Welcome early fall flavors with this Easy Fig Tart recipe which features a gluten free pecan-oat crust, creamy cardamom cashew filling, fresh figs and honey.

I’m hopping on the fig bandwagon in a big way with an easy Fig Tart recipe. This beauty features a dairy-free cardamom cashew cream and is topped with fresh figs and a generous drizzle of honey.

Who doesn’t love fig season?

I wanted to make a supremely delicious easy fig tart to welcome the earliest days of fall- before we get into everything pumpkin.

Reasons to fall in love with this easy fig tart recipe:

• This fig tart recipe features a gluten-free crust that can be made in the food processor within minutes. No chilling, no kneading, no rolling out pastry.
• The creamy dreamy dairy free/vegan cashew filling is simply the perfect vehicle for late summer’s freshest fruits.
• This gorgeous late summer tart is topped with a fresh assortment of figs drizzled with honey  – the perfect pair.

We packed up the remains of this fig tart to take with us on our camping trip to the Sequioa National Forest last weekend.

Between the pine scented air, the cooler mountain weather and slices of this Honey Cardamom Fig Tart to nibble on, all of a sudden I feel totally ready for fall.

How to make this easy fig tart recipe: 

The crust for this Honey Cardamom Fig Tart is loosely adapted from a pie crust I found in one of my favorite cookbooks of the moment. It’s called Chickpea Flour Does It All, by Linsday Love from the incredible blog, Dolly and Oatmeal.

There are seriously so many recipe gems in her book that truly convince you that yes, chickpea flour really does do it all! In her book she has a raspberry nectarine pie with a pistachio oat crust that I flipped for. So I knew I wanted to do my own version for this Honey Cardamom Fig Tart.

I opted to use pecans since they are decidedly more autumn-ish than pistachios. Ironically, I took out the chickpea flour completely, substituting it for some oat flour I had been wanting to play around with.

Make the Gluten-free Crust: 

The crust comes together in your food processor within minutes. Simply blitz pecans, oats, oat flour and salt until finely ground. Then you stir in the rest of the ingredients by hand. 

Press the tart into the bottom and up the sides of a 9-inch rectangular tart pan. Prick the bottom of the tart several times with the tines of a fork and bake for 10-12 minutes, until slightly golden. Remove from the oven and cool completely.

The resulting crust is nutty and crumbly and the perfect vessel for the next layer of the tart, a cashew cream studded with warming cardamom.

Make the Vegan Cashew Cardamom Cream: 

Typically, cashew cream based desserts require you to soak the cashews for several hours (up to overnight). Since I never seem to have the foresight to remember to do this, I simply pour boiling hot water over my cashews and let them soak for about an hour.

Usually it will be the first thing I do when I get in the kitchen. I’ll busy myself with other tasks as the cashews soak and by the time I get to them they’re ready to be blended into rich, creamy goodness.

For making the dairy-free tart filling, combine cashews, dates, vanilla extract, cardamom and salt with 1/2 cup cold water and blend until smooth and creamy.

Assemble your fig tart: 

Spread the cardamom cashew cream over the cooled crust. Now, all that’s left to do is top your cashew cream filling with a layer of beautiful figs.

I like using a variety of figs like black figs  and tiger stripe, and slice them up in a variety of shapes for a rustic, haphazard look to the Honey Cardamom Fig Tart.

But this is where you can really get creative and adorn the tart any which way you please.

Chill your assembled fig tart  for at least one hour before serving for best results. Just before serving, drizzle liberally with honey.

Tips for making this fig tart recipe: 

• Usually, you soak the cashews in cold water for a couple of hours. If you are in a hurry you can reduce the soaking time by using hot water. Place your cashew nuts in a bowl, pour boiling water over them and let them sit for at least 15 minutes.
• If the mix for the crust comes out too dry, mix in 1 tsp of water at a time and continue mixing until the crust comes together.
• Toasting your pecans in a pan before making the crust makes for a more intense flavor.

Can I make this fig tart recipe vegan?

I know that the addition of honey *technically* doesn’t make this fig tart vegan. But I feel like honey is one of those vegan gray areas. It’s ok for some while others don’t include it as part of their vegan lifestyle.

So, I’m still including this Honey Cardamom Fig Tart in the vegan category. But if you don’t do honey, simply omit or substitute maple syrup perhaps.

I am allergic to cashew nuts. Which other nut can I use in this recipe? 

As a substitute for raw cashews you can use macacamias, sunflower seeds or pine nuts as well as almonds or hazelnuts.  For a smooth, white filling, make sure to remove the skin of hazelnuts and almonds and soak the nuts for several hours. (Learn how to skin nuts here).

Thanks for reading Le Petit Eats! To keep up with my kitchen escapades, follow me on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter and Pinterest. If you make this Easy Fig Tart recipe or any one of my recipes, please share it using the hashtag #LePetitEats!

5 from 6 votes

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Honey Cardamom Fig Tart

Welcome early fall flavors with this Honey Cardamom Fig Tart, made with a gluten free pecan-oat crust, creamy cardamom cashew filling, fresh figs and honey.

Course Dessert

Cuisine Dairy-free, Gluten-free

Keyword easy fig tart, fig tart recipe, vegan cashew cream tart

Prep Time 20 minutes

Cook Time 10 minutes

Total Time 30 minutes

Servings 8 slices

Calories 400 kcal

Author Denisse

Ingredients

FOR THE CRUST:

• 1 cup pecans
• 1 cup old-fashioned rolled oats
• 1 cup oat flour
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 2 teaspoons lemon zest
• 1 tablespoon lemon juice
• 1/4 cup coconut oil melted
• 3 tablespoons maple syrup
• 1/4 teaspoon salt

FOR THE CARDAMOM CASHEW CREAM:

• 1 1/2 cups raw cashews soaked and drained
• 1/4 cup dates pitted
• 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 3/4 teaspoon ground cardamom
• 1/4 teaspoon salt

FOR THE TOPPING:

• Approximately 1 dozen fresh figs halved, quartered and sliced
• Honey for drizzling

Instructions

1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. In a food processor, pulse the pecans, oats, oat flour and salt until finely ground. Transfer to a bowl and mix in lemon zest, lemon juice, coconut oil and maple syrup with a fork or by hand. Dough should stick together when pressed between fingers (if too dry mix in 1 teaspoon of water at a time until dough sticks together.

2. Press the tart into the bottom and up the sides of a 9-inch rectangular tart pan. Prick the bottom of the tart several times with the tines of a fork and bake for 10-12 minutes, until slightly golden. Remove from oven and cool completely. 

3. In a high speed blender, combine cashews, dates, vanilla extract, cardamom and salt with 1/2 cup cold water and blend until smooth and creamy.
4. Spread the cardamom cashew cream over the cooled crust. Top evenly with figs. Chill for at least one hour before serving for best results. Just before serving, drizzle liberally with honey.

Recipe Notes

• The cashews are usually soaked in cold water for a couple of hours. If you are in a hurry you can reduce the soaking time by using hot water. Place your cashew nuts in a bowl, pour boiling water over them and let them sit for at least 15 minutes.
• If the mix for the crust comes out too dry, mix in 1 tsp of water at a time and continue mixing until the crust comes together.
• Toasting your pecans in a pan before making the crust makes for a more intense flavor.