Fruit & Nut Tart with No Bake Couscous Crust A great dessert idea for Thanksgiving! This is a really easy no-bake dessert to put together in a short time. You just have to remember to soak the dried fruit for 30 minutes before you start. It is easy and flexible – use dried fruit or even cooked fruit, add ground nuts, spices, seeds to the crust or topping or don’t. Make it your own! I love a raw nut crust but the couscous is definitely a nice change and so easy and fast to put together. I learned how to make this treat in a macrobiotic cooking school class and it has been in my Autumn and Winter dessert repertoire ever since. I also added a recipe for cashew cram topping. Cheers! Crust: 2 cups apple juice 2 tablespoons organic brown rice syrup or maple syrup 1-teaspoon vanilla extract ½ teaspoon umeboshi vinegar (This is a Japanese vinegar that is made with umeboshi plums, shiso leaves, and sea salt. It is both tart and salty so a little goes a long way. It is a great addition to your pantry for dressings etc., but in the meantime, you could substitute red or white wine vinegar and a tiny pinch of salt) 1-cup whole-wheat couscous Sea salt Options: add a pinch of dried cinnamon and/or ginger, or nutmeg or cardamom. I have used apple pie spice blend that I once had in my pantry. All worked nicely. Topping 1 1/2-cups dried fruit (your choice – apricots, raisons, cranberries, cherries) Soak the dried fruit in the cup of apple juice (see below) for about 30 minutes. Option: you can also use fresh apples or pears just core and dice them and proceed with recipe. 1-cup apple juice 1-cup water 2 tablespoons organic brown rice syrup ½ teaspoon umeboshi vinegar ½ teaspoon vanilla extract 2 strips lemon zest plus 1 tablespoon of the juice ¼ cup cold water 1 ½ tablespoons kuzu (a thickener) You could sub in arrowroot Sea salt, Option: you can toast some walnuts and add them to the top of the fruit. Putting it together: *For the crust, bring the apple juice, syrup, vanilla, vinegar to a boil. Add the couscous and a tiny pinch of salt and bring it down to a low simmer for 5 minutes. Remove from heat and let it sit for about 20 minutes. Moisten your hands with water and press the couscous into a 9 x 9 glass baking dish or tart pan. *For the topping: After you have soaked the dried fruit for 30 minutes, cut it into bite size pieces. Now bring the dried fruit, the soaking juice and water to a boil. Add the syrup, vinegar, vanilla, and zest and cover the pot. Let it simmer for 15 minutes. Dilute the kuzu or arrowroot in cold water and mix really well to make sure there are no lumps. Now stir this mixture into the pot stirring constantly. Let it come to a boil for one minute. Taste it. If it seems a bit sweet, add in the lemon juice. Remove the zest from the fruit mixture. Spread it on the couscous crust, if using nuts, top with toasted nuts and let it cool. Slice and serve. You can top it off with some cashew cream (see recipe below). Cashew Cream This is a lovely finish to any dessert. A dollop of cashew cream on top (of anything) is divine. It keeps in the fridge for at least a week. This will make 2 cups 2 cups raw cashews that you soaked for several hours and then drained 3 tablespoons water 2 tablespoons maple syrup or liquid sweetener of choice 2 teaspoons vanilla extract Option: You can add a bit of coffee, orange or raspberry liqueur to this cream. Place everything in a high-speed blender and blend until smooth. Taste it to see if it is sweet enough for you. Add more sweetener if necessary. Refrigerate at least an hour to let it firm up.
Posted on: Tue, 18 Nov 2014 19:54:11 +0000
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