Easy Mixed Berry Tart

Hey, hey, it’s Pi Day! I must admit, I don’t make, nor eat, pie often enough, and every March 14, I feel inspired to change my ways.

Truth be told, I’ve always been a tad intimidated by making them from scratch, especially the crusts. Many recipes I’ve considered are incredibly time consuming and focus a lot of attention on what to do and not to do when it comes to the crust and so, most of the time, I end up just tossing a simple pie filling mixture into a pre-made crust and calling it a day.

Not this Pi Day, though, oh no. I finally faced my fears and attempted a homemade crust that is vegan friendly and gluten free, too!

Side note: I know that, if we’re getting technical, there are a few differences between pies and tarts, and this recipe is for a tart, and at the same time, Pi Day is technically about a fun mathematical constant and celebrating math, which is quite a technical subject, but for the sake of simply savoring delicious pies, let’s not get too technical. It’s practically a pie. Let’s get to it.

Easy Mixed Berry Tart

Makes 8 servings | Original recipe via Sarah Bakes Gluten Free

Ingredients

For the Crust

1 1/2 cups gluten free flour blend
1 tbsp. sugar
1/2 tsp. salt
4 tbsp. vegan butter, cold
3 tbsp. non-hydrogenated vegetable shortening
4-6 tbsp. ice cold water

For the Filling

1/3 cup cane sugar
2 tbsp. cornstarch or tapioca starch
1 tsp. lemon zest
1 1/2 cups raspberries, fresh or frozen
1 1/2 cups blackberries, fresh or frozen
1 cup blueberries, fresh or frozen
2 tbsp. dairy free milk
2 tbsp. sugar, for sprinkling

Directions

Sift together flour, sugar, and salt. Cut in vegan butter and shortening with a pastry cutter or a food processor until mixture resembles a coarse meal.
Pour in 4 tablespoons cold water and continue blending until dough comes together, adding an additional tablespoon or two if needed.
Pat dough into a ball, wrap in plastic wrap, and place in refrigerator for an hour – or until ready to use.
Preheat oven to 400ºF. Line a large baking sheet with parchment paper.
In large mixing bowl, stir together sugar, cornstarch, and lemon zest. Add in raspberries, blackberries, and blueberries. Gently toss berries to coast in sugar mixture. Set aside.
Place dough between two pieces of parchment paper. Roll out until 1/4-inch thick circle. (Note: I didn’t roll mine out quite thin enough and ended up with a thicker, softer crust and slightly smaller tart overall.)
Remove parchment paper and place dough onto prepared baking sheet. Top dough with berry mixture, leaving a 2 inch edge around berries. Fold edge of dough over berries, crimping as needed.
Brush dough with coconut milk and sprinkle with sugar. Bake pie for 20-25 minutes, until crust is golden brown and berries are bubbling (adjust cooking time by several minutes if using frozen berries.)
Let pie cool 30 minutes to an hour before serving
Can be enjoyed warm (top it with dairy-free ice cream) or cold. Store leftovers in refrigerator.

This tart definitely has me in the mood for summer! I ate my first slice warm, which was delightful, but enjoyed a slice straight from the refrigerator the next day and it was so refreshing.