This easy gluten-free tart crust comes together in under an hour with 8 ingredients. It looks super pro and tastes like a buttery shortbread cookie!This recipe makes enough for one 9-inch round tart, one 12x4-inch rectangular tart, or six 4-inch tartlet crusts. The hardest thing about this recipe is pressing the tart evenly into the pan; it takes me about 10 minutes to make it look pretty. Don’t forget to press the hot crust with the back of a spoon to help it hold together when cut, otherwise it will be very crumbly and delicate.
¼teaspoon+ 1⁄8 teaspoon fine sea salt (decrease to ¼ teaspoon if using salted butter or plant butter)
6tablespoons(85 g) cold, unsalted butter or plant butter, in 1⁄2-inch cubes
1teaspoonGF vanilla extract
Instructions
Prepare things
Position a rack in the center of the oven and preheat to 350ºF.
Make the tart dough
In the bowl of a food processor (or a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment) combine the almond, sweet rice, and oat flours with the tapioca starch, sugar and salt.
Scatter the butter pieces over the top and drizzle with the vanilla extract. Run the mixer until the dough forms moist clumps and the butter is fully incorporated, 20-30 seconds, pulsing as you near the end so as not to over-process the dough. If using a stand mixer, run on medium-low until the dough comes together, 3–5 minutes.
If the dough refuses to come together or seems dry after thorough mixing, add up to 1 tablespoon more cold butter or plant butter. Or try adding a few drops of cold water or a little beaten egg or egg yolk. (I've never had this happen, but a few readers have!)
Shape
Spray a 9-inch loose bottom tart pan (or six 4-inch tartlet pans) with 1-inch high sides lightly with cooking oil. Dump about half of the crumbs into the pan and press the dough evenly into the sides of the pan. Add the remaining crumbs and press them into the bottom, keeping the edges square. (It takes me about 10 minutes to make it look pretty.)
Bake
Place the tart pan on a rimmed baking sheet and bake until pale golden and firm to the touch (15–20 minutes) for a parbaked crust, or until golden all over (5–10 minutes longer) for a fully baked crust. (If making tartlets, decrease the overall baking time by 5–10 minutes.)
Press
Remove the crust from the oven and, while it’s still hot, press the sides and bottom firmly with the back of a spoon or a cup; this will help it hold together when cool.
Proceed with your tart recipe.
Video
Notes
* You can swap ¼ cup + 2 tablespoons coconut sugar or maple sugar (50 g) for the granulated sugar for refined sugar-free. Make-Ahead options: The crust can be wrapped and frozen, before baking or after, for up to a month or two. If unbaked, bake the crust from frozen, increasing the baking time by a few minutes. If the crust is baked or parbaked, refresh it in a 350ºF oven before proceeding with your recipe.Chocolate Tart Crust: Use ½ cup (45 g) cocoa powder (preferably Dutch-process) in place of the oat flour and decrease the butter to 5 tablespoons (70 g). Since the dough is dark, it can be difficult to tell when the crust is done, so do set a timer and look closely for edges that are beginning to darken and pull away from the sides of the pan. If the chocolate begins to smell at all burnt, remove the crust immediately.Nutrition values are for 1 of 8 servings.