Nectarine and Cashew Cream Tart *gluten and mostly dairy free*

Spring, where have you gone?  No where near Minneapolis by the look of the snow outside.  Such a shame too...right around this time every year the need for fruit tarts hits.  Something about the hopeful warm breeze of a pending summer, I suppose.  Not so much this year.  But when it comes to sharing this need for a light summer-kissed dessert with co-workers, I run into two obstacles.  Gluten and dairy. 

Gluten is actually a fairly easy obstacle to work around.  A good nut crust goes a long way.  The dairy was a little trickier.  I love a thin schmear of cream cheese whipped with honey and a bit of spice layered on top of my tart crust.  Not an option here.  However, I while back I came across a sour cream substitute that consisted largely of soaked and pureed cashews.  After a bit of searching, I found this lovely cream spread substitute.  I was thrilled by how much it thickened up over night!

The tart below does make use of butter in the crust, however margarine would work in a pinch.

This recipe is not a last minute project.  The tart itself does not take much time to assemble, but a lot of the recipe is spent waiting for nuts to soak, creams to thicken, fruit to soak up a boozy syrupy goodness and crusts to cool.  Plan accordingly...

crust adapted from Krissy's Creations
cashew cream adapted from Tasty Eats at Home

serves 12

The Ingredients:
for the crust
2 cups blanched almonds
4 Tbsp butter, melted
2 Tbsp sugar

for the cashew cream
1 cups cashews
1 1/2 Tbsp water
1/2 cup coconut milk
2 Tbsp agave syrup
1/2 tsp almond extract
1/4 tsp vanilla extract
3 Tbsp almond butter
juice and zest of 1/2 a lemon

for the nectarine topping
2 nectarines, thinly sliced
1/3 peach or nectarine jam
2 Tbsp sugar
1 Tbsp bourbon


The Process:
recommended timeline:
Day one: soak the cashews for the cashew cream
Day two: make the crust, cream and topping
Day three: assemble the tart


for the crust

Preheat the oven to 350.

Place the almonds in a food processor and pulse until finely ground.  Sift through a wide sieve to sort out any remaining large bits.  Place the ground almonds in a small bowl and combine with the  butter, sugar, and salt.  Massage until the mixture will resembles wet sand.  Press firmly into the bottom and up the sides of a 9-10  inch tart pan or pie plate.

Loosely tent the crust with aluminum foil and  bake for 20 minutes.  Remove the foil and continue to bake until the crust turns golden brown, about 10-15 more minutes.  Remove the crust from the oven and allow  to completely. 

for the cashew cream

In a medium bowl completely cover the cashews with clean water.  Soak, covered, overnight.  Drain the  cashews and combine with the remaining ingredients in a blender or food processor and blend until smooth.

Refrigerate for at least four hours or preferably overnight.

for the topping:

Place the nectarines in a shallow bowl and set aside.  In a small saucepan, combine the jam, bourbon and sugar.  Bring to a simmer and stir until the sugar has dissolved.  Cook for an additional 5 minutes.  Pour the jam mixture over the the sliced nectarines. Cover and chill overnight.

to assemble the tart:

Spoon the cashew cream into the crust and spread into an even layer about 1/2 inch thick.  Arrange the nectarine slices in concentric circles on top of the cream.  Drizzle with the syrup the fruit was soaking in.  Serve immediately.