I am not a fan of rice cakes, those compressed discs of puffed rice have absolutely no appeal to me. If by some twist of fate I am “gifted” rice cakes, I will always transform them for use as an ingredient. You can easily infuse flavours at will because they are so bland. A chocolate tart or a rice cake base for a cheesecake sounds pretty good to me. Feeling inspired yet?
Ingredients
Base
2 cup crushed rice cakes (about 4 rice cakes)
½ cup ground almonds (chunky bits)
1 tbsp flaxmeal
¼ tsp salt (or as needed)*
2 tbsp vegan butter or margarine butter (29g)**
2 tbsp maple syrup (or to preference)*
Water
*The amount of salt and sweetener you use will depend on whether the rice cake is flavored enough as is
**The butter should be just softened, not runny
Additional spices or extracts e.g. cinnamon can be added to flavour the rice cake and almond base
Tart Filling
2 tbsp corn or potato starch
½ cup water
2 cups mixed fruit or berries (frozen)
¼ tsp salt
2 tsp lime or lemon juice (or to preference)
1 or 2 dashes of Angostura Bitters (optional)
Directions
Line the bottom of a 7” round baking tin with parchment paper. Preheat your oven to 350F
Place the crushed rice cakes, almonds, flaxmeal and salt in a bowl, stir to mix. You can add additional spices for extra flavour at this point. Add the softened butter and maple syrup. Massage the mixture until it is holding together. If necessary add a tablespoon of water at a time until the mixture is sticky enough and won't fall apart when pressed together. Place the mixture into the prepared tin, spread evenly and press firmly so it adheres to the parchment paper. Bake for 18 – 20 minutes until the top of the crust has browned and is set. Set aside to cool
While the crust is baking prepare the filling. I used frozen berries which can get soggy, so I opted to make the filling on my stovetop. In a skillet dissolve the corn or potato starch in water. Add the berries, salt, lime or lemon juice and bitters to the starch mixture. Bring to a boil and simmer on low heat. Stir gently so as not to crush the berries. Once the mixture has thickened to the consistency of a loose porridge, remove from the heat to cool. The mixture will thicken further as it cools, do not reduce until there is little or no liquid left. This takes less than 5 minutes so watch the mixture carefully
When the berry filling is cool to the touch, spoon it into the baking tin and spread it evenly over the cooled crust. I used a springform pan to bake the crust so before adding the berry mixture, I lined the sides with parchment paper for easy removal. Place in the refrigerator to set, 30 minutes or more, less if you place the tart in the freezer. Once set, cut into wedges, serve and enjoy! Wrap leftovers tightly and store in the refrigerator