When you are craving something very specific and you want it just how you envision it in your own head, there is nothing left to do but to just figure out how to make it yourself.
I had been wanting a delicious but not too rich simple chocolate dessert, with just a touch of saltiness. There is nothing better than a good quality chocolate treat and tad bit of good quality sea salt. Yum, one of my very favorite things. I decided to just write up a recipe first, that I thought would work and just play it by ear, adding things as I went if I thought it needed it and then hope for the best. I find this to be one of the best ways to cook and bake and I am pleasantly surprised at how often it actually works out.
This tart was super simple to make and it was exactly what I was looking for. A slightly crunchy and nutty crust that needs the littlest bit of baking and a super creamy and velvety filling that is the perfect amount of richness, without going overboard and crossing into the world overly heavy and too rich. One of my biggest complaints of so many desserts. The sea salt on top is so perfect, both in how it looks on top of the glossy chocolate and the delicious treat that it provides your taste buds.
I ended up melting some dairy-free semi-sweet mini chocolate chips (from Enjoy Life) that I had on hand in my pantry, but you can also just use your favorite bittersweet chocolate, coarsely chopped for melting. If you want to make this refined sugar free, you could also try melting unsweetened bakers chocolate, and sweeten it to your liking with whatever you choose, such as stevia, maple syrup, palm sugar, etc.
I am super excited at how simple the crust was on this tart, I definitely plan to make some really fun tarts this spring and summer with this recipe
[print_this]Salted Chocolate Tart – Gluten-free, Grain-free + Vegan
serves 8 to 10
Crust
- 2 cups almond flour, aka almond meal
- 2 tablespoons flax seed meal
- 2 tablespoons maple syrup
- 2 tablespoons cocoa powder
- 2 tablespoons coconut oil, melted
- 1/4 teaspoon baking soda
- 1/8 teaspoon salt
Filling
- 10 ounces non-dairy bittersweet chocolate, coarsely chopped (or dairy-free mini semi-sweet chocolate chips)
- 1 1/2 cups unsweetened non-dairy milk (I used a blend of coconut and almond milk)
- 1 tablespoon arrowroot starch (You could also use tapioca starch or corn starch)
- 2 tablespoons coconut oil
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- High quality sea salt for topping (see below note)
Preheat oven to 350º. Lightly grease a 9 or 10-inch tart pan. In a large bowl, add all of the crust ingredients and mix very well. Add the crust mixture to the tart pan and press down firmly into the pan, going up the sides just a tad bit. Bake for 15-20 minutes until golden brown.
Meanwhile, place the chocolate into a glass bowl and set aside. In a small saucepan, add the non-dairy milk and arrowroot starch and whisk very well to combine and remove any lumps. Over a medium-high heat, heat until it just barely starts to boil. Remove from the heat and add in the coconut oil and stir well to melt the coconut oil (if it wasn’t already) and to combine well. Pour the milk mixture over the chocolate and let sit a few minutes until the chocolate is melting, add in the vanilla extract, then stir very well for a few minutes, until the mixture is smooth, glassy and creamy.
Pour the chocolate mixture into the prepared crust and allow it to cool completely. Cover with plastic wrap and place in the refrigerator for at least 4 hours or until fully set. Pop the ring from the tart pan off, sprinkle with a small amount of high quality sea salt, cut into slices and serve chilled.
NOTE: Sprinkle the sea salt on just before serving. If you sprinkle the salt on before the tart has fully set, it will start to dissolve into the surface, I had sprinkled a small amount on after it had chilled a bit, but before it was fully set, since I didn’t really think about that happening. It did start to dissolve a bit, so I just sprinkled just a tad a bit more on top before serving and for taking photos.
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59 Responses
I love this, Beth! Love the combo and it looks very artistic and rustic, which I love!
Thank you Alex!! It was super tasty. It didn’t take long at all for us to finish this one!
oh.em.geeeeee!!!!! you’re killing me with this! it looks *incredible,* but I’m on a mini-detox/cleanse this week, so no desserts for me. can’t wait to make it after i’m done!
and, in response to a few posts ago (that I just caught up on), congrats on entering the world of running! i’ve gone through phases with the type of running i enjoy, but after doing a half marathon two years ago (on an injured hamstring), i’ve officially called it quits on long-distance running. now, i prefer HIIT workouts, 60-90 minute vinyasa classes (yeah! totally agree about loving the studio experience!), and occasional short, HIIT style runs. i just did too much damage to my body on the long runs, but everyone is different! good luck!
Hi Raechel!! Thank you! It is definitely worth the splurge after your mini detox is over. I promise. I hope your week went well!
Thanks for your thoughts on running, it was nice to hear another side. Right now I decided to take a bit of a break. I went for a run a week ago today, a very, very easy slow paced run and I have had some serious inner knee pain ever since. That has in turn caused some yucky low back stuff. I am super bummed, but just trying to take it easy and not do anything stupid. I am really hoping that I can eventually get back to it, but right now I am not interested in risking it. Since yoga is my #1 love, I am going to keep going ahead with that and listening to my body. I think everyone’s body is different. Thanks again!
Yuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuumy!!!!! I love like always all of your recipes!!!! I shall have to begin this one soon!!!!! Also congrats on embarking into the running realm!! I used to HATE running bcs i could never do it. I would immediately get side pains. Now i absolutely love it, and can never see myself without it!!!
Have a wonderful night Beth!
Thanks Nidia! I can’t wait to make this tart again. It is so simple! Thanks for the congrats on running, right now I am already on a temporary hiatus. I think my body just doesn’t agree with it 🙁 Even with taking it very easy, with no side pains, no tiring and no muscle pains, I still ended up with some seriously yucky inner knee pain. It has been going on a week now. I decided it would be best to take some time off, so I don’t overdue it before I even get going. I have been icing and still doing yoga. I am not sure why it happened but I wanna get it all figured out before I do any major damage. Thanks again!
Salt + dark chocolate = joy 🙂 Looks beautiful!
AMEN Lou! That is exactly how I feel. You can never go wrong with chocolate and salt! Thanks 🙂
[…] Tasty Yummies shared a Salted Chocolate Tart […]
Good Goddess – this looks freaking amazing!
Beth, you are one talented lady. Thank you for the continued inspiration.
I’ll be trying this one soon.
Have a great weekend.
Be Well,
–Amber
Aww, thank you so so much Amber, what a super nice comment 🙂 I had a wonderful weekend, I hope yours was great too! Thanks so much!
What can i use instead of starch? 🙂
Adriana, you could try using a small amount of flax meal (ground flax seeds), start with about 1 tablespoon, and adding a small amount of boiling water to it, maybe like 3 tablespoons. Stirring to make a thick slurry paste, then add it to the milk mixture. I haven’t yet done this, but it would be worth the try. Maybe also ground chia seeds. You could also try some blended soft tofu. Or psyllium husk, etc. Let me know if you try any of these and how you make out. Thanks so much!
You are so talented! This looks amazing! Can you share what your typical day is for meals and snacks? Do you usually eat desert? Thanks for posting this recipie!
A typical day of eating for me is usually a smoothie or fresh juice of some sort after yoga in the morning, otherwise occasionally I will have a homemade muffin or maybe some coconut yogurt and fresh fruit. On the weekends sometimes I will splurge and make baked donuts or some waffles or scrambled eggs, but that is probably once a month or so. I rarely have a snack between that and lunch since there isn’t a ton of time in between. For lunch I usually have a big salad, or something leftover from dinner the night before. I also love simple veggie tacos with just avocados, fresh mixed baby lettuce, green onions, cilantro and a spicy pico de gallo, served on warm corn tortillas. Occasionally I will eat a snack in the afternoon after lunch, usually something like carrots and hummus, corn tortilla chips and salsa, nuts, etc. For dinner right now we have been doing a lot of grilling, either fresh veggies or some of the tasty pasture-raised meat we get from our local farmer. I am always always making new things for dinner. I don’t usually eat dessert, unless I have something on hand that I made to feature here on the blog. I do have a tendency to grab a very small handful of dark chocolate chips or a spoonful of chocolate almond butter if I am craving something a little sweet, but it is very rare for me to sit down and have a full on plate of dessert. Hope that all helps, please let me know if you have any other questions. Thanks Addie!
Wauwie, i am not a dessert-type, but this one..definately gonna give it a try. Thanks again.
Awesome! Let me know what you think if you do try it, Ingrid! I am with you, I am not a huge huge dessert person either, I like simple and to the point, not the overly rich, sweet and heart stopping stuff that many people like.
[…] not a cake. I think our choice was perfect!!! The recipe we used for the tart can be found at Tasty Yummies . I followed her recipe pretty well so I didn’t feel like I could just post the […]
THIS IS AWESOME!!!!!!!!! love it! We all tried it for breakfast this morning since I made it late last night. It definitely won’t last long!!!!!!
Amy – this is amazing! I love that you ate it for breakfast. I had to take the leftovers to my parents to share with the family because I was concerned I would eat the entire thing myself 🙂 Thanks for taking the time to comment and let me know you liked it. I appreciate it. Take care.
Late to the party, but Deeeeeevine!!!!! (phonetic spelling obviously) Really amazing job, Beth!
Shirley
Better late than never I say, no matter what the party! Thanks for the compliments, so appreciated.
Just wanted to leave a quick note to let you know how much we loved the crust on this recipe! I made them in mini tart pans then filled with an amended version of Alton Brown’s chocolate tofu pie after baking/cooling the crusts. So good!!
i made this on friday for my other half’s birthday and i did not have a tart pan so used a cheesecake pan and it came out fine..it was also DELICIOUS and a hit with not just him but our friends who came to celebrate with us…and very easy to make! thanks for a GREAT recipe- i will be making it alot!
Yum Beth!! I made something very similar with halved strawberries pressed into the chocolate…I am going to try your crust!! Chocolate and salt make me swoon!
Oh my goodness-YUM! My birthday is tomorrow and I want to eat this tart! I am not sure my hubby can bake as well as you can though LOL 🙂 Thank you so much for sharing this amazing recipe on Allergy-Free Wednesdays Beth!
Happy Birthday Laura! So… did he make it for you??
Nope, but I am still going to!
I am featuring this tart this week on AFW 🙂
Thanks so much Laura!
[…] Salted Chocolate Tart (Vegan) @ Tasty […]
This looks sinfully delicious! I love the pic and the recipe looks fairly easy. Definitely on my must try list!
This looks absolutely delicious! I’m adding it to my Thanksgiving dessert roundup on my blog this week. 🙂
[…] Pies (Grain-Free, Sugar-Free, Vegan)Blueberry Pie (Vegan, Grain-Free, Refined Sugar-Free) Salted Chocolate Tart (Grain-Free, Refined Sugar-Free, Vegan) Perfect Sweet Cherry Pie Cherry Pie (Vegan, Sugar-Free)Cranberries and Cream Tart with Chocolate […]
Looks amazing! Could I use something like honey instead of the maple syrup in the crust?
Just wanted to say thank you and great job on this recipe. I made this for my husbands bday party and everyone loved it! I added about 1/4 cup raw cacao nibs to the top along with the salt. It added a nice crunch and some more dense chocolate taste. This is going to be a staple for me.
Excellent! I served this at a party last night – to all gluten and dairy eating friends. Everyone raved and had no idea it was grain free and vegan. The crust was perfect and crispy, and the filling was silky and rich without being too heavy. Thank you!!!
[…] a game of Cards Against Humanity and some delicious treats. My mom made us Tasty Yummie’s Salted Chocolate Tart, which was UNREAL GOOD, and I made some quick raw gingerbread date balls […]
We loved it! Made it over the holidays and it was a total success. Not too sweet – just right. We had a little trouble with the crust which was crumbly. We were able to form it into the tart pan more or less but the edges fell apart after baking. Any thoughts about making it a bit firmer? Crust taste was great however. Thanks!
Alison, so glad you loved it. Hmm on the crust, what type of almond flour did you use? That may have a bit to do with it. In the future, I would say squeeze the dough together in your hands before hand, if it feels a bit crumbly maybe add a little more coconut oil or sweetener. Hope that helps.
Well, I have to confess that we could not find almond flour so we used whole wheat flour. Do you think that made the difference? If so, we’ll go on a quest to find it 🙂 Thanks for your reply.
Oh my gosh, yes absolutely a HUGE HUGE difference, they are two totally different types of flours and definitely not interchangable, so yes that now makes a lot of sense. You made a totally different crust. I am gluten-free so I haven’t baked with whole wheat flour in over a decade so I cannot give advice on it, but I can promise you that if you make this with almond flour, you will be quite happy with the results.
Thanks.
LOL. Of course! We’ll try it out with almond flour as soon as we can locate it. Thanks very much.
[…] Salted Chocolate Tart from Tasty Yummies […]
[…] Salted Chocolate Tart from Tasty Yummies ~ gluten free, grain free, dairy free, egg free, vegan […]
Hi Beth,
We are having a real old fashion winter up here in Canada. Lots of snow. Some states are having a terrible time of it. You are in California now if I remember correctly…I hear there’s drought out there. How is it where you are? Hope you are not being affected in your area.
Anyway, I made your chocolate tart (without the salt) and it was yummy. I did not have a tart pan so I used my springform pan and it worked out just fine. I’m hoping to make this in June when I have freshly picked strawberries to slice on top. Thanks again for a delicious desert.
Suzanne
This was delicious! My daughter and I made it yesterday for Valentine’s day –and to celebrate day 31 of my Whole30, where I could finally have a treat. Used a combo of coconut milk and cashew nut milk. Will definitely make again!
Thank you so much for the easy and amazing recipe. We made it as a valentines day treat and it did not disappoint. I used ground flax/ chai seeds and enjoy life chocolate chips that I had on hand. Will for sure make again! 🙂
Making this just now, for the first time. The crust mixture is super crumbly. Will it “come together” once it’s baked? I’m tempted to add more coconut oil & possibly more maple syrup…?
It should come together, yes. It has for me, every single time. But you could also add a bit more maple or oil, if it doesn’t seem like it is going do. Let me know how it came out for you.
Ok, I made this last night for a dinner party and it completely blew me away! I am dairy & gluten free – my friend is vegan and avoids refined sugar. I used bakers chocolate & melted it in double boiler then added agave to sweeten before adding the other filling ingredients. It worked really well and was the tastiest richest vegan dessert I’ve made to date. Thanks Beth!!
What would be a good substitute for flax meal?
Honestly, I have made this many many times and just left it out. You can also opt for ground chia seeds if you’d like. Shredded unsweetened coconut is nice too, all nice add-ins, but not necessary to make the recipe work 😉
Hope that helps.
Thank you for this amazing recipe! I made this several months ago for a group that included a vegan (me), someone on a gluten-free diet, and a couple of skeptics who were not convinced a vegan or gluten-free dessert could taste good. Everyone loved it, and recently the most skeptical of the skeptics asked if I could pretty please make it again for our next get-together – and I will be more than happy to oblige!
This looks amazing! But is there anything I could sub for the coconut oil? I am allergic to coconut 🙁
Marnie, hmmm the thing about the coconut oil in this recipe is that is solidifies when chilled, so that helps firm it all up a bit. In the crust you could use olive oil, butter or another oil or shortening. In the filling, you could do the same. I would bet a palm oil shortening would work great. Hope that helps.
This is SO good. Coming from a total dessert snob. The crust is perfect.
I have made this tart at least 8 times now, every time I’ve needed something that was various allergens-free. This time we had people allergic to soy, dairy, gluten and corn, so this was perfect. I usually use 70 percent Theo’s chocolate (a local Seattle chocolate maker that doesn’t use soy). I have found that the crust works with flax seeds, hemp seeds or no seeds if you’re out. I usually add an extra tablespoon of cocoa (I used Valrhona this last time and it was spectacular) and a tablespoon of raw sugar and drizzle in a bit of extra coconut oil if I need to bind it. So far I’ve made the filling with tapioca starch and cornstarch on different occasions and both worked equally well. I have given this recipe to at least a dozen people and even people who normally never like vegan desserts (which normally includes me) LOVE this recipe.