Simple vegan lemon tart with a classic buttery shortcrust pastry and creamy lemon filling. Light, zesty and uses only 6 key ingredients!
This tart is perfect as a Spring dessert or when life simply throws you lemons! We've all had situations like that, right?!
Ingredients to make this vegan lemon tart
This tart uses common pantry ingredients and NO tofu! You will need:
- Plain or all-purpose flour (gluten free options are provided in the recipe card)
- Vegan butter, margarine or coconut oil
- Sugar, rice malt syrup or maple syrup (or sweetener of choice)
- Lemon juice and zest. Fresh is best!
- Coconut cream
- Corn starch / flour
To give the tart a beautiful yellow colour, I added a pinch of turmeric. The tart has a melt in your mouth shortcrust pastry and a smooth custard-like zesty filling. The coconut flavour in the filling is balanced out with lots of lemon.
Making the pie crust
Simply add all the pastry ingredients (flour, butter and sugar) to a food processor or mixing bowl and mix until combined. You can roll out the pastry on a floured surface and transfer it to your tart tin. Alternatively you can press the pastry directly into your tart tin.
The tart will need to be baked for 5-10 minutes. However, this is the only baking you'll need to do!
Making the vegan lemon curd filling
No eggs, no worries! Add all the ingredients (coconut cream, lemon and sugar) to a heavy-based medium saucepan. Whisk the cornflour before heating it to prevent it from clumping up. Then heat the mixture for 5-10 minutes until it's a thin custard consistency.
The mixture will set quickly so pour it into your pre-baked pie crust.
Decorating the vegan lemon tart
The tart is beautiful without any decorations! However, you can decorate your tart the classic way with a light dusting of icing/powdered sugar.
For a touch of 'freshness', I topped mine with fresh raspberries and coconut cream. It'd also go really well with strawberries or blueberries.
If you're feeling fancy, you can use this tart as a base of a vegan lemon meringue pie!
Substitutions
For those who are gluten free, I've provided ratios for a gluten free pie crust below.
If you are avoiding coconut, you can use silken tofu (to create a pudding-like tart) or plant-based milk (to create a soft wobbly tart) in the same amounts as coconut cream. If you do this, cook the filling in your saucepan for around 15-20 minutes or until it forms a THICK custard. Unlike coconut cream, tofu and milk doesn't have natural fats so those substiutions will make your tart less sturdy.
See my other vegan lemon dessert recipes:
Vegan Lemon Tart
Ingredients
Shortcrust pastry
- 1 ¼ cups (155g) plain or all-purpose flour*
- ⅓ cup (75g) vegan butter or margarine
- 3 tbsp (35g) cane sugar, or coconut sugar
- 1 tbsp (15mL) cold water, if needed
Lemon filling
- 1 ¾ cups (420g) canned coconut cream, thick scoopable part only
- ¼-1/2 cup (50-100g ) cane sugar, or liquid sweetener to taste
- ~⅓ cup (80g) lemon juice and zest, to taste
- ⅓ cup (35g) corn flour / corn starch
- 2 tbsp (30g) vegan butter or coconut oil, optional for texture
- Pinch of turmeric
To decorate (optional)
- Whipped coconut cream
- Fresh berries
Instructions
To make the pastry:
- Preheat the oven to 180°C (350°F). Grease or line a 20 cm (8 inch) loose-bottom tart tin.
- Mix all the pastry ingredients in a medium size bowl or food processor. If the mixture is too crumbly, add some extra water and mix until it becomes a pliable dough. If the mixture is too wet, add a little more flour and mix again.
- On a floured surface, roll out the pastry into a thin circle about 5 mm (¼ inch) thick. Transfer the pastry to the tart tin and press it against the base and sides to form a crust. Trim off the excess. If there are any holes, patch it up with the remaining pastry. Prick the bottom with a fork to let hot air escape when baking.
- Bake the crust for 10-15 minutes, or until the pastry is slightly golden. Allow the pastry to cool in the tart tin.
To make the filling:
- Add all ingredients to a medium-size saucepan and whisk to disperse the corn flour.
- Bring to medium-high heat for 5-10 minutes while whisking constantly. The mixture should thicken quickly and coat the back of a spatula. If there are any lumps in the mixture, blend using a stick blender.
- Quickly pour the mixture into your baked tart shell and smooth the top if necessary. Allow the tart to set in the fridge for at least 3 hours.
To serve:
- When the tart is firm to the touch, decorate as desired. Serve immediately!
- The tart can be kept in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 5 days. Best to keep the tart without berries on top otherwise they will leak.
Notes
Please leave a comment below if you made this recipe, have any questions or thoughts! Your comment will help other readers and Rainbow Nourishments.
I used Oatly Whipping Cream instead of coconut cream and it turned out really well.
So glad to hear! Thanks Kieran!
Been waiting for this one! Definitely going to try it soon
Yay! Let me know how you go!