This savoury tart with Italian accents brings together a crisp base of cashews and balsamic vinegar, cherry tomatoes confit like sun-dried ones, and a creamy macadamia nut cheese. The finely sliced, marinated fennel adds an aniseed note that recalls Mediterranean cooking. The recipe calls for several stages of dehydrating, but each element can be prepared in advance. An ideal centrepiece for a meal with friends.
Raw fennel and cherry tomato tartlets with macadamia cheese
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Organic fennel seeds
€19.00
Ingredients
For the tart base
- 240 g cashews
- 65 g pine nuts
- 2 tablespoons ground flaxseed
- 2 teaspoons Italian seasoning
- 1 crushed garlic clove
- 1 tablespoon nutritional yeast
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 1 teaspoon balsamic vinegar
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 3 tablespoons water
For the tomatoes
- 450 g cherry tomatoes
- 3 tablespoons olive oil
- 2 tablespoons basil
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
For the macadamia cheese
- 135 g macadamia nuts
- 1 tablespoon lemon juice
- 1 tablespoon nutritional yeast
- 2 tablespoons onion
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
For the fennel
- 90 g fennel
- 3 tablespoons olive oil
- 1 tablespoon nama shoyu
- 2 tablespoons honey
Method
- For the tart base, blend all the ingredients in a food processor until even, leaving a little bite in the nuts.
- Press the mixture into individual tartlet moulds lined with cling film, forming a thin wall: dipping your fingers in water now and then makes this easier.
- Set the bases on a mesh sheet and dehydrate at 46 °C for 2 hours, until they are firm enough to turn out. Then carry on drying them out of their moulds for another 6 hours.
- Slice the cherry tomatoes and let them marinate in the olive oil and the salt for at least an hour, or overnight.
- Transfer the tomatoes to a tray and dehydrate at 46 °C for 1 hour.
- For the macadamia cheese, blend all the ingredients in the processor until airy.
- Slice the fennel finely on a mandoline and let it marinate in the olive oil, the nama shoyu and the honey for at least an hour, or overnight.
- Dehydrate the fennel for 1 hour.
- To serve, lay a layer of fennel in each tartlet, add the tomatoes on top and scatter with crumbled macadamia cheese.
Tip
Nama shoyu, an unpasteurised soy sauce, can be replaced with tamari without difficulty if you cannot find it. Assemble at the last moment: a raw tart base absorbs the moisture from the filling within an hour and loses all its crispness.
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FAQ: your questions about raw fennel tartlets with macadamia cheese
How do you make plant-based cheese?
The basic principle comes down to three elements: soaked nuts, an acid and salt. Macadamia, cashew or blanched almonds give the finest textures. You blend at length with a little water, lemon and nutritional yeast, until you have a smooth cream. For a truly aged cheese, you need to add a starter and let it rest for a day or two.
What is the recipe for a plant-based cheese alternative?
135 g of macadamia nuts soaked for two hours, one tablespoon of lemon juice, one of nutritional yeast, two of onion and half a teaspoon of salt. Blend until airy, scraping down the sides of the bowl. Chilled for a few hours, this alternative firms up and crumbles like a feta.
How do you prepare raw fennel in a salad?
The secret is how finely you cut it: on a mandoline, in almost transparent slices, fennel loses its stringy side. An hour of marinating in olive oil with something acid or salty tenderises it further. Keep the green fronds, snipped over the top, as they bring the aniseed scent the bulb alone does not have.
What is the recipe for a fennel marinade?
Three tablespoons of olive oil, one of unpasteurised90 g of sliced fennel. The salt in the sauce draws water from the vegetable, the oil keeps it from drying out, the honey balances the aniseed. An hour is enough; a whole night gives an almost confit fennel.
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