Vegan Rustic Apple Tart
A deliciously buttery crust filled with silky apples covered in cinnamon and sugar!
The cool cousin of the apple pie is here today and ready for you to try it. This tart is seriously perfect all year round, it’s so EASY to make, and no pie pan necessary!
I have made countless apple pies throughout my life and this is by far the easiest and maybe prettiest. My brother was obsessed with apple pies growing up so I would bake them all the time. To me, the perfect apple pie or tart must have a buttery crust that should NEVER be soggy, sweet apples with lots of cinnamon, and of course, it should be easy to make. This recipe checks all the boxes!
Make sure you read my tips almost at the end to create the perfect tart. Try it and let me know in the comments what you think.
Easy step-by-step instructions
Place the flour, sugar, and butter in a food processor, pulse a few times until you achieve a crumbly texture.
Add the water 1 tablespoon at a time while you pulse until the dough forms. Shape the dough into a ball, wrap it in film and refrigerate while you prepare the filling.
Peel and core the apples, I like to use a teaspoon or small spoon to remove the core.
Slice the apples thinly and place them in a large bowl.
Add the rest of the ingredients for the filling, mix well, and set aside.
Remove the dough from the fridge and place it on a lightly floured surface. With a rolling pin flatten the dough into a 12-inch rectangle (this doesn’t have to be perfect at all!).
This is the dough right before rolling it.
Transfer the dough to a large sheet pan lined with parchment paper. To easily transfer the dough to the pan, fold it in half twice putting a little bit of flour in between. You can also roll the dough on top of the parchment paper.
Preheat the oven to 375 degrees. Toss the apples well and arrange them as you like in the middle of the crust leaving at least 2 inches without filling. If there’s extra liquid left from the apples in the bowl, DO NOT feel tempted to pour it over the crust as this will make it soggy.
Fold the edges over the apples.
Brush the edges with the milk.
Sprinkle the edges with sugar and bake for 50 – 55 minutes or until the crust is golden and the apples are soft.
A few tips
It is VERY important to use cold butter for the crust! The cold butter helps the crust achieve that flakiness we all crave from a pastry. For an even better result cut the butter into small pieces and place in the freezer for a few minutes until firm.
The apples will start releasing their juices as they mix with the filling ingredients. Do not dump all this excess liquid over the crust since we want to avoid it from getting soggy. What I like to do is toss the apples again before I arrange them on the crust and brush a tiny bit of the liquid over the apples.
Not all apples are good for baking, if you don’t have Gala apples you can use Golden Delicious, Granny Smith, Honeycrisp, or any other apple of your choice that isn’t mealy when cooked.
Vegan Rustic Apple Tart
Ingredients
- 1 ½ cups all-purpose flour
- 1 TBSP white sugar
- ½ cup cold vegan butter
- ¼ cup ice cold water
- 4 Gala apples
- Juice of half a lemon
- ⅓ cup white sugar
- 1 tsp ground cinnamon
- 1 ½ TBSP corn starch
- 1 TBSP almond milk
- 2 – 3 tsp brown sugar
- Agave nectar or warmed peach jelly
Instructions
- Place the flour, sugar, and butter in a food processor, pulse a few times until you achieve a crumbly texture. Add the water 1 tablespoon at a time while you pulse until the dough forms. Shape the dough into a ball, wrap it in film and refrigerate while you prepare the filling.
- Peel and core the apples. Slice the apples thinly and place them in a large bowl, add the rest of the ingredients for the filling, mix well, and set aside.
- Remove the dough from the fridge and place it on a lightly floured surface. With a rolling pin flatten the dough into a 12-inch rectangle (this doesn’t have to be perfect at all!). Transfer the dough to a large sheet pan lined with parchment paper. To easily transfer the dough to the pan, fold it in half twice putting a little bit of flour in between. You can also roll the dough on top of the parchment paper.
- Preheat the oven to 375 degrees. Toss the apples well and arrange them as you like in the middle of the crust leaving at least 2 inches without filling. If there’s extra liquid left from the apples in the bowl, DO NOT feel tempted to pour it over the crust as this will make it soggy.
- Fold the edges over the apples. Brush the edges with the milk and sprinkle with sugar. Bake for 50 – 55 minutes or until the crust is golden and the apples are soft.
- To make the tart look even more delicious, brush it with agave or warmed peach jelly once you take it out of the oven.
