Caramelised pineapple coconut tart - this delicious vegan tart with sweet, sticky rum caramelised pineapple, coconut rum pastry cream and crisp shortcrust pastry is a tropical flavour bomb!
It is not too difficult to make but tastes amazing and it looks so pretty too! The perfect Summer dessert.
One of my absolute favourite types of dessert is a tart filled with crème pâtissière and topped with some sort of fruit. It is simple but oh-so-satisfying.
This caramelised pineapple version combines sticky rum, lime and brown sugar fried pineapple with rum and coconut crème pâtissière and crisp shortcrust pastry. The combination of flavours and textures is divine; it is rich yet light and refreshing and incredibly moreish!
The pastry cream is basically my regular vegan creme pat recipe, but made with a tin of full fat coconut milk which gives it a lovely flavour and rich, creamy texture. I also add a drop of dark rum as it goes so well with coconut, but this is optional.
The pineapple is coated in sugar, rum and lime juice before being pan fried. The sugar and liquid are then added to the pan to cook down to a sticky caramel. If you've never tried cooked pineapple before then you are in for a treat!
Ingredient Details:
Pineapple: You will need one medium-large fresh pineapple. You can probably use well drained tinned pineapple chunks instead but I haven't tested this.
Coconut milk: You will need one tin of coconut milk. Do not use light or coconut drinking milk, you really want to go full fat here.
Cornflour (Cornstarch): Cornflour (cornstarch) is what we use to thicken the pastry cream in place of egg yolks.
I really don't recommend swapping it for any other kind of starch or flour, you will not get the right texture.
Sugar: You will need white caster or granulated sugar for the pastry cream, icing (powdered) sugar for the pastry, and light brown soft sugar for the pineapple. I don't recommend swapping these for other kinds of sugars or sweeteners.
Rum: I recommend using a nice dark rum, but something like Malibu would also work. If you don't want to use rum, then you could try using a bit more lime juice plus a splash of water instead.
Vegan white chocolate: This is optional, but brushing the baked pastry case with melted white chocolate before adding the filling stops the pastry from soaking up any moisture and keeps it crisp for longer.
I order mine from here, but there are various other options online and vegan white chocolate can also be found in some supermarkets.
Vegan butter: It is important to use a block butter/margarine, not the spreadable kind in a tub. I use Naturli Vegan Block or Flora Plant Butter.
Plain flour: Just plain (all-purpose) flour is best.
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: Adding some ground almonds to the pastry gives it a great flavour and crisp texture. You can swap them for an equal weight of plain flour if you want.
How To Make Caramelised Pineapple Coconut Tart:
(Full measurements and instructions can be found in the recipe card at the bottom of the page)
Step 1: To make the the pastry, place the flour, ground almonds, icing sugar and salt in a large bowl and mix well. Rub in the cold butter until the mixture resembles fine breadcrumbs.
Add the cold vodka and mix to combine. Add enough cold water to bring the pastry together into a ball. Wrap and refrigerate for about an hour.
Step 2: Roll the pastry into a circle big enough to line a 23-25cm tart tin. Press the pastry right into the corners then trim off the excess.
Prick the base all over with a fork then place it in the freezer for 20 minutes.
Step 3: Line the pastry case with baking parchment, then fill with baking beans.
Step 4: Bake for 25 minutes then remove the tin foil and baking beans and return the tart shell to the oven for a further 15 minutes.
Step 5: To make the pastry cream, place the cornstarch in a pan and whisk in the soy milk, making sure that there are no lumps. Whisk in the coconut milk, sugar and vanilla.
Step 6: Place the pan over a low heat and stir constantly until it comes up to the boil and thickens. Remove from the heat, add the butter and rum and stir until melted and combined.
Step 7: Scrape the pastry cream into a bowl and cover with baking paper or clingfilm directly on the surface of the pastry cream. Refrigerate for at least a couple of hours until cold.
Step 8: Brush the cooled pastry case with melted white chocolate and set aside until set.
Step 9: Mix together the brown sugar, rum and lime juice, stir in the pineapple.
Step 10: Heat the butter in a large, non-stick frying pan and add the pineapple pieces in a single layer, reserving the juice for later. Cook for 4-5 minutes per side until lightly golden.
Step 11: Add the reserved sugar liquid to the pan and simmer until it has mostly evaporated, stirring every now and again. Set aside to cool.
Step 12: Fill the pastry case with the creme pat and top with the pineapple pieces to serve.
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.
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).
Stir the pastry cream constantly while it is cooking and don't cook it over too high a heat as that can make it lumpy or burn on the bottom.
When you are ready to use the pastry cream, give it a good whisk to smooth it out. It will firm up and set slightly when it cools and it might look a bit rubbery or jelly-like, but it will become smooth and pipeable again after a good whisk.
FAQ's:
The pastry base can be blind baked and stored in an airtight container at room temperature for 2 days. The pastry cream can be kept, covered, in the fridge for 2 days, as can the cooked pineapple. I recommend serving the tart shortly afer it is assembled.
This caramelised pineapple coconut tart needs to be kept refrigerated. It will keep, covered, in the fridge for 3-4 days but is best eaten shortly after it is assembled.
No, I do not recommend freezing this tart.
If the pastry cream becomes lumpy at all, either before or after it is refrigerated, simply give it a good whisk then use the back of a spoon to scrape it through a fine mesh sieve to remove any lumps.
No, the tart is still delicious simply topped with chopped up fresh pineapple, or a mixture of tropical fruits; mango works well.
More Vegan Tart Recipes:
- Vegan rhubarb tart
- Vegan passion fruit tart
- Vegan peanut butter pie
- Pistachio cherry frangipane tart
- Chocolate pear frangipane tart
- Vegan jam crostata
- Vegan lemon tart
- Vegan Bakewell tart
- Vegan apricot frangipane tart
- Vegan peanut butter chocolate tart
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Caramelised Pineapple Coconut tart
Equipment
- 23 - 25 cm (9 - 10 in) loose bottomed tart tin
Ingredients
Pastry:
- 200 g (1 + ⅔ cup) plain (all-purpose) flour
- 50 g (½ cup) ground almonds (almond flour)
- 30 g (⅓ cup) icing (powdered) sugar
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- 130 g (½ cup + 1 Tablespoon) vegan block butter cold and diced
- 1 Tablespoon cold vodka (or water)
Crème pâtissière:
- 60 g (½ cup) cornflour (cornstarch)
- 100 ml (7 Tablespoons) unsweetened non-dairy milk (I use soy)
- 400 ml (14 oz) tin full fat coconut milk
- 100 g (½ cup) caster or granulated sugar
- 1 Tablespoon vanilla bean paste or extract
- 60 g (¼ cup) vegan block butter
- 2 Tablespoons dark rum (optional)
Pineapple:
- 1 medium-large fresh pineapple
- 60 ml (¼ cup) dark rum
- 100 g (½ cup) light brown soft sugar
- juice of ½ lime
- 20 g (4 teaspoons) vegan butter
To assemble:
- 75 g (2 ½ oz) vegan white chocolate melted
- desiccated coconut for sprinkling (optional)
- finely grated lime zest for sprinkling (optional)
Instructions
Pastry:
- To make the pastry, place the flour, ground almonds, icing sugar and salt in a large bowl and mix well.
- Add the cold, cubed butter and rub it in using your fingertips until the mixture resembles fine breadcrumbs and no lumps of butter remain.
- Add the cold vodka (if using) and mix to combine. Gradually add enough cold water to bring the pastry together into a ball. Shape the pastry into a disc (don't knead it), wrap and refrigerate for about an hour until firm enough to roll out.
- Roll the pastry out on a lightly floured surface into a circle big enough to line a 23-25 cm (9-10 in) loose bottomed tart tin. Press the pastry right into the corners then 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 to 180°C/160°C fan/350°F/gas mark 4.
- Line the pastry case with baking parchment, pressing it right into the corners, then fill with baking beans or dried rice, making sure that the sides are propped up.
- Bake for 25 minutes then remove the tin foil and baking beans and return the tart shell to the oven for a further 15-20 minutes until nicely browned. Set aside to cool.
Crème pâtissière
- Place the cornstarch in a pan and gradually whisk in the soy milk, making sure that there are no lumps. Whisk in the coconut milk, sugar and vanilla.
- Place the pan over a low-medium heat and stir constantly until it comes up to the boil and thickens. Once it starts to thicken, whisk it vigorously for about a minute, making sure that you get right into the edges of the pan. When you stop for a few seconds, a few big bubbles should rise to the surface and pop.
- Remove from the heat, add the butter and rum and stir until melted and fully combined.
- Scrape the pastry cream into a bowl and cover with baking paper or clingfilm directly on the surface of the pastry cream, this will prevent a skin from forming. Refrigerate for at least a couple of hours until cold.
- Once the pastry cream is cold it will have thickened further and may seem a bit rubbery. Give it a good whisk with a balloon whisk, electric mixer or stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment and it will become smooth and creamy again. It is now ready to use.
Pineapple:
- Top and tail the pineapple, cut off the skin and remove the eyes. Cut it into slices about 2-2.5 cm (1 in) wide, remove the core and cut into chunks.
- Mix together the brown sugar, rum and lime juice in a large bowl and stir in the pineapple, making sure it is well coated.
- Heat the butter in a large, non-stick frying pan over a medium heat and add the pineapple pieces in a single layer, reserving the juice for later. Cook for 4-5 minutes per side until lightly golden.
- Add the reserved sugar liquid to the pan and simmer until it has mostly evaporated and thickened to a syrup, stirring every now and again. Set aside to cool.
Assembly:
- Brush the inside of the cooled pastry case with the melted white chocolate making sure it is well coated and set aside until set.
- Give the chilled pastry cream a good whisk until it becomes smooth and creamy again then dollop it into the pastry case and spread it level.
- Arrange the pineapple on top of the pastry cream, you can be artsy and arrange it in a pattern or simply chuck it on haphazardly.
- Sprinkle over some desiccated coconut and grated lime zest if you like and serve.
Notes
- See post above for tips, details and step-by-step photos.
- 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!
- If the pastry cream becomes lumpy at all, either before or after it is refrigerated, simply give it a good whisk then use the back of a spoon to scrape it through a fine mesh sieve to remove any lumps.
Serena
Oh wow - this really is absolutely amazing! It's almost like a pina colada in the form of a tart. I whipped in some mascarpone into the crème pâtissière to lighten it a bit - and honestly, it was demolished so quickly, I wished I made two of them!
I also love that these recipes I can interchange dairy for non-dairy products, and the results are perfect. Thanks Hannah for another brilliant recipe.