I am not vegan, nor do I claim to be, but I am fascinated by vegan cooking and baking. I am so impressed and have so much respect for those who can create something without the basics I rely on in my cooking, like eggs, butter, and flour. Over the summer, I briefly (three times) worked a Farmer's Market where I sold my own version of vegan cooking. This was one of the most popular items I made because the market started early in the morning and this makes a killer breakfast. Seriously, especially with the banana (which you should always eat because bananas are a superbly underrated super food), this gives you a serving a fruit and a serving of protein. I think of this as an alternative to a breakfast pastry, so rather than 400 calories and more sugar than you need in a week, why not try this? You can even heat up a slice to make a nice a toasty breakfast for those chilly fall and winter mornings. By the way, I only make this with almonds because I like the vanilla-y tang they provide for this dish- feel free to experiment with peanuts, hazelnuts, or any other nut you choose. The same measurements will, most likely, work for most choices. Same goes for the banana topping, this recipe vaguely makes me think of the amazing British dessert Banoffee Pie (banana toffee pie), so I like the flavor this adds to the dish, but any fruit you'd like would be great on this (I'd suggest blackberries).

Vegan Banana Almond Tart

This is a really strange-seeming recipe because the recipes for both the crust of this tart and the filling of this tart are exactly the same, they just have different textures. One of the most critical parts of vegan baking is texture.

Ingredients: (makes 1 tart)

- 6 cups of raw almonds

- 2 tablespoons of cinnamon

- 2 tablespoons of vanilla extract

- 1 cup of coconut oil (liquified)

- 2-3 bananas

- a pinch of salt

*this is optional: I don't add a sweetener to this because half of the almonds get soaked in water bringing out their natural sweetness and this is topped with a banana, which, when served at proper ripeness (they should be spotted with brown and a pure yellow color, rather than greenish yellow) are incredibly sweet on their own. However, if you would like to, add 3/4 cup of agave to this or 2 tablespoons and a teaspoon of Stevia or Splenda.

Method:

Begin taking 3 cups of your almonds and place them in a large bowl, covering them in water, covering the bowl in plastic wrap. Put this bowl into a warm place, preferably a microwave, and let it sit for a minimum of 4 hours. It is preferable to do this overnight to allow the almonds maximum time to soak.

Preheat your oven to 300 degrees Fahrenheit. For the crust, put your 3 cups of dry almonds with 1/4 cup of coconut oil, 1 tablespoon of vanilla, 1 tablespoon of cinnamon, and a pinch of salt into a blender. Blend until the almonds are roughly chopped (about 10-15 seconds). Line a pie or tart tin with wax paper, dump in the dry mixture, pressing it to the sides with your fingers. Make sure to get it all the way to the sides or this will be difficult to remove from the tin.

For the filling, drain your soaked almonds, placing them into a blender (retain a little bit of the water to add to the blender if you're having trouble mixing this). Then add 3/4 of coconut oil, 1 tablespoon vanilla, and 1 tablespoon of cinnamon to the blender. Mix this until it becomes a pudding-like consistency. If you know what frangipane looks like, think of that.

Pour the filling into the crust spreading it to the edges. Place the tin into the oven and bake for around 10-15 minutes, until there is a slight browning on the top of the filling (this is merely caramelizing the natural sugar in the almonds). Remove the tin and place in the fridge, allowing it to cool. Top with sliced bananas, serve immediately.