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Chocolate Tart with Cashew Butter and Blood Orange | vegan recipe with easy gf swap via The Sweet Miscellany Blog

A stunning dessert without too much effort, this vegan chocolate tart with cashew butter and blood orange is the perfect balance of sweet, nutty, and creamy! Rich dark chocolate and nutty cashew butter create the perfect blend of flavors while blood orange lends a subtle citrus note. Add blood orange slices and edible flowers to make this vegan tart that feel even more luxurious and special.

This tart started as an idea to recreate a gigantic peanut butter cup in tart form. On its own, it sounded like a pretty darn good idea! But then I started to tweak and refine it, as I often do with recipe ideas. I knew I wanted it to have a toasty graham-cracker crust. I really love cashew butter so it took the place of peanut butter. And I couldn’t pass up the opportunity to use my favorite winter citrus: blood oranges! The resulting chocolate tart is luxurious, delicious, and easy to make with minimal baking. I hope you enjoy it!

Grab These Ingredients

Graham Cracker Crumbs — if you can’t find the crumbs, toss some graham crackers in a food processor and pulse until fine crumbs form. You can use regular graham crackers or gluten free ones depending on your needs.
Vegan Butter — we’ll use a little to help hold the crust together. Feel free to use regular unsalted butter if you don’t need this tart to be vegan.
Granulated Sugar — sweetens the crust and helps it brown. I do not recommend substituting a liquid sweetener here.
Virgin Coconut Oil — lends flavor and setting power to both the cashew butter filling and the chocolate topping. Since coconut oil firms up when cold, it is the best oil for this recipe. I prefer the unrefined virgin coconut oil here rather than the refined version.
Powdered Sugar — sweetens the filling and helps thicken and stabilize it.
Blood Oranges — lend flavor to the filling and can also be used for decoration. You’ll need both the zest and the juice.
Cashew Butter — creates the bulk of the filling. Opt for an unsweetened cashew butter here.
Salt — balances all of the flavors.
Vanilla Extract — lends flavor to the filling.
Vegan Dark Chocolate — I recommend using a dark chocolate bar since it will have better flavor than baking chocolate. Make sure the one you use is vegan friendly if that’s a concern. I’ve linked my favorite one down in the recipe card.
Edible Flowers — these are completely optional but a fun way to decorate the chocolate tart and make it feel extra special.

Why You Should Make This Chocolate Tart

There’s minimal baking involved! All you have to do is bake the graham cracker crust for 12-14 minutes and that’s it! The rest of the tart comes together without any baking or cooking.
It’s essentially a gigantic and more refined version of a peanut butter cup…except we’re using cashew butter and blood oranges.
It’s completely vegan and really dang delicious. Plus, you can easily make it gluten free by using gluten free graham crackers!
Two words: BLOOD ORANGE. Their unique sweet and tangy flavor makes anything delicious.

The Recipe Components

There are 3 components: a graham cracker crust, a sweetened cashew butter filling with blood orange zest and juice, and a chocolate topping.

CRUST: The graham cracker crust is made from a mixture of graham crackers crumbs (I made my own by blitzing graham crackers in a blender), melted vegan butter, and sugar. Everything in mixed together then pressed into a buttered 9-inch tart pan (or pie pan). The crust is baked for just 12-14 minutes until it begins to turn golden brown. (tip: if you’d like to make the tart gluten free, simply use a gluten free graham cracker!)

FILLING: While the crust is baking, you can easily mix the filling components: room temperature coconut oil, cashew butter, powdered sugar, a pinch of salt, blood orange zest, blood orange juice, and vanilla extract. I used my stand mixer for this but you can also do it with a hand mixer or with a whisk and a bit of arm strength! Once it’s smooth, you’ll put it into the crust (it’s completely fine if the crust is still warm!) and smooth out the top.

TOPPING: The last component is the chocolate topping. You’ll melt your chocolate and coconut oil in a bowl set over a pan of simmering water. Once it’s fully melted and smooth, you’ll pour it over the cashew butter filling. It should spread out and cover the filling mostly on it’s own but you can help it as needed with a spoon or a spatula. All that’s left is to chill the tart for 6 hours in the fridge!

Tips for Recipe Success

Make sure to press the crust into the tart pan really well so that it holds together and isn’t super crumbly. You can do this with a spatula, a measuring cup like you see in the photos, or your hands.
Use your favorite vegan chocolate for the topping. Since the topping is just chocolate and coconut oil, you want to use a chocolate bar that is delicious enough to be eaten and savored on its own rather than a standard boring baking chocolate.
Chill the tart for at least 6 hours before enjoying it. This allows time for all of the flavors to mingle and for crust and filling to set and solidify.
When you remove the tart from the fridge, let it sit at room temperature for about 15-20 minutes before slicing it. You’ll get a smoother slice without the chocolate topping fracturing!

Looking For Other Blood Orange Recipes?

Try these vegan and gluten free rosemary scones with a tangy blood orange glaze. Or for something savory, try this celery salad with blood oranges, dates, and walnuts.

Vegan Chocolate Tart with Cashew Butter and Blood Orange

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Author: Courtney West
Total Time: 6 hours 40 minutes
Yield: 8 servings 1x
Diet: Vegan

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Description

Ingredients

Units Scale

for the crust

1 1/2 cups graham cracker crumbs
2 tablespoons granulated sugar
1/3 cup vegan butter, melted, plus a little extra for greasing the pan

for the filling

1/4 cup virgin coconut oil, room temperature
1 cup powdered sugar
2 teaspoons blood orange zest, from 2 blood oranges
3 tablespoons blood orange juice
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 heaped cup cashew butter
1 pinch sea salt

for the topping:

6 ounces vegan dark chocolate (I used this one)
3 tablespoons virgin coconut oil
blood orange slices, optional for decoration
edible flowers, optional for decoration

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Instructions

Pre-heat your oven to 350 degrees. Grease a 9-inch fluted tart pan with a removable bottom with vegan butter. You can simply use your fingers to spread it around or use a pastry brush. If you don’t have this pan, you can easily use a 9-inch pie pan. Set your greased pan aside.

In a medium-sized bowl, combine the graham cracker crumbs, sugar, and melted vegan butter. Mix until it looks like wet sand and begins to clump together. Dump this mixture into your prepared pan and press it into an even layer across the bottom and up the sides of the pan. Make sure to press tightly as this will ensure your crust is less crumbly. You can do this with a measuring cup, spatula, or your hands. Bake the crust in your preheated oven for 12-14 minutes or until it is just turning golden around the edges. Allow the crust to cool slightly while you make the filling.

Add the room temperature coconut oil and powdered sugar to the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment. Alternately, you can do this with a large bowl and a whisk. Blend this mixture until very smooth, then add the blood orange zest and juice along with the vanilla. Mix these in, then add the cashew butter and sea salt. Blend until very smooth and creamy. Pour the filling mixture into the baked crust (it’s okay if the crust is still warm!) and smooth out the top. Set the filled tart aside while you make the topping.

Add an inch or two of water to a small pot and set it on the stove over medium-high heat. Once it comes to a simmer, set a bowl on top of the pot. You want to make sure the bottom of the bowl is not touching the water. Roughly chop or break up your chocolate and add it to the bowl along with the remaining coconut oil. Stir regularly until the chocolate has completely melted and is smooth. Pour the chocolate over the filling, making sure it covers the filling in a relatively even layer.

Chill the tart for 6 hours to allow everything to set and the flavors to develop. When you’re ready to serve the tart, allow it to sit out at room temperature for 15-20 minutes before slicing it. If you want, you can decorate the top of the tart with edible flowers, blood orange slices, and blood orange rind.

Store leftovers in the fridge and enjoy within 4-5 days. Allow to come to room temperature for 15-20 minutes before slicing and enjoying for the best texture.

Notes

You can easily make your own graham cracker crumbs. Put your preferred graham crackers into a blender and pulse until broken down into crumbs.
You can make this recipe gluten free by using a gluten free graham cracker.
Make sure to choose a dark chocolate that you like to eat on its own rather than a boring baking chocolate.
Don’t skip out on the chilling time! It ensures everything sets properly and lets the flavors develop. Plus, it makes the tart easier to cut.

Prep Time: 25 minutes
Chilling Time: 6 hours
Cook Time: 12-14 minutes
Category: dessert

Vegan Green Apple Tarte Tatin with Bay Laurel | Vegan recipe via the Sweet Miscellany blog

As much as I appreciate easy things when it comes to cooking and baking, I love something tedious just as much. Maybe it’s because it creates a connection to the past, a time when there was no such things as short-cuts or convenience foods in the kitchen. Or maybe it’s that sense of accomplishment that comes from making it to end of a long, drawn-out recipe or process. In any case, I like to throw myself a few tedious kitchen tasks every now and then to hone my skills and practice the subtle art of patience.

This recipe started with a vegan rough puff pastry experiment a couple of months ago. After it worked successfully I took some time to figure out what I wanted to make with it to share here. And eventually, I settled on a tarte Tatin. The history of this quintessential French pastry begins in the late 19th century at a hotel in the small village of Lamotte-Beuvron in central France. The Hôtel Tatin was run by two sisters, Stéphanie and Caroline Tatin. Stéphanie ran the kitchen and as the story goes, she got distracted one day while cooking a pan of apples. She smelled the sugars beginning to burn and in a panic, she topped the apples with some pastry dough and put the entire pan in the oven to bake in order to salvage her mistake. After removing her creation from the oven, she inverted it onto a plate, and well, the rest is history!

The tarte Tatin is basically a caramel apple tart that is cooked in a similar manner to an upside down cake (i.e. after it is cooked it is inverted). The caramel is made first in the pan, then apples are added and cooked down in the caramel. The final step is to top the cooked caramel apples with a layer of either puff pastry or tart/pie dough before baking it in the oven. Before serving, the tarte is inverted. It’s actually a rather simple process involving minimal ingredients.

Mine is obviously not quite traditional as it’s made with vegan butter and coconut sugar but it tastes delicious nonetheless. I decided to throw some locally grown bay leaves in there, too and they provide a nice herbal spice but they can totally be left out. A word of caution when making this: it is best enjoyed right after it is made as the caramel has a tendency to seep down into the crust and make it soggy. So, plan on serving it up right after you invert it! Also, you absolutely do not need to go to the effort of making vegan rough puff pastry. You can use your favorite pie crust or a store-bought pie crust or puff pastry!

Vegan Green Apple Tarte Tatin with Bay Laurel

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Author: Courtney
Total Time: 70-75 minutes
Yield: 8 servings 1x

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Description

A not-so-traditional tarte Tatin made with vegan butter, coconut sugar, and locally grown bay leaves. Serve the tarte as-is or with a dollop of freshly whipped cream or ice cream.

Ingredients

Units Scale

1 batch of vegan rough puff pastry, or, a single pie or tart crust
4 large tart green apples (such as Granny Smith) sliced into half-inch wedges or rounds
4 tbsp (57g) vegan stick butter, plus a bit extra for your pie dish
1 cup (145g) coconut sugar
pinch of sea salt
2 bay leaves (optional)
2–3 tbsp water
whipped cream or ice cream to serve, optional

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Instructions

Pre-heat your oven to 375 degrees. Grease a standard pie dish with vegan butter. Roll your chosen dough into a round that is at least as big as your dish. Don’t worry if it’s bigger than your dish because we’ll be tucking the excess under when we assemble. Place the rolled out dough on a sheet of parchment and set it in the fridge to chill. You want it nice and cold before it tops the apples!

Prepare the apples: Rinse the apples well and remove the stem. Cut each apple into either 1/2-inch rounds or wedges. If you cut the apples into rounds, make sure to remove the seeds. Set the apples aside. It’s okay if they begin to brown because we’ll be cooking them in caramel.

In a large skillet set over medium heat, add the butter and bay leaves. Once the butter melts, add the coconut sugar and 2 tbsp of water. Cook this mixture, stirring gently until the caramel becomes smooth and thick and begins to bubble. This will take about 5 minutes. If the mixture looks dry or like it’s separating, add an additional tbsp of water.

Add the apples to the caramel and cook, stirring gently, for 10-15 minutes or until the apples have softened. A good indicator with green apples that they are ready is that the skin has faded from bright green to a light, yellowish-green. Allow the apples and caramel to cool in the pan for 5-10 minutes.

Arrange the apples in your pie dish then pour any remaining caramel over them. Top with your chilled dough, tucking under any excess that hangs over the edge of the dish. Cut a couple of slits in the middle to allow for steam to escape.

Bake the tarte for 30-35 minutes or until the pastry is golden brown. Cool 10-15 minutes once you remove the tarte from the oven. Carefully invert the tarte onto a plate or platter then serve! It’s particularly delicious with a dollop of cream or ice cream.

Notes

My tarte looks incredibly dark in the photos which is simply due to the darkness of coconut sugar (i.e. it’s not burnt!). I highly recommend using a tart apple because they pair really well with the caramel. And, as I mentioned above, you can use any pie or tart crust you like, or even store-bought puff pastry. I made a vegan rough puff pastry which is linked in the ingredients. And lastly, I sliced my apples into rounds because I love seeing the star shape in the middle but you can just as easily cut your apples into wedges.

Prep Time: 10 minutes
Cook Time: 60-65 minutes