Blueberry Frangipane Tarts (Vegan)

Vegan blueberry frangipane tarts - these delicious little eggless and dairy free blueberry bakewell tarts are a perfect Summer treat! Lovely for dessert or Afternoon tea.

These individual vegan blueberry frangipane tarts are like a blueberry version of a bakewell tart. They consist of crisp shortcrust pastry filled with almond frangipane, blueberry jam, fresh blueberries and flaked almonds.

They make a great dessert, particularly if you serve them with ice cream or custard, are lovely as part of an afternoon tea, or they are perfect just eaten as a snack with a cup of tea or coffee.

Vegan Frangipane:

The recipe for this perfect vegan frangipane is adapted from one by the very talented Lazy Cat Kitchen.

The eggs are replaced with the magic ingredient that is aquafaba (the liquid drained from a tin of chickpeas) which works perfectly to create a frangipane that is textured somewhere between a cake and a baked custard.

I use melted vegan block butter in place of the usual dairy butter; during testing I tried using both melted and creamed vegan butter and the melted version had a far superior, less greasy texture, so definitely go with melted.

You can also use melted coconut oil in place of the butter, though butter gives a better, more traditional flavour. I use Naturli vegan block for all of my baking, but Stork block or Vitalite block will also work.

Frangipane doesn't usually contain a raising agent, but I added a teeny bit of baking powder to replace the lift that would usually be provided by the eggs.

How To Make Vegan Blueberry Frangipane Tarts:

(For ingredients and full instructions see the recipe card below)

*For the best results make sure that you follow the recipe closely. As always, I highly recommend using the gram measurements (with a digital scale), rather than the cup conversions. Cup measurements are simply not accurate enough for baking and I cannot guarantee the best results if you use them.*

To make the pastry, place plain flour, ground almonds, icing sugar and salt in a food processor and pulse to combine.

Add cold, diced vegan block butter and blend until it resembles fine breadcrumbs. With the motor running, gradually drizzle in a little cold vodka (or water), until the pastry comes together into a ball.

Shape the pastry into a disc, wrap it, and place it in the fridge for half an hour to chill.

Divide the chilled pastry into 6 even pieces (I slice it into triangles with a bench scraper) and roll each one into a ball. Roll each ball out thinly on a floured surface so that it is large enough to line an 8-9cm/3.25-3.5in loose bottomed tart tin.

Carefully lift the pastry into the tin and press it right into the corners and up the sides. Roll over the top with a rolling pin to trim off the excess pastry. Reserve the trimmings.

Repeat with the rest of the balls of pastry then gather together the trimmings, divide in half and roll each into a ball. Roll out as before and line another two tart tins. You should get 8 tarts in total.

Prick the pastry cases all over the base with a fork then place them in the freezer for 20 minutes while you preheat the oven to 180°C/350°F/gas mark 4.

Line each of the frozen pastry cases with a square of tin foil, pressing it right into the corners. Fill each one with baking beans or dried rice then bake for 15 minutes.

Remove the tin foil and beans/rice and return the pastry cases to the oven for 5 minutes then remove and set aside.

To make the frangipane, whisk together melted vegan butter and sugar then whisk in flour and cornflour followed by the aquafaba. Finally, mix in the ground almonds, baking powder and almond and vanilla extracts.

Spread a heaped tsp of blueberry jam over the base of each tart shell then spread a couple of heaped Tbsp of the frangipane over the top, making sure that the jam is fully covered. The frangipane will puff up a little in the oven so don't fill them more than ¾ full.

Scatter some fresh blueberries over each one, making sure that they aren't too close to the edge as any juice that seeps out can cause the pastry to stick to the tin if it bubbles over.

Finally, scatter over some flaked almonds then bake the tarts for about 30-35 minutes, until nicely browned.

Variations:

These vegan blueberry frangipane tarts will work with pretty much any kind of fruit you like, just vary the jam to suit you and top with cherries, strawberries, blackberries, currants, sliced apple, pear or apricots.

You can also bake it as one large (approx 25cm) tart instead of mini ones, in which case it will take around 45 minutes to bake.

Tips For Making The Best Vegan Blueberry Frangipane Tarts:

Blueberry jam: You can use either home-made or shop bought blueberry jam. I made my own using this lovely recipe from Camilla at Fab Food 4 All.

Crisp pastry: For the best, crispy pastry, make sure that you don't overwork it or let it get too warm. Freezing the tart shells prior to blind baking them helps to make the pastry crisp and stops it from shrinking too much.

Using a bit of vodka instead of water to bind the pastry also helps to keep it crisp, as vodka has a lower water percentage. You can use water if you don't want to use vodka though (you can't taste it and the alcohol burns off during baking).

Aquafaba: To get aquafaba, just use the liquid drained from a tin of chickpeas or white beans.

Butter: You MUST use the solid block kind of vegan butter/margarine, not the spreadable kind in a tub which has too high a water content for baking. Some examples of brands are: Naturli vegan block (my favourite), Stork block, Vitalite block, Tomor block, Earth Balance buttery sticks.

How long will they keep?: The tarts will keep for about three days in an airtight container at room temperature. If it is very warm out they may be best stored in the refrigerator.

More Vegan Tarts And Pies:

• Vegan strawberry tart with coconut pastry cream
• Vegan mince pies
• Pentagram topped apple pies
• Mince pie tart
• Blueberry pie with coconut oil crust

If you tried this recipe why not tag @domestic_gothess on Instagram and hashtag it #domesticgothess

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5 from 11 votes

Vegan Blueberry Frangipane Tarts

Vegan blueberry frangipane tarts - these delicious little eggless and dairy free blueberry bakewell tarts are a perfect Summer treat! Lovely for dessert or Afternoon tea.

Course Dessert

Cuisine British, vegan

Keyword tarts

Prep Time 25 minutes minutes

Cook Time 50 minutes minutes

Servings 8 people

Author Domestic Gothess

Ingredients

Pastry:

• 200 g (1 +⅔ cup) plain (all-purpose) flour
• 50 g (½ cup) ground almonds
• 50 g (⅓ cup + 1 Tbsp) icing (powdered) sugar
• ¼ tsp salt
• 150 g (5.3 oz / ½ cup + 2 Tbsp) vegan block butter (NOT the spreadable kind. I use Naturli Vegan Block) cold and diced
• 1 Tbsp cold vodka (or water)

Frangipane:

• 70 g (2.5 oz / scant ⅓ cup) melted vegan block butter (I use Naturli Vegan Block)
• 110 g (½ cup + 1 Tbsp) caster sugar
• 40 g (⅓ cup) plain (all-purpose) flour
• 5 g (½ Tbsp) cornflour (cornstarch)
• 80 ml (⅓ cup) aquafaba or non dairy milk
• 175 g (1 + ¾ cups) ground almonds
• ½ tsp baking powder
• ¾ tsp almond extract
• ¾ tsp vanilla extract

To Finish:

• about 8 heaped tsp blueberry jam
• about 110 g (4oz / ¾ cup) fresh blueberries
• large handful flaked almonds

Instructions

• To make the pastry, place the flour, ground almonds, icing sugar and salt in a food processor and pulse to combine.
• Add the diced cold butter and blend until it resembles fine breadcrumbs. With the motor running, gradually drizzle in the cold vodka (or water), until the pastry comes together into a ball.
• Shape the pastry into a disc, wrap in clingflim (or an environmentally friendly alternative) and place in the fridge for half an hour.
• Divide the chilled pastry into 6 even pieces and roll each one into a ball. Roll each ball out thinly on a floured surface so that it is large enough to line an 8-9cm/3.25-3.5in tart tin.
• Carefully lift the pastry into the tin and press it right into the corners and up the sides. Roll over the top with a rolling pin to trim off the excess pastry. Reserve the trimmings.
• Repeat with the rest of the balls of pastry then gather together the trimmings, divide in half and roll each into a ball. Roll out as before and line another two tart tins. You should get 8 tarts in total.
• Prick the pastry cases all over the base with a fork then place them in the freezer for 20 minutes while you preheat the oven to 180°C/350°F/gas mark 4.
• Line each of the frozen pastry cases with a square of tin foil, pressing it right into the corners. Fill each one with baking beans or dried rice then bake for 15 minutes.
• Remove the tin foil and beans/rice and return the pastry cases to the oven for 5 minutes then remove and set aside.
• To make the frangipane, whisk together the melted vegan butter and the sugar then whisk in the flour and cornflour followed by the aquafaba. Finally, mix in the ground almonds, baking powder and almond and vanilla extracts.
• Spread a heaped tsp of blueberry jam over the base of each tart shell then spread a couple of heaped Tbsp of the frangipane over the top, making sure that the jam is fully covered. The frangipane will puff up a little in the oven so don't fill them more than ¾ full.
• Scatter some fresh blueberries over each one, making sure that they aren't too close to the edge as any juice that seeps out can cause the pastry to stick to the tin if it bubbles over.
• Finally, scatter over some flaked almonds then bake the tarts for about 30-35 minutes, until nicely browned.
• Leave to cool in the tins for 20 minutes before turning out. Store any leftovers in an airtight container for up to 3 days.

Notes

You will need 8 approx 8-9cm/3.25-3.5in tart tins.

For the best results make sure that you follow the recipe closely. As always, I highly recommend using the gram measurements (with a digital scale), rather than the cup conversions. Cup measurements are simply not accurate enough for baking and I cannot guarantee the best results if you use them.