Raw Pineapple and Mango Tart

It can be difficult having super fit and healthy friends sometimes! And as I was invited to dinner during Lent, meaning cakes, cookies and chocolate were off the menu (not mine, obviously), I needed to look a bit further afield for dessert ideas. As I had a pineapple it made sense to start there. I found this recipe and thought it sounded amazing but had to adapt it a little to take account of the ingredients I did and didn’t have. I looked in my cupboard but as no young thai coconut meat jumped out(!) I used mango instead. If I ever come across any I will be making this again with the correct ingredients. Shockingly I didn’t have any organic, unsweetened goji berries either but I did have a bag of dried (sweetened) “Wonder Berries” with raisins so used that. I’m sure there must have been at least one or two goji berries in my tart.

I had a few reservations about this – mainly to do with whether the “crust” would stay together and if it would ever come out of the tin without collapsing. It actually worked just like a pastry case and the sides held together perfectly. Because I used mango and pineapple, two juicy fruits, there was a lot of juice sitting in the crust (and leaking a bit so make sure you put it on a plate!) so I didn’t remove the base of the tin as the tart base had gone a bit soggy. I think the secret would be to fill the case just before serving and then it should be easy to serve in slices.

Although some of the same ingredients are in both the base and the filling, the two taste very different and go together perfectly. And while it’s not a low calorie option, it is a very healthy option so you can eat dessert without any guilt. With a food processor or blender it’s quick and easy to make, so a winner all round. The original recipe is in cups so I used the amounts directed and weighed them: the recipe below is in grams but if you would like the amounts in cups, please see the original recipe.

Recipe

Ingredients

Crust

100g walnuts

100g dates

100g dried berries or raisins

1 tablespoon dessicated coconut

Filling

300g pineapple

200g mango

25g dates

15g dessicated coconut

Method

Make the crust: put all the ingredients for the crust into a food processor:

Ingredients for the crust

Pulse until the ingredients are finely chopped.

Press into the base and up the sides of a non-stick tart tin, preferably one with a loose base:

Press down firmly, using your fingers or the back of a spoon

Put into the fridge while making the topping.

Make the topping: put all the ingredients for the topping into a food processor:

Ingredients for the topping

Blend until a smooth consistency is achieved.

Fill the case just before you are ready to serve the tart so that the base doesn’t go soggy. Decorate with a few strips of pineapple and mango and sprinkle over some dessicated coconut.

Healthy and delicious

We had a really lovely evening and it’s great to be able to eat dessert and feel quite virtuous about it. Thanks Frin!

Categories: Baking, Dairy-Free Baking, Desserts, Fruit, gluten free baking, healthy baking, Recipes, Uncategorized, Using Alternatives, Vegan baking

Tags: coconut, dates, dessert, dried fruit, goji berries, mango, pineapple, raw food, recipe, vegan, walnuts