I made these blood orange tarts with salted chocolate and basil last week while working on this blood orange bundt cake, because while I love my cake, sometimes you just want a more petite treat on hand instead {or in addition... ;) } -- so I wanted to give you options... Well, really, I just love blood oranges so much I've been playing around with them plenty in the kitchen, making all kinds of things -- galettes, ice creams, smoothies, and more. Too many to be able to even share here on time before their season ends {sigh}. So I settled on sharing a few favorites -- the cake, and these little rustic tarts, which I've sort of fallen in love with.
These tarts are a small, simple, yet very decadent treat that combines a lot of wonderful flavors together -- a delicious pastry crust, the goodness of salted chocolate, the citrus goodness of blood oranges, the warmth and spice of cinnamon, and the deep flavor of basil... I know that sounds like a lot -- but these flavors really come together so well! Plus they look so pretty and rustic... :)
I used an old favorite crust for these tarts -- a favorite because it's very easy to work with {just press the mixture in and you're good to go -- no rolling out of dough of any kind}, looks rustic, and tastes great. You can of course use regular oranges for this too -- just use a smaller orange, and cut it down to size to fit into the mini tart. You may want to remove the rind if it doesn't taste good or if it's too thick {taste a tiny bit from the fresh orange and you'll know whether it's a flavor you'll enjoy or not...}.
As for the chocolate, I'm including the recipe I used, however in retrospect I think that perhaps putting a square or two of your favorite chocolate or some chocolate chips {melted or not} in there and a sprinkle of salt would probably work just as well -- I'll be trying that out next time I think :) . And while we're on chocolate, if you want to make this AIP - friendly, use carob powder instead and you'll be good to enjoy this treat too.
Blood Orange Tarts with Salted Chocolate and Basil
Simple gluten-free vegan tarts that combine a delicious pastry crust with notes of citrus, salted chocolate and cinnamon. Refined sugar-free.
- Prep Time: 15 minutes
- Cook Time: 15 minutes
- Total Time: 30 minutes
- Yield: 6 tarts
- Category: Tarts
- Method: Baked
- Cuisine: Dessert
Ingredients
Crust:
- 5 tbsp unsweetened applesauce (I used my homemade applesauce), at room temperature
- 2 tbsp coconut oil, melted
- 2 tbsp maple syrup (or liquid sweetener of your choice), at room temperature
- 1 tsp pure vanilla extract
- pinch of salt
- ⅓ cup coconut flour
- 3 tbsp tapioca flour
- ½ tsp cinnamon
Chocolate: {*see notes above recipe for an alternative}
- ¼ cup coconut oil, liquified
- 2 tbsp cacao powder
- 1½ tbsp maple syrup -- at room temperature
- 1 tsp pure vanilla extract
- 1 tsp tapioca starch
- ¼ tsp large salt flakes {or just a big dash of salt of your choice}
Top layer:
- 1-2 small blood oranges, sliced into ¼" thick rings
- 1 tbsp maple syrup
- ½ tsp cinnamon
- 1 tsp melted coconut oil {or any cooking oil}
- 5 fresh basil leaves
Instructions
- Pre-heat oven to 350F. Oil a 6-cup non-stick muffin tray and set aside.
- Place applesauce, coconut oil, maple syrup, vanilla, and salt into a medium mixing bowl and use an immersion blender to blend the mixture into a smooth consistency {or blend all the ingredients in a regular blender and then pour into a mixing bowl}. Add coconut, tapioca, and cinnamon and mix well using a wooden spoon until everything is thoroughly combined.
- Divide the mixture evenly between the 6 cups in your muffin tray. Use your hands to press the mixture down along the bottom and up around the walls of the pan cups forming the crust. Set aside.
- Prepare chocolate mixture by stirring all ingredients together -- keep stirring until the mixture becomes completely uniform and all clumps are dissolved. Pour this mixture into each tart shell, dividing equally.
- Top each tart with an orange slice. Stir the maple syrup, cinnamon, and olive oil together in a small bowl. Brush this mixture over each orange slice.
- Bake in a pre-heated oven for about 15 minutes until the tart shells firm up and the edges brown up a little. Remove from oven and allow the tarts to cool on a wire rack. Once cooled, VERY carefully remove tarts from the pan and transfer onto a serving plate or glass container {they are a little delicate at this stage, so take extra care not to break the shells}. Prior to serving, top each tart with a basil leaf and enjoy! Store leftover tarts in the fridge.
genevieve @ gratitude & greens says
I need more petite treats like this in my life! That salted chocolate with basil just sounds so good. And of course, who doesn't love blood orange?!
Audrey says
Agreed on all fronts, Genevieve :)
Steph @ Steph in Thyme says
Oh, this is so stunning! And so creative as well. Do you find the rind chewy if you keep it on? Curious about that.
Audrey says
Thanks Steph. And no, not at all, but it depends on the kind of blood orange you get. The variety I used has such an amazing-tasting rind that's very delicate. Leaving it on adds more nutrition to the recipe, but also a bit of an orange marmalade flavor which is a nice contrast to the chocolate and cinnamon. There is another variety I've bought -- large and with a coarse rind -- and I wouldn't leave that on. My rule of thumb is to taste the rind before adding it into the dessert and if it tastes good, keep it, if not, cut it off. The tarts would be good either way :)
Kat from curlsnchard.com says
I finally got around to look at this recipe! This might be a stupid question - but what is the difference between tapioca flour and starch? I though tapioca is pretty much just starch (and I might be completely wrong in this believe!)?
Audrey says
It's actually the same product, just goes by different names :) It is typically used as a starch, but sometimes also as the only flour ingredient in different cultures. But the names are interchangeable.
Dr. Jennifer Weinberg, MD, MPH, MBE says
What a gorgeous dessert! These are so delicate and colorful and I love the vitamin C boost from those blood oranges! Thank you!
Audrey says
Thanks Jennifer -- blood oranges can be quite beautiful :)
Melissa @ vegan does it says
I wouldn't have thought to combine these flavors, but it looks amazing. Blood oranges are just beautiful!
Audrey says
Yes, they are so lovely ♥
Sharon @ What The Fork Food Blog says
I love all these blood orange recipes you've been sharing! Plus that crust would be a great base for so many different fillings!
Audrey says
Thanks Sharon! I do use this crust for many things around here. It's a good basic grain-free shell ♥
Amanda Paa says
i nearly shrieked when i saw you post the recipe! i have some carob being shipped to me and i know the first thing i will be making :) they're so pretty with the blood oranges. You are the allergy friendly dessert queen. xo
Audrey says
Aw, awesome. I hope you like these, Amanda. I love carob -- I bet you'll make great things with it :). I'm still super impressed with that squash flour you were trying out the other day...
jules says
Beautiful! I love anything blood orange, but your crust recipe looks great, too. Another winner, Audrey!
~jules
Audrey says
Thanks, Jules :)
Sarah | (Cooking for) Kiwi & Bean says
Oh wow these are just stunning. And I have been on the lookout for a dessert that is healthy, but pretty and impressive enough to serve to dinner guests. This will do just fine :-)
Audrey says
Thanks very much, Sarah!
Krystal says
Audrey I would never have thought to combine these flavours. I am pretty sure it tastes amazing! Will have to get my hands on some blood oranges to make this.
Audrey says
Thanks Krystal! Blood oranges are amazing. I'm sure you'd make wonderful things with them :)
Nissrine @ Harmony a la Carte says
Audrey I love everything about these tarts. Just stunning.
Audrey says
Thank you, Nissrine ♥
Are blood oranges as popular in Italy as they are here btw? Just curious :)
Nissrine @ Harmony a la Carte says
Even more so Audrey. The oranges here all come from the south, Sicily tto be specific and they are known as blond (regular) or red (blood) oranges. You can even find boxed blood orange juice at the supermarket.
Audrey says
All year round or seasonal? :) I'm so jealous! ♥
Nissrine @ Harmony a la Carte says
You can get them all year round. But the real season for them is November to May, which is a long season anyways. The perks of living in Italy. Tomato season is also quite long, from May to September, but again, you can get them year round too.
The Vegan 8 says
Audrey! The cinnamon, the chocolate, the orange and the basil..wow! This sounds so interesting and amazing. I am absolutely dying over how beautiful the colors are too....that purple hue is just gorgeous!! I love the basil leaf on top too, it's unexpected but I can just imagine how wonderful it tastes. Very beautiful recipe!
By the way....what plugin or site do you use for your Instagram widget? I recently changed mine and while I love the look of it, I swear since I've added it, it has ever so slightly slowed down my site.
Audrey says
Thank you for your sweet comment, Brandi ♥
For the IG widget, I used this site to generate the code. So far seems to work great and I love its look and functionality.
Keeley mcGuire says
beautiful! Can't wait to try your tart recipe.
Audrey says
Thanks so much, Keeley! ♥
Natalie @ Feasting on Fruit says
This is one of the most intriguing flavor combinations I've ever seen! And the rustic crystallized orange with the herb accent is just gorgeous! Either the chocolate basil smoothie you made last week was inspired by these little beauties or the other way around, but you're definitely introducing me to lots of new flavor pairings :)
Audrey says
Actually -- strangely enough I didn't put two and two together at all. I made the tart first and thought it tasted wonderful thanks to the basil and orange combo. Then I was talking to Brandi and she recommended pairing chocolate and basil and it sounded like a totally new thing to me, so I tried it out in that nicecream {delicious, as you know}. And then today when I went to share this recipe I realized the chocolate and basil in this were the thing that made the treat {in combination with the citrus, of course}. Sometimes I can be a little slow putting two and two together... ;)
Nonetheless, this intriguing flavor explosion works quite well -- whether it's the basil + chocolate, or the basil + orange, or the orange + chocolate, or the cinnamon +.... It all comes together quite nicely. :)