When life gives you lemons…I say make lemon tarts. That is, raw, vegan, gluten-free, amazingly delicious, lemon tarts. I found this recipe on a blog, just randomly search for lemony ideas. It’s a knock off of the Hail Mary Meyer Lemon Miracle Tart. I love this brand when I’m in the mood for a little treat.

Last week, it got a little cold here in Houston, we had a hard freeze and everything. So, I decided that I better harvest the last remaining lemons from the Meyer lemon tree in my backyard. I love this tree. It produces the most wonderful, juicy lemons. I treasure every single one.

To honor my special lemons, I like to find just the right recipe to showcase their deliciousness. I made this tart recipe last night and it’s perfect. There is lemon juice and zest in both the crust and the creamy filling. If you can’t find Meyer lemons, I’m sure regular lemons would be really great as well.

The recipe is so simple. No baking. No cooking at all. Just soak some cashews ahead of time and everything else is so easy. Raw almonds, unsweetened coconut and vanilla are a few of the stand out ingredients, but the lemon is the main attraction.

Everything gets blended in a food processor, first the crust, then the filling. I’m not joking, this is super, super easy. I made individual tarts, but you could probably make a larger tart or the recipe suggests making this into a bar, if you’d like.

I served the the tarts with a cup of tea on my kitchen table set with a bowl full of lemons. It was the perfect ending to a spicy soup supper. Sadly, now I’m down to about two lemons left. I’ll need to come up with something extra special for the last of my harvest.

Litte Lemon Tarts 

Adapted from tessadomesticdiva.com

Makes 6 individual tarts

Crust:

1 cup raw almonds

1 cup unsweetened shredded coconut

2 Tbsp raw agave nectar

2 Tbsp freshly squeezed lemon juice

1 tsp pure vanilla

Zest of one lemon

Pinch of sea salt

Filling:

1 cup raw cashews, soaked at least one hour in filtered water, drain

1/2 cup coconut oil

1/3 cup full fat canned coconut milk

1/3 cup freshly squeezed lemon juice

2-3 Tbsp raw agave nectar

2 tsp pure vanilla

Zest of 1-2 lemons (I used 2)

1/8 tsp sea salt

For the crust, process almonds in food processor until they have a flour/meal consistency. Add remaining crust ingredients and pulse until well blended. The mixture should hold together when pressed. Add more agave or lemon juice, if desired. Press into greased (use a little coconut oil) individual tart pans, large tart pan or 8×8 pan, if making bars. Set aside.

For the filling, process all ingredients until silky smooth, this will take several minutes. Taste and adjust sweetness or tartness to your liking. Spread filling into tart shells and refrigerate until set, about an hour.

Save leftover filling for another use. You can use the filling as a topping for berries or oatmeal or sandwich it between two graham crackers for a special little treat. Enjoy!!!