Apricot and Lavender Tart + A Giveaway
I’ve been a big fan of Anya Kassoff’s blog Golubka for a long time. It’s a lovely site full of gorgeously-photographed, health-promoting recipes, many of which are vegan and raw. Anya’s new book The Vibrant Table
I received The Vibrant Table from publisher Roost Books a few months back. I’ve flipped through the book many times, reading Anya’s intriguing stories and “ooh”ing and “aah”ing over the photos (taken by her talented daughter Masha Davydova), but I could not decide what to make. I recently settled on the Apricot and Lavender Tart, and was so happy that I did…it’s fabulous!
Anya’s tart crust recipe is gluten-free and while I changed up the flours, mine is gluten-free, too. This recipe is also vegan. It’s the perfect dessert for when you want something that’s very visually appealing, but isn’t particularly over the top in terms of calories. This tart is actually very light, though you can certainly up the decadence factor by serving it with some vanilla ice cream.
Be sure to use very ripe apricots, otherwise your tart won’t be as flavorful as it could be. I found organic apricots at my local natural foods store and used those; I bought my dried lavender flowers at my natural foods store, as well. If you don’t need the tart to be vegan, I imagine butter will work well in the crust.
Recipe for Apricot and Lavender Tart
Yield: One 9-inch Tart
This tart is simple to make, yet stunningly beautiful. Anya suggests other fruit combinations such as pear-ginger and mango-lime if you choose not to use apricots.
Don't forget to sprinkle extra almond flour on the crust before adding the apricots. This helps to soak up some of the juices released from the apricots when they bake. Note that the crust will soften the longer the tart sits, so it's best served on the day it is baked.
Ingredients:
For the crust:
*1/2 cup (150 ml) coconut oil, melted, plus more for greasing the tart pan
*1 cup almond flour
*1/4 cup buckwheat flour
*2 tablespoons unrefined sugar (Anya's recipe calls for coconut sugar; I used Turbinado sugar)
*1 teaspoon dried lavender flowers
*1/4 teaspoon sea salt
*ice water as needed (2-5 tablespoons)
For the filling:
*1/4 cup unrefined sugar (Anya's recipe calls for coconut sugar; I used Turbinado sugar)
*1 teaspoon dried lavender flowers
*11 ripe apricots, cut in half, pits removed
*1 tablespoon almond flour
Directions:
To make the crust:
1. Pour the coconut oil into a small shallow dish and place in the freezer for 10 to 15 minutes, until hardened. Lightly grease the tart pan with additional coconut oil.
2. In a food processor, combine the almond and buckwheat flours, sugar, lavender, and salt and pulse several times to mix. Take the hardened coconut oil out of the freezer and cut it in the dish into 1/4-inch (1/2 cm) cubes, Add it to the flour mixture and pulse until the coconut oil cubes are ground into tiny granules and incorporated into the flour and the mixture resembles sand.
3. Add ice water to the food processor, 1 tablespoon at a time, pulsing after each addition until the dough comes together. Check the dough with your fingers: it should stick when pressed together. If not, add 1 more tablespoon of ice water and pulse again.
4. Put the dough, which will be crumbly at this point, on a work surface and quickly knead together, forming a ball. Flatten it with the palm of your hand and press into the oiled tart pan. Starting with the bottom, extend it to the sides until you have an evenly thick crust. Prick with a fork several times and chill in the refrigerator for 30 minutes (or more: I chilled mine overnight).
To assemble and bake the tart:
1. Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F. (190 degrees C).
2. In a designated coffee grinder, grind the coconut sugar with the lavender (I used a mortar and pestle, which didn't really grind the flowers).
3. Thinly slice each apricot half lengthwise to make half-moons. Sprinkle the crust with almond flour. Arrange the apricot slices inside the crust in a circle, overlapping with the skin side facing up. When all of the crust is covered, dust it with half of the lavender sugar. Continue with the rest of the apricots, arranging them in a second layer in the same fashion. Finish by dusting the remaining lavender sugar on top.
4. Bake for 30 to 35 minutes, until the crust is golden brown and the apricots are caramelized. Cool on a cooling rack before unmolding and slicing. Serve on its own or with a scoop of ice cream on the side.
Slightly adapted from The Vibrant Table: Recipes from My Always Vegetarian, Mostly Vegan, & Sometimes Raw Kitchen
For a chance to win a copy of The Vibrant Table, please enter using the Rafflecopter widget below. The giveaway will be open from July 31, 2014 through August 8, 2014 at 12:00 am and is open to readers in the US only. Thanks and good luck!
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