Recipe: No-Bake Chocolate Cherry Custard Tart
This delicious chocolate cherry tart is an amazing desert option for a diverse dinner audience!
This is an easy, quick recipe to make and wows people every time. Fabulous at Christmas time, this no-bake dessert is dairy free and vegan AND is ridiculously delicious.
RECIPE NOTES:
Serves 6-8 takes 30 minutes to make +30mins-1hr fridge time.
A note on AGAR AGAR: Agar Agar is a gelatine made from kelp rather than beef, its a potent, inexpensive and lacks the smell or flavour of beef gelatine, in addition to being cruelty free/vegan, it’s lack of flavour makes it a much better choice for delicate deserts like pannacotta and fruit jellies, requiring less sugar/syrups as a result.
You can find agar agar in almost all asian grocers, supermarkets and health food stores!
I used a food processor to blitz the biscuits for this recipe but you could mash them with a rolling pin :)
I like to use fresh cherries but you can use any berries that you prefer/what’s in season or you can use frozen
This recipe has a lot of choice- sugar choice, oil choice, biscuit choice- so don’t be afraid to tweak it to your personal tastes
Ingredients
1 tablespoon quality cocoa powder, sifted
2 tablespoons sugar (I used brown) or syrup of choice, to taste
50 grams dark chocolate, roughly chopped
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
400ml pure coconut cream
2 1/2 teaspoons of agar agar
100 grams cherries (or berries of choice!)
100g vegan butter OR 3 tablespoons virgin coconut oil + additional for greasing your tin!
250g Nice biscuits (plain digestive style biscuits also work beautifully here)
A pinch of salt
Tools:
30cm tart tin
24cm (medium) pot for creating tart filling
whisk
Food processor or rolling pin for crushing your biscuits & making your base
Method
Grease your tart tin and put aside
If you’re using frozen berries remove from the freezer and allow to defrost in a colander while you make the rest of the tart
Base:
Crush your biscuits and pinch of salt, into a fine crumb- a few pulses in a food processor or a good bash with the rolling pin aught to do it!
Chop up your butter and place in a bowl for the microwave or stove top pot if you prefer and melt, once melted place in your processor and give the biscuits another wiz. Note: if using coconut oil, and it’s soft, skip melting it and simply throw it in the processor.
Going manual? mix it with a spoon in a bowl of course!
Scoop the biscuit mix in to your tart tin and press firmly with your hands to create an even base.
Cover and place the tart tin in the fridge while you make the filling
Filling:
In a small saucepan, add the pure coconut cream, vanilla essence, sugar and heat on a medium-low heat until the sugar has disolved
Add in your cocoa and dark chocolate and let it melt before adding in your agar agar, do not let the mix boil
Continue stirring (I use a whisk here) over low heat for a few minutes until the mixture begins to thicken like a warm custard REMEMBER the filling will set fully once it cools (think like jelly) if the mixture becomes too stiff before it cools it wont be a nice texture, so don’t stress about it being firm enough while warm.
Turn the heat off and put pot aside, allowing the mix to cool a little
Pit your cherries and chop them in to quarters, if you’re using whole frozen berries be sure to drain them well
Retrieve your base from the fridge and pour your chocolate filling in to the tart tin, scatter your delicious cherries through the tart to ensure even distribution, top the tart with a light pinch of sea salt.
Cover and carefully place back in the fridge for 30mins-1hour
Serve chilled
Feeling inspired? Let me know if you make this delicious dish and how it worked for you! Send a picture of your chocolate cherry custard tart or tag me on instagram with your creation @_annie_johns_ to go in to the draw to win a free private lesson 💖
