Ingredients
| PASTRY | |
| 250g (1⅔) cups standard flour | |
| 75g solid coconut oil (from the freezer) | |
| 30g icing sugar | |
| 1 teaspoon lemon zest | |
| ¼ teaspoon salt | |
| 4–6 tablespoons ice-cold water | |
| CUSTARD | |
| generous pinch saffron threads | |
| 1 cup almond milk | |
| 1¼ cup full-fat coconut cream, divided | |
| 3 tablespoons honey or ¼ cup brown rice or agave syrup | |
| 2 teaspoons vanilla paste or natural vanilla extract | |
| 2 teaspoons lemon zest | |
| 3 tablespoons cornflour | |
| TO SERVE | |
| fresh figs, berries, nectarines, peaches or plums (removed from stone and sliced) | |
| 2–3 teaspoons honey (melted if solid), or substitute brown rice or agave syrup thinned with a little water | |
| fresh thyme or mint leaves and edible flowers, to garnish (optional) |
This dreamy custard tart is the perfect end to a long lunch or any meal, really. The custard is light and creamy and delicately flavoured with vanilla, lemon zest and a generous pinch of saffron. The combination of almond milk and coconut cream is just right, with a silky texture but no strong coconut flavour. Top the tart with your choice of fresh fruit, depending on what’s seasonal. Berries, stone fruit and figs are all obvious choices that work beautifully with the custard. I like adding some fresh herbs and edible flowers if I have them and drizzling the fruit with something sweet – a light, floral honey is perfect. I’ve also included alternatives if you choose not to use honey.
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Instructions
| 1. | To make the pastry case, preheat oven to 200°C fan bake (or 220°C conventional oven) and line the bottom of a 22cm springform tart tin. |
| 2. | Pulse the flour, coconut oil, icing sugar, lemon zest and salt together in a food processor until it has a crumbly texture. |
| 3. | Add ice-cold water a little at a time until the mixture starts to come together. I find 5 tablespoons to be the right amount, but this may vary a little. |
| 4. | Tip the pastry mixture onto a benchtop and use your hands to bring it together in a ball without kneading, handling it as little as possible. |
| 5. | Flour the surface and roll out to about 5mm thick. |
| 6. | Gently press the pastry into the tart tin and trim the edges. Refrigerate for 20 minutes until firm. |
| 7. | Line the pastry case with baking paper and blind baking weights (I keep a jar of dry beans and lentils for this purpose and reuse them). |
| 8. | Bake for 20 minutes, then remove the weights and baking paper and bake for another 10 minutes or until golden brown. Set aside to cool. |
| 9. | To make the saffron custard filling, start by placing the saffron into a small dish with a wee splash of boiling water (about 1 tablespoon). |
| 10. | Set aside for 5-10 minutes to allow the saffron to bloom. |
| 11. | Put the almond milk, 1 cup of coconut cream, honey, vanilla, lemon zest, saffron threads and water into a pot and stir over medium heat until the mixture just begins to simmer. |
| 12. | Stir cornflour into ¼ cup of coconut cream to form a slurry, then slowly whisk into the hot milk mixture. |
| 13. | Continue to stir over medium heat for about 5 minutes or until the custard thickens. |
| 14. | Pour the custard into the pastry case, then refrigerate for 1–2 hours until the custard is set. |
| 15. | To serve, top the custard tart with your choice of fruit, drizzle with melted honey, and sprinkle with a few fresh thyme or mint leaves, or edible flowers. |
This is an edited
extract from Simply
Veg by Amber Bremner
© 2025. Published
by Upstart Press.
Photographs by
Amber Bremner.