Poached Pear Frangipane

Happy Christmas! This is something I just recently discovered: frangipane. And, I'm addicted! It's a simple mixture of almonds, sugar, egg and butter, but I veganized it (with delicious result). It follow the typical frangipane mix of almond meal, white sugar and a bit of vanilla. I substituted flax seed and xanthan gum instead of egg and refined coconut oil for butter.

This is my favourite vegan hack: ~2T flax seed to 3T water (or almond milk) blend until creamy with an immersion blender. It makes a decent egg replacer. I've made vegan chocolate chip cookies with this trick and nobody could tell the difference.

Place the ingredients in the food processor and blitz until creamy.

The next part to this dish adds a festive nature to it: pears poached in pomegranate juice. First, peel and core the pears and place in a shallow skillet with a portion of pomegranate juice. Over low heat, allow the juice to begin simmering, and spoon over the pears.

When they're a nice colour, remove from the pan and allow to cool. Then, slide lengthwise and place in a prepared tart shell. I already had one in the fridge.

If I had to do it again, I'd have made the frangipane thicker, and I'd have put the pears on top of the filling. It was delicious all the same.

Bake at 350F until the filing is set, ~45min. I like to dust it with icing sugar and serve it with pomegranate kernels and a sprig of mint.

Vegan - Gluten free Apple Crumble

This is one of my go-to dishes for my vegan and gluten free friends. It's got that classic nut-oat crust and an easy fruit filling.

First, add to the food processor the quick oats, nuts and a bit of salt. Chop until a fine crumbly texture and then add enough water to make a thick paste. Press the dough into a pan - it may be easiest to roll it between parchment first. Trim the dough around the edges to provide a uniform appearance. Bake the crust for about 15 minutes at 400˚F. Remove from the oven and place sliced apples on the dough-lined pan. Sprinkle over top a mix of oats, brown sugar and cinnamon.

Bake for about 30-45 minutes. The dough is quite different from regular flour dough, so keep an eye on it.

If I had to do it again, I'd use more apples. All the same, it's a nice sweet dessert.

Tarte Poire [Gluten free and Vegan Pear tarte]

A tasty sweet that's gluten free and vegan.

I started with the walnut-oat pastry dough that I typically use for crackers and pie crust.  Roll, cut and place in a spring-form pan.  I pre-baked the crust at 375F for ~20 minuted.  In the mean time, I prepared the filling: equal parts water and cashews, nutritional yeast, salt, brown sugar and vanilla.  Then, peel and slice the pears.

Fill the pans with the custardy mixture and arrange the pears.  Resume baking for another 20 minutes.  Allow them to cool and brush with pastry glaze - strained apricot jam.  Complete the dish with raspberries and sliced almonds.

It's got a good taste, but it's really heavy.  I think it would take on a new, lighter dimension by replacing some water with a bit of raw pear in the custard.

Gluten Free Apple and Pear Tarte

The gluten free crust is made from ground almonds, walnuts pecans and oats. Mixed apples and pears, garnished with dried cranberries.

Gluten free and vegan can taste great.