Mincemeat frangipane tart - this delicious vegan tart is a great alternative to mince pies at Christmas!

Consisting of crisp orange shortcrust pastry, fruity mincemeat, vegan almond frangipane and apples this tart is full of festive flavour!

Mincemeat frangipane tart with two slices cut out, surrounded by Christmas decorations an bowls of flaked almonds and mincemeat.

This vegan mincemeat frangipane tart is a great festive dessert option. It's a bit different to the usual mince pies, but is still full of Christmassy flavours.

You can't go wrong with the combination of crisp pastry, soft almondy frangipane and fruity, boozy mincemeat!

It is good served either warm or cold. Cold it makes a great mid morning or afternoon snack with a cup of tea or coffee; and warm it is perfect as a pudding with cream, ice cream or custard.

What Do I need To Make Mincemeat Frangipane Tart?:

Mincemeat: No, for anyone outside of the UK, this doesn't contain actual meat. It is a mixture of dried fruits, sugar, alcohol, fat and spices which is used to make mince pies at Christmas.

Lots of shop-bought mincemeat is vegan friendly, but do check the jar just in case as occasionally it may contain beef suet or butter. I used one from Morrison's.

You can also use home-made mincemeat.

Plain flour: Just regular plain (all-purpose) flour. Don't swap it for wholemeal. I haven't tested this gluten-free and you would need to find your own gluten-free pastry recipe, but I think that a plain gluten-free flour blend would work well in the frangipane.

Vegan butter: For the best results you really need to use a block butter/margarine, not the spreadable kind in a tub. Especially for the pastry. I use Naturli Vegan Block or Flora Plant Butter.

Sugar: You will need both icing (powdered) sugar and either caster or granulated sugar. This mincemeat frangipane tart cannot be made with sweeteners or liquid sugars.

Vodka: Vodka is my (not-so) secret trick for crispy pastry. Because it has a lower water percentage than well, water; using a bit of vodka rather than water to bind the pastry makes for crispier pastry as the alcohol burns off when it cooks.

You can't taste it at all and you can absolutely use water instead if you prefer, but if you happen to have a bottle of vodka lurking in the cupboard I urge you to give it a try!

Ground almonds: This is what forms the base of the frangipane. I also add some to the pastry wich gives it a lovely crisp, flaky texture. I believe that in the US it would be called almond flour rather than ground almonds.

Cornflour (cornstarch): this helps to set the frangipane.

Milk: I recommend using soy milk as it has the highest protein content and is best for baking. Any kind of non-dairy milk will work however, but do go for unsweetened if possible.

Baking powder: Just a smidge in the frangipane to replace the lift that would usually be provided by the eggs.

Almond extract: Without it I don't think that the tart would taste almondy enough so don't omit it.

Apples: You need two medium eating apples. I use braeburn. You can omit the apple topping if you prefer.

Flaked almonds: This is optional but I like to scatter some flaked almonds over the tart before baking; mostly just to make it look nice, but also to provide some textural contrast to the soft filling.

Apricot jam: After baking I glaze the tart with a mixture of apricot jam and water which makes the tart lovely and shiny. This is totally optional though.

Orange zest: This is optional but I like to add the finely grated zest of an orange to the pastry for extra flavour.

Close up of vegan mincemeat frangipane tart.

How To Make Mincemeat Frangipane Tart:

(Full measurements and instructions can be found in the recipe card at the bottom of the page)

Start by making the pastry. Place the flour, ground almonds, icing sugar and salt in a large bowl and mix well.

Add the cold butter and rub it in using your fingertips until the mixture resembles fine breadcrumbs and no lumps of butter remain.

Add the cold vodka and mix to combine. Gradually add enough cold water to bring the pastry together into a ball. Shape the pastry into a disc, wrap and refrigerate for about an hour.

Step 1 - a four image collage of making the pastry.

Roll the pastry out on a lightly floured surface into a circle big enough to line a 25cm round tart tin. Press the pastry right into the corners then roll over the top with a rolling pin to trim off the excess.

Prick the base of the pastry shell all over with a fork then place it in the freezer for 20 minutes until solid. Meanwhile preheat the oven.

Line the pastry case with baking parchment or tin foil, then fill with baking beans or dried rice.

Bake for 20 minutes then remove the tin foil and baking beans and return the tart shell to the oven for a further 5-10 minutes until pale golden.

To make the frangipane, whisk together the ground almonds, plain flour, cornflour, baking powder and sugar.

Add the milk, melted butter and almond extract and whisk until smooth.

Step 3, a two image collage of making the frangipane.

Spread a layer of mincemeat over the base of the pastry case then spread or pipe the frangipane over the top.

Step 4, a two image collage of adding the mincemeat and frangipane to the tart case.

Arrange the apple slices on top of the frangipane and scatter over a handful of flaked almonds.

Bake the tart for 60-75 minutes, until the frangipane is set and a skewer inserted into the centre comes out clean.

Top Tips:

All of my recipes are developed using grams, and as with all of my baking recipes I really do recommend using the metric measurements with a digital scale rather than the cup coversions. Cups are a wildly inaccurate measuring system and you will get far better, more consistent results using a scale, not to mention that it is also easier and less messy than cups!

It is important to chill the pastry before rolling it out, otherwise it will be too soft and you will struggle to roll it.

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

The pastry can be made in advance and stored (well wrapped) in the fridge for up to 2 days. If it becomes too firm to roll out let it sit out at room temperature for ½ an hour before rolling.

This tart is best eaten on the day it is baked, but it will keep in an airtight container at room temperature for 2-3 days. It can also be frozen.

If you want to save time you can use shop bought shortcrust pastry instead. Many are vegan friendly - Jus Roll pastry is vegan (apart from the 'all-butter' one).

Instead of the glaze you can simply dust the tart with some icing sugar.

You can leave off the apples if you prefer.

More Vegan Christmas Dessert Recipes:

Vegan mincemeat frangipane tart on a metal plate surrounded by pinecones, Christmas decorations and bowls of flaked almonds and mincemeat.

If you tried this recipe let me know how it went! Rate it, leave a comment or tag @domestic_gothess on Instagram and hashtag it #domesticgothess

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