Almost all the buildings in Dubai are high-rise and very tall, packed in like sardines – pretty cosy to say the least! I’m actually in the infamous ‘burning’ Torch Tower in the middle of Dubai Marina. If you didn’t see it on the news a few months ago, that pretty much sums it up; there was a big fire in the middle of the night but I digress. The reason I say this is because you are basically living on top of all your friends and last week was one of the first nights we took advantage of that!

Jack and I were invited for dinner a whopping 50 floors above us (came in handy!) by some friends that we see day-in, day-out but very foolishly have never done a couples dinner with. I knew they were going to be putting on a lavish meal; (Italian style) and we were generously given one simple task – to bring dessert.  I was absolutely choc-a-block the day of the dinner party so Jack pointed out that we could get a BEAUTIFUL dessert with no fuss just a walk away from the shops.

Riiggghhht Jack”¦

I wonder how this would go down….”Hi, thank you ever so much for spending hours cooking this beautiful 3 course meal for us (Amuse bouche, entree, main course). I know I write a food blog….love cooking and do it all the time…but tonight – I’ve gone with pudding à la shop bought. Not gonna fly! And even if they wouldn’t mind, I would.

Something new to bake then. I’ve also got the fabulous Multi One Mixer recently and it’s competing with my Vitamix on a daily basis to be the most used machine in my kitchen. It juices, slices, mixes, whisks and everything else; perfect for a super quick job. I decided on Lemon pie because it’s one of my favourite desserts, and usually an all-round crowd pleaser (usually, anyway!). I told Jack I was making lemon and raspberry tart and he responded with “I want normal brownies.” Normal – the ones with refined sugar, butter and everything else I don’t choose to eat or support eating! But I’m a firm believer in not forcing someone to change their own lifestyle to suit mine…he’s healthy pretty much all the time with me so if he REALLY wants brownies, brownies it is.

So from a shop bought dessert to two homemade desserts of a healthy lemon and raspberry tart as well as not so healthy brownies all in 90 minutes, time was a tickin’!

My Lemon and raspberry tart turned out perfectly. It was absolutely scrumptious with its’ ‘buttery’ soft, gluten-free crust and a deliciously juicy, lemon curd and raspberry filling. (Liking my adjectives today!) But really I mean them because I loved it. I’m pretty fond of a punchy lemon tart filling, one that’s refreshing and a little sour all at the same time. The raspberries really sweeten it up and add a lovely little surprise when the fork dives in. If you prefer yours more on the sweet side then dollop in an extra few tablespoons of honey. Otherwise, enjoy it completely guilt-free (minus the brownies) and dig in!

Hope you love it :)

Lemon and Raspberry Tart

 

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Prep time

20 mins

Cook time

20 mins

Total time

40 mins

 

Author: Lean Living Girl

Serves: Serves 8

Ingredients

Lemon Curd

• Juice of 4 lemons and zest of 2 lemons
• 30g Corn Starch
• 150ml Water
• 4 egg yolks
• 2 Tbs honey
• 1tsp vanilla essence

For the Pastry

• ¾ cup coconut flour
• ¼ cup coconut oil (melted)
• 2 organic eggs
• Large pinch of sea salt
• 2 Tbs honey

Raspberry filling

• 400g fresh Raspberries

Instructions

Make the Pastry

1. Pre-heat the oven to 180℃
2. Whisk together the coconut oil, eggs, salt and honey.
3. Add the coconut flour and mix with a spoon until very well combined and you can pick up as a ball.
4. Grease your flan dish with a little bit of coconut oil and then line with the pastry. You will find you need more of a 'patting' technique rather than rolling.
5. Prick the base with a fork and bake in the oven for 10 minutes alone. Start on the lemon curd whilst this is baking.

Make the Lemon Curd

1. Combine the lemon juice, zest and corn starch in a bowl.
2. Mix in the egg yolks.
3. Put the mixture in a pan on a medium heat and leave to thicken, stirring continuously.
4. Once the mixture has completely thickened, add the honey and vanilla extract and stir in the water bit by bit.
5. Once the water has been absorbed, remove the pan from the heat and set aside.

Put it all together

1. Remove the pastry from the oven after it has baked for 10 minutes.
2. In a small bowl, smash up the raspberries with a fork until they are juicy and soft.
3. Evenly place the smashed raspberries on the bottom of the pastry, covering the whole circle.
4. Then layer on top the lemon curd and replace in the oven for 10-15 minutes until the pastry is golden-brown and lemon curd give you a subtle 'wobble' when you move the tray.
5. Leave to cool for 10 minutes and then serve hot or cold.

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