need
Equipment
You will need a cheese grater to grate the courgettes.
Other than that all you will need is a mixing bowl, a balloon whisk for mixing, and a 12-hole muffin tray with some cupcake liners to prevent sticking.
Ingredients
This recipe will make 12 courgette and tomato puffs.
**You can get the complete list of ingredients and full instructions for making these courgette and tomato puffs on the printable recipe card at the end of this post**
Flour - you can use either plain flour or self-raising flour for this recipe.
Baking powder - if you are using plain flour you will need some baking powder to help the puffs to rise. If you are using self-raising flour you can leave this out.
Salt and black pepper - this is for seasoning. If you don't use salt in your diet then you can leave out the salt, but at the very least I would add the black pepper. The tomatoes do need something to help bring out their flavour!
Eggs - I realise there is only one egg in the photo, but you will need 2 eggs.
Cheese - I used grated cheddar cheese because it's a great cheese for cooking with. It melts easily, and it has a wonderful flavour. Substitute with any cheese that melts easily.
Courgettes - (zucchini or baby marrows) - grate them on the largest holes of a cheese grater and then press with a paper towel to remove some of the moisture.
Passata - this is the liquid component of the dish. Passata is whole tomatoes that have had their skins and seeds removed and are then cooked down to make them slightly concentrated. You can use store-bought passata or make your own using my easy passata recipe. I wouldn't recommend just grating raw tomatoes and using those - there will be far too much liquid released that will make the puffs runny.
Basil - basil is an ingredient that goes really well with tomatoes. I would recommend you use freshly chopped basil. If you can't get fresh you can substitute with half a teaspoon of dried basil instead.
What to do
Wash the courgettes in clean water to remove any bits of dirt, then grate them on the largest holes of a cheese grater. There is no need to remove the skin. Press the courgettes lightly with a paper towel to remove most of the moisture.
Place the flour, baking powder (if using), salt and pepper into a mixing bowl and whisk lightly to combine.
Add the eggs and passata to the flour mixture.
Whisk the mixture until you get a smooth batter with no lumps.
Now add the grated courgettes, the grated cheese and the chopped basil.
Mix until well combined.
Line a 12-hole muffin pan with paper cases and spoon the mixture evenly into the 12 cases.
Bake in a preheated oven (180C / 360F) for 35 to 40 minutes until set.
Allow to cool before eating!
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Courgette and tomato puff FAQs
Baking powder is an ingredient that is added to flour to make baked goods rise. It is made from bicarbonate of soda (baking soda in the US), and an acid in the form of cream of tartar.
When baking powder is exposed to moisture it starts to form tiny bubbles of carbon dioxide that causes the cakes to rise. So if you've mixed a cake, you'd better make sure to get it into the oven as quickly as possible.
If you would like to make your own baking powder, the ratio is 2 parts cream of tartar to one part bicarbonate of soda.
Self-raising flour has baking powder added to it during the manufacturing process which is why we don't need to use baking powder with self-raising flour.
So basically, what makes cakes rise is the mixture of bicarbonate of soda and some form of acid i
Yes, you can freeze them in a suitable air-tight plastic container for up to 4 months. Let them defrost on the counter and eat them cold or pop them into a hot oven for a few minutes to warm up.
Courgette and tomato puffs will stay fresh in an air-tight container in a cool place in the kitchen for up to 4 days.
Save for later
If you would like to try these courgette and tomato puffs, why not save the recipe to one of your Pinterest boards so you can find it easily? Just click on the image below.
Alternatively, you can save the recipe by clicking on the floating heart icon on the right hand side of the screen.
Related recipes
If you enjoyed this recipe you may also enjoy some of my other savoury tart recipes. Here are a few of them:
📋The recipe
Courgette and tomato puffs
(Click the stars to rate this recipe)
Equipment
- Cheese grater
- Mixing bowl
- Balloon whisk
- Muffin tray 12-hole
Ingredients
- ¾ cup / 105 grams plain (all purpose) flour
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- ½ teaspoon salt
- ¼ teaspoon black pepper
- 2 large eggs
- 1 cup / 240 ml passata
- 5 ounces / 150 grams courgettes (grated)
- 1 tablespoon fresh basil (chopped)
- ½ cup / 100 grams grated cheese
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 180°C/360°F
- Wash the courgettes in clean water to remove any bits of dirt, then grate them on the largest holes of a cheese grater. There is no need to remove the skin. Press the courgettes lightly with a paper towel to remove most of the moisture.5 ounces / 150 grams courgettes (grated)
- Place the flour, baking powder (if using), salt and pepper into a mixing bowl and whisk lightly to combine.¾ cup / 105 grams plain (all purpose) flour, 1 teaspoon baking powder, ½ teaspoon salt, ¼ teaspoon black pepper
- Add the eggs and passata to the flour mixture.2 large eggs, 1 cup / 240 ml passata
- Whisk the mixture until you get a smooth batter with no lumps.
- Now add the grated courgettes, the grated cheese and the chopped basil.1 tablespoon fresh basil (chopped), ½ cup / 100 grams grated cheese
- Mix until well-combined.
- Line a 12-hole muffin pan with paper cases and spoon the mixture evenly into the 12 cases.
- Bake in a preheated oven for 35 to 40 minutes until set.
- Allow to cool before eating!
Notes
Nutrition
I am not a nutritionist. The nutrition information has been calculated using an on-line calculator, and is intended for information and guidance purposes only. If the nutrition information is important to you, you should consider calculating it yourself, using your preferred tool.
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