Description
These vegan custard tarts are so creamy, delicious and probably too darn pretty to eat. They’re a combination of a light and crisp crust, filled with a lush filling, and topped with beautiful berries. It definitely looks and tastes like the ones you would get a patisserie. Now you too, can channel your inner French baker and show these babies off to your friends and family. It’s the perfect dessert for any occasion!
If you need help figuring out how to place the dough into the tart molds, check out this video from The Boy Who Bakes. He explains everything in detail! https://youtu.be/vXXOgmSfYh8?t=849
You can also make this recipe into one large tart!
Ingredients
Scale
Tart Shell
- 1 ½ cups (200g) – all-purpose flour, leveled and sifted
- ¼ cup (24g) – almond four, leveled and sifted
- 5 tablespoons (35g) – powdered sugar, leveled and sifted
- 10 tablespoons (140g) – vegan butter, cold and cubed
- 1/2 teaspoon – salt
- 1–2 tablespoons – ice water
Custard:
- ¾ cup + 2 tablespoons (200ml) – coconut milk
- ¾ cup + 2 tablespoons (200ml) soy milk (or any milk that has a high protein content)
- ¼ cup – granulated sugar
- 1 tablespoon + 1 teaspoon – cornstarch, sifted
- 2 teaspoon – agar-agar powder (not flakes)
- 2 teaspoon – vanilla bean paste or vanilla extract
- A tiny pinch of turmeric for color
Toppings:
- Berries
- Powdered sugar
Equipment:
- Food processor
- Plastic wrap or reusable zip bag
- Rolling pin
- Tart molds
- Paring knife
- Baking sheet pan
- Wire cooling rack
- Medium mixing bowl
- Whisk
- Medium saucepan
- Rubber Spatula
- Measuring cup
Instructions
The Tart Shell:
- First thing, remove the butter from the fridge and cut them into ½ inch cubes. Place them on a plate and put in the freezer for 30 minutes.
- When you are ready, add in the all-purpose flour, almond flour, powdered sugar, and salt to the bowl of a food processor. Pulse a couple of times to combine.
- Add the frozen butter to the food processor and pulse until you get about pea-size pieces of butter mixed into the flour mixture.
- Start out by adding 1 tablespoon of ice water to the dough and pulse until it slightly clumps and holds its shape as you press it together. If it’s still too dry add in 1 more tablespoon of ice water.
- Transfer the dough to a work surface and lightly knead it until it is a cohesive dough. Then shape it into a 7-inch log. Wrap it in a plastic wrap and place it in the freezer for 30 minutes to an hour.
- Once the dough is chilled, equally cut the dough log into 6 discs. Freeze the other pieces of dough if they start to get too soft.
- Flour the work surface and work with one disc at a time. Flatten out the dough with a rolling pin, about a ½-inch bigger than the tart tin and ¼-inch thick. You need the dough to be thick, otherwise, the filling will break through.
- Gently place the dough into the tart mold and lightly press it into the bottom and into the sides of the mold.
- Press the excess dough over the edges of the tart mold, and use the rolling pin to roll over the tart mold and it will cut the excess dough off. Lightly press the dough against the mold again and use a paring knife to cut off any excess dough leftover. Repeat for the rest of the dough.
- Place the tart molds into the freezer to chill the dough for 30 minutes. While you wait, preheat the oven to 350° Fahrenheit.
- When the dough is cold, prick the bottom of the tart shell with a fork, and place them onto a baking sheet. (This will be an easy way to bring them into the oven.) Then bake for 12-15 minutes or until lightly golden at the edges.
- Remove from the oven and allow the tart shells to cool in the molds for 10 minutes. Remove the tart shells from the mold and allow them to fully cool over a wire cooling rack.
Making the custard filling:
- In a medium bowl, add in the coconut milk, soy milk, sugar, sifted cornstarch, agar-agar powder, and vanilla bean paste (or vanilla extract). Whisk to combine.
- Pour the mixture into a medium saucepan, and place it over medium heat.
- Stir the mixture constantly until it becomes thick, it’ll take about 4-5 minutes.
- Then pour the mixture into a measuring cup with a spout, cover with some plastic wrap, and allow it to cool slightly for about 5-8 minutes.
- Stir the mixture up a bit, and fill up each tartlet. Allow the custard to cool to room temperature. Then transfer them into the fridge to set completely, about 3-4 hours.
- When ready to serve, top them off with some berries and some powdered sugar, and enjoy!
Notes
- Use a food processor. Using a food processor is not only easier, but it’s also faster. It keeps all the ingredients cold, so you don’t need to worry about the warmth of your hands melting the butter. If you don’t have a food processor, you can use a pastry blender or your hands. But if you are using your hands, you have to work quickly.
- Having a thick crust. Tart shells are a bit delicate, so to keep the filling from breaking through you need to have the crust pretty thick. I roll my crusts about ¼ – inch thick.
- Use a rolling pin to cut the excess dough. What do I mean by this? Well, you’re definitely going to have extra dough overhanging the tart mold. So, instead of cutting it with scissors, simply fold the excess dough over the edge. Use your rolling pin to roll it over the mold and it’ll “cut” excess dough and you’ll have a perfectly even edge.
- Chilling the tart shells before baking. This will prevent the dough from shrinking when you bake. This is a critical step, so do not skip this!
- Dock your tart shells before baking. What does docking mean? It basically means adding air holes to the bottom of your tart shell. This will allow air to flow through and prevent the tart shell from puffing up. You can do this by using a fork to dock the bottom.
- Use a baking pan as a vessel. Since tartlet molds are small, you don’t want to bring them individually to the oven. The easiest way is to use a baking pan to place the tartlet molds over and bring them together in the oven.
- Allow the tart shells to cool completely. Before you add any filling, you want the tart shells to cool completely. The tarts will be soggy and that might cause the filling to break through.
- Let the custard filling completely set in the fridge. The custard fillings need time to completely cool and set before serving it. So, they need time to chill in the fridge!
Keywords: vegan, vegan custard tarts, vegan tarts, vegan custard, custard tarts, tartlets, custard, French dessert, vegan French desserts
