For this year’s Father’s Day dessert, I wanted to make something that wasn’t massively time consuming but that would be a great compliment to the rack of lamb that I was planning on making as the main dish. Last year I tackled the crème brûlée, which was a lot of fun, but this year I wanted to make a dessert that was equally as crowd pleasing but not nearly as heavy and regret-inducing.
That’s when I thought about the matcha panna cotta tart that I made not long ago and figured that I could make a few adjustments to it to really fit with the rest of the meal. I was dead set on this idea now, and made sure to start this in the morning so that it would have plenty of time to firm up in the fridge before dessert time. (As opposed to last time where I shoved it in the freezer as a last ditch effort to get it ready in time).
Once I discovered the ease of making pie crust in a food processor a few months ago, I could’t stop finding an excuse to make the stuff. I typically don’t make a lot of desserts because then I have to eat them, but for some reason the pie crust has withstood the test of time in my kitchen. This is especially surprising since I now know how much butter is in it and it’s a little shocking. This time around, I wanted to stray a little from the standard pie crust and opt for something a little more health conscious. I had some pecans lying around in the corner of my pantry, so I decided to use them to make a simple crust that I could feel okay about eating myself sick on. The result was a delicious nutty, crumbly crust that didn’t fall apart and was certainly enjoyed by all.
Makes 1 tart.
Ingredient List:
for the crust:
2 cups pecan halves
2 eggs
1 tsp salt
2 tsp sugar
for the panna cotta:
8 oz coconut milk
1 tbsp gelatin (aka one packet)
1 cup plain greek yogurt
1 tbsp sugar or baking splenda
1 tbsp honey
3 bags chamomile tea
raspberries + mint for garnish
Kitchen Tools:
food processor, spring form pan, whisk, small saucepan, rolling pin, non-stick spray
Prep Work:
Preheat oven to 400*F. Pulse your pecans, salt + sugar in your food processor until well combined. Add your eggs and pulse until fully incorporated. Spray the inside of your springform pan with non-stick spray and press about half of your pecan crust into the bottom until it’s evenly flat across the surface. Use the remaining half to press it into the sides of the pan to form the walls of the tart. Make the sides about an inch high.
Cooking:
Place crust in the oven and bake for about 15 minutes until dough is nicely browned. You may need to poke a few holes in the bottom with a fork if it begins to puff up. Feel free to use baking weights if you have them. Let crust fully cool before adding your panna cotta mixture.
While your crust is baking, whisk together coconut milk and gelatin in your saucepan until you can no longer see the gelatin granules. Turn on heat to medium low and add your tea bags. Heat and carefully whisk until it starts to bubble around the edges, making sure not to tear your tea bags, about 7 – 10 minutes. Add in honey and sugar and continue to gently whisk until sugar granules are dissolved. Remove tea bags and discard. Turn off heat, add greek yogurt and whisk until just combined.
Pour panna cotta mixture into your cooled tart shell and place in the fridge for at least 2-3 hours for the gelatin to set. If you need to quicken this process, you can pop it into the freezer for a bit. Just don’t leave it in there too long!
Assembly:
When gelatin is set, garnish however you want with raspberries and serve! (I used some lemon curd leftovers I had as well as some oregano flowers from the garden).
Tips + Tricks:
*if you’re in a time crunch, set the tart in your freezer for at most 45 minutes to let the gelatin firm up.
