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Crispy pastry crust with perfectly sweet, soft frangipane filling, this Vegan Cherry Bakewell Tart is literally gourmet-level delicious! If you want to bake something to impress your friends/family, this Cherry Bakewell tart will do the job!
Since the last time I made the Vegan Strawberry Bakewell Tart, I’ve been wanting to make another one for quite a while. One motivation is from my partner’s mentioning how much he misses cherry Bakewell tart.
But I was busy dealing with moving (Yes, I moved out from London) income and mental issues. Now I finally got to a better place (I mean mentally) that I feel is right now or another month’s wait.
Hence, here we are!
But this Cheery Bakewell Tart is quite different from my Strawberry Bakewell Tart, in both ingredients and final texture.
What’s special about Cherry Bakewell Tart?
- Crispy, slightly sweet pastry that allure you with the next bite
- Soft, not too sweet, fragrant frangipane filling balancing with the pastry
- Vegan, no butter, no eggs, but still soooo delicious! (I feel a lot of people have some misunderstanding with vegan food)
Ingredients You Need for Vegan Cherry Bakewell Tart
Cherry Bakewell tart is usually comprised of 3 elements: Tart pastry, frangipane filling, and cherry filling. Hence, the ingredient list is slightly long.
But if you’ve been enjoying baking for a while (especially if you’ve tried some of my recipes), many of the following ingredients should already in your cabinet or fridge.
- Extra-virgin coconut oil
- Non-dairy margarine, vegan spread
- Coconut sugar, or organic cane sugar
- Tapioca starch
- Salt
- Ground flaxseed
- Vanilla extract
- Almond extract
- Almond flour
- Gluten-free plain flour
- Baking powder
- Plant-based milk (I use soy milk)
- Cherry jam, or another berry jam
- Glacé cherries
- Cherries, frozen or fresh, or mixed berries
- Almond flakes
For substitutions and explanation, please take a look at “Questions You Might Have” section and the recipe card down below.
How to Make Vegan Cherry Bakewell Tart
To make the pastry (crust)
- Make the pastry dough: To a food processor or a big mixing bowl, add soft coconut oil, margarine, and coconut sugar. Cream them together evenly.
- Add flour, tapioca starch, salt, and vanilla extract to mix evenly. Then add cold water and mix again. The mixture should be able to stick together when pressed between your fingers.
- Refrigerate: Transfer the mixture onto a large piece of baking paper or cling film. Press and shape it into a flat dough. Wrap it up and put it into the fridge for 20 minutes.
- Prepare the oven and the tart mould: Preheat the oven to 175 °C (350 °F). Grease an 8-inch (20 cm) loose bottom tart tin with coconut oil.
- Roll the pastry out: Take the pastry dough out from the fridge. Gently pat it flat and then place it between two large pieces of baking paper. Roll it out into slightly bigger than the tart tin.
- Put the pastry into the tart tin: Remove the baking paper on the top. Then gently flip the pastry onto the tart tin. (It probably will break a bit because it’s gluten-free. It’s normal. Don’t worry.) Use your finger to shape the pastry. Then use a fork to poke holes on the bottom of the pastry. Place a piece of baking paper on top and add some baking beans or rice on top to press down the pastry.
- Blind bake: Place it into the preheated oven to blind bake at 175 °C (350 °F) for 15 minutes. Then transfer the tart tin onto a wire rack to cool down. Remove the beans. Let’s prepare the frangipane filling while the pastry is cooling. Leave the oven on.
To make the frangipane filling:
- Mix the ground flaxseed with water in a small bowl. Let it sit for 3 minutes.
- To a big mixing bowl, add margarine and coconut oil. Melt them together in a microwave or over boiling water (double boiler) for 15–20 seconds.
- Add the flaxseed mixture, vanilla extract, and almond extract to the melted oil. Mix them together with a fork. Then finally stir in the soy milk.
- Then add coconut sugar, almond flour, plain flour, and baking powder. Incorporate them together.
To assemble & bake:
- Add jam and frangipane: Spread the jam evenly on the baked crust. Then add the frangipane filling on top of the jam layer.
- Add cherries: Evenly insert both frozen and glacé cherries into the frangipane filling. Then sprinkle the almond flakes on top.
- Bake: Place the tart to bake in the oven at 175 °C (350 °F) for 30–35 minutes until it looks golden and the frangipane filling looks firm.
- Cool: Transfer the pan onto a wire rack to cool down completely. Then remove the tart from the mould. Slice then enjoy!
How to Store Vegan Cherry Bakewell Tart
Once the tart is cool, store it in an airtight container. It should last at room temperature for 1–2 days. Store it in the fridge afterward and consume within 5 days. Optionally, you can slice all of them and put them in freezer-safe containers to store in the freezer for 2 weeks.
Questions You Might Have
I don’t have margarine, can I use vegan butter instead?
I would say yes you can, but the overall texture will change a little bit. Vegan butter will give out more buttery flavour and flaky texture. Margarine, on the other hand, creates a more solid mouthfeel and less buttery taste, which is usually what I prefer nowadays.
Are there other substitutions for extra-virgin coconut oil?
I personally like the combination of margarine and extra-virgin coconut oil in this recipe. But if you don’t have it, you can use regular cooking coconut oil or vegan butter. Just keep in mind it will slightly change the overall taste.
What kind of cherries should I use?
I would recommend using both glacé cherries and fresh/frozen cherries if you want to have the most intense cherry flavour. If you cannot find glacé cherries, you can just use either fresh or frozen cherries.
Final Words
I’m so happy that I finally made this cherry Bakewell tart because it’s so delicious and satisfying to see. The crispy crust together with the fragrant, soft frangipane and sweet cherries is soooo good!
I hope you will like this Bakewell tart as much as I do. Let me know if you have further questions by commenting down below. Or tag me on Instagram (@barrelleaf).
Happy baking! x. — Nora
More Vegan Recipes:
- Vegan Matcha White Chocolate Sandwich Cookies (Gluten-free)
- Vegan Raspberry Marble Baked Cheesecake (1 secret ingredient)
- Vegan Blueberry Lemon Cake (w/ gluten-free option)
Vegan Cherry Bakewell Tart (Gluten-free)
Ingredients
For the Pastry (Crust)
- 55 g extra-virgin coconut oil, soft (~4.5 Tbsp), plus extra for greasing
- 50 g non-dairy margarine, vegan spread (~3.5 Tbsp)
- 45 g coconut sugar, (1/4 cup) or organic cane sugar
- 190 g gluten-free plain flour, (~1 cup + 2.5 Tbsp)*
- 30 g tapioca starch, (~4 Tbsp)
- 1/8 tsp pink salt
- 1/2 tsp vanilla extract
- 1 Tbsp cold water
For the Frangipane
- 25 g ground flaxseed, (~3.5 Tbsp)
- 60 g water
- 35 g non-dairy margarine, vegan spread (~2 Tbsp + 1 tsp)
- 36 g extra-virgin coconut oil, (3 Tbsp)
- 1/2 tsp vanilla extract
- 1/2 tsp almond extract
- 45 g coconut sugar, or organic cane sugar
- 96 g almond flour, (1 cup)
- 25 g gluten-free plain flour, (~3 Tbsp)*
- 1/2 tsp baking powder
- 2 Tbsps plant-based milk, I use soy milk
For assembling
- 100 g cherry jam, or another berry jam***
- 90 g glacé cherries, (~1/4 cup)**
- 50 g cherries, frozen or fresh, or mixed berries (~1/3 cup)***
- 25 g almond flakes
Instructions
To make the pastry (crust)
- Make the dough: To a food processor or a big mixing bowl, add soft coconut oil, margarine, and coconut sugar. Cream them together evenly.
- Add flour, tapioca starch, salt, and vanilla extract. Mix to combine. Scrape down the side to make sure everything is mixed evenly.
- Add cold water and mix again. The mixture should be able to stick together when pressed between your fingers.
- Refrigerate the dough: Transfer the mixture onto a large piece of baking paper or cling film. Press and shape it into a flat dough. Wrap it up and put it into the fridge for 20 minutes.
- Prepare the oven and the tart tin: Preheat the oven to 175 °C (350 °F). Grease an 8-inch (20 cm) loose bottom tart tin with coconut oil.
- Roll out the pastry: Take the pastry dough out from the fridge. Gently pat it flat and then place it between two large pieces of baking paper. Roll it out into slightly bigger than the tart tin.
- Transfer the pastry into the tart tin: Remove the baking paper on the top. Then gently flip the pastry onto the tart tin. (It probably will break a bit because it’s gluten-free. It’s normal. Don’t worry.)
- Use your finger to shape the pastry. Then use a fork to poke holes on the bottom of the pastry. Place a piece of baking paper on top and add some baking beans or rice on top to press down the pastry.
- Blind bake: Place it into the preheated oven to blind bake at 175 °C (350 °F) for 15 minutes. Then transfer the tart tin onto a wire rack to cool down. Remove the beans by lifting the baking paper. Let’s prepare the frangipane filling while the pastry is cooling. Leave the oven on.
To make the frangipane filling:
- Mix the ground flaxseed with water in a small bowl. Let it sit for 3 minutes.
- To a big mixing bowl, add margarine and coconut oil. Melt them together in a microwave or over boiling water (double boiler) for 15–20 seconds.
- Add the flaxseed mixture, vanilla extract, and almond extract to the melted oil. Use a fork to mix them together.
- Then add the rest ingredients: coconut sugar, almond flour, plain flour, and baking powder. Incorporate them together with the fork. Then finally stir in the soy milk.
To assemble & bake:
- Add jam and frangipane: Spread the jam evenly on the baked crust. Then add the frangipane filling on top of the jam layer.
- Add cherries: Evenly insert both frozen and glacé cherries into the frangipane filling. Then sprinkle the almond flakes on top.
- Bake: Place the tart to bake in the oven at 175 °C (350 °F) for 30–35 minutes until it looks golden and the frangipane filling looks firm.
- Cool: Transfer the pan onto a wire rack to cool down completely. Then remove the tart from the mould. Slice then enjoy!
Video
Notes
- Adapted from My Virtually Free-from Kitchen
- *Flour: I usually use this store-bought gluten-free plain flour. If you are not keen on making this tart gluten-free, you can also use regular plain flour (all-purpose flour) instead.
- **Cherries: Glacé cherries are like “candied” cherries, simmered in syrup. My British partner specifically mentioned them when talking about Bakewell tart. You can find it in most grocery stores in the UK. If you cannot find it, you can just use fresh or frozen ones.
- ***Cherries or mixed berries: For a stronger cherry flavour, use cherry jam and frozen/fresh cherries. But if you don’t have cherry jam and fresh/frozen cherries like I did, just use another type of berry jam (I use strawberry jam) and frozen berries. I found using mixed berry make the flavour more complex and well-rounded.
- Storage: Once the tart is cool, store it in an airtight container. It should last at room temperature for 1–2 days. Store it in the fridge afterward and consume within 5 days. Optionally, you can slice all of them and put them in freezer-safe containers to store in the freezer for 2 weeks.
- **Sugar: I personally like to use coconut sugar, mainly because of its caramel taste. Also, its lower GI index will less likely to give you a sugar spike. But technically, you can use any type of sugar. Organic sugar or brown sugar is usually my second choice.
- Recommended equipment: I’m using this Perforated Quiche Tin and this food processor (affiliate links) to make this tart. For more of my favourite baking tools and ingredients, please shop my pantry staples & kitchen tools.
