This super tasty Vegan Mushroom, Roasted Pepper and Walnut Tart will be the star of the show if you’re cooking for a hungry crowd, plus it’s perfect for making in advance if you want to get ahead. With so many people giving Veganuary a whirl, I thought it’d be a good time to roll out a delicious plant-based recipe.
I’ve been curious about making a vegan vegetable tart for a few months, as some of you may recall I was going to make a rainbow vegetable pie in December that never materialised. This is my way of making up for that! It’s definitely not rainbow coloured, but what it lacks in vibrance it more than makes up for with bags and bags of flavour. You can serve it hot or cold, and with whatever side dishes you fancy. I kept things bright and breezy with a colourful array of salads.
Vegan Pastry
So I’ve never been one for making my own pastry, instead preferring to keep things simple by using the ready-rolled stuff from the supermarket. Jus-Roll pastry is vegan, so if you can’t be bothered to make your own, then I’d suggest using a pack of this for my recipe.
HOWEVER, I’ve been sent a shiny new Magimix food processor and I wanted to make the most of its functionality to see what it could do. I was a little reticent about making vegan pastry, wondering how it would taste and what the texture would be like. I found an American recipe and converted it to British measurements. It’s basically got vegetable oil and vegan margarine in it, so it’s not hugely different.
I used the largest bowl in my Magimix to make the pastry, and it came together in no time at all. I added the liquid gradually, and in fact didn’t need to use all of it, so don’t pour it all in at once if you’re following this recipe.
I forgot to grease my pie dish, but as there’s a decent amount of oil in the pastry it didn’t even remotely stick. It crisped up a treat in the oven and turned a lovely pale golden colour. It tastes great too. I think I’ve just been converted to make my own pastry. Having a food processor really does make a huge difference to how easy it is.
I also used the Magimix to prep the vegetables for the filling. It thinly sliced the mushrooms in a matter of seconds, and cut the shallots and garlic down to a pleasingly small size too. This gadget is already winning me over!
Click here for the full review of the Magimix Compact 3200 XL
Vegan filling
So the pastry was easy, what about the filling? I wondered how I could get a lovely creamy consistency without using dairy so I decided to give Vegan Cream Cheese ‘Sheese’ Cheddar Style Spread a try. It’s pretty pricey at £3.39 for a 255g tub from Holland & Barrett, but it’s delicious and melted really nicely into the cooked mushrooms, walnuts and peppers. Honestly there’s so much flavour in this tart it’s wonderful. I think the filling would also make a fantastic stand-alone vegan pâté to spread on crusty bread.
Because the filling was going into a pastry case, I didn’t want it to be too wet so I made sure I cooked the mushrooms until most of the liquid had evaporated. Once it was done it’s just a case of pouring it into the pastry case and baking it for about 40 minutes until golden. I let it cool down completely before attempting to take it out of the tin and slicing it, as I wasn’t sure how it would hold together. But it was GREAT – really firm and stable.
Soooo if you’re vegan, or cooking for vegan friends, I really really recommend giving this a try!
A super tasty Vegan tart that's perfect for feeding a crowd
- 250 g plain flour
- 1.5 tbsp caster sugar
- 0.5 tsp salt
- 150 g vegan margarine
- 2 tbsp vegetable oil
- 3 tbsp cold water
- 4 shallots chopped
- 2 cloves garlic chopped
- 500 g chestnut mushrooms thinly sliced
- 1 handful thyme leaves picked
- 1 jar roasted red peppers in brine chopped
- 100 g walnut pieces
- 255 g tub vegan cream cheese cheddar style
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Put the flour, caster sugar and salt into the food processor, along with the vegan margarine and whizz up until it forms breadcrumbs.
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Whisk together the vegetable oil and cold water in a small bowl, and then gradually pour into the processor while it whizzes. Don't put it all in at once, just wait for the ball of dough to form and see how damp it's feeling. You can always add a bit more flour in if it goes too wet.
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Wrap the ball of pastry dough in cling film and chill in the fridge for 30 minutes or so.
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Roll it out in between two sheets of cling film until it's pound coin thickness and then press it into a greased 24cm round loose bottomed flan tin and pop it back in the fridge while you make the filling.
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Pre-heat the oven to 180C/160C fan/gas4. Heat a large frying pan and spray with vegetable oil, add the shallots and garlic and cook for a few minutes until soft.
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Add the mushrooms and thyme and cook until soft and the liquid has bubbled off. Add the red peppers and walnuts stirring thoroughly.
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Remove from the heat and stir in the vegan cream cheese until it melts in and combines with the vegetables.
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Take the pastry case out of the fridge and pour the mushroom filling in to form an even layer. Pop it on the middle shelf of the oven and bake for 35-40 minutes until the pastry is golden.
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Allow to cool before carefully taking it out of the tin and transferring it to a plate. Cut into 8 slices and serve with a selection of your favourite salad sides!
It’s not Slimming World friendly I’m afraid. If you divide it into 8 slices, it works out at 15 Syns per slice. So you could have it if you didn’t have any other Syns all day! I had a teeny tiny slice just to make sure it tasted good… and now I’ll let Matthew enjoy scoffing the rest.
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More vegan tarts to try…
Vegan Leek, Mushroom & Spinach Tart from Planet Veggie
Easy Mediterranean Tart from Tinned Tomatoes
Disclosure:
I have been sent the Magimix Compact 3200 XL for the purpose of this review. I get to keep the food processor, but rest assured all views expressed are my own.
This looks great Katie. Am always looking for vegan ideas! Such great instructions too, and i’m ever so slightly jealous at that Magimix. My very old processor is on its last legs, good to hear you’d recommend this.
Aw thanks Ceri! Yes it’s a great piece of kit – would def recommend!!!!
What a beautiful looking tart. We have some family coming over for lunch next Sunday and this looks like a great way to show them how delicious vegan food can be.
Thanks Dannii – yes it’s a total winner for entertaining and upselling a Vegan diet 🙂 xxx
Yum, I love vegan mushroom anything, especially if it involves pastry 🙂 I’m also after a food processor, so it’s good to get a recommendation.
Heheheh it’s a winning combo for sure Cathy! I’d def recommend this food processor, it’s super sturdy and you can just tell it’s going to be a total work horse in my kitchen.
Looks gorgeous! I think Steve would love this. I can never be bothered to make my own pastry but Steve does all of the time – you can definitely taste the difference x
I’ve never really been bothered before, but now I’ve seen how easy it is I’m converted!
That looks fabulous Katie. I will definitely try it. We go through tons of that vegan cream cheese. Graham loves it and I use it in so many dishes from pasta sauce, pate, to sandwiches, pasta sauce and even cheesecake. Thanks for linking to one of my tarts too Katie. Shared!
That cream cheese is ridiculously good isn’t it! If I was vegan I’d be ordering it in bulk!!!!