Mini Raw Apple Tarts

 I went apple picking with a friend recently, and came home with 6 lbs of little organic Fuji apples.  For some reason, apple picking has always felt like the "welcome to autumn" activity, and now it officially feels like fall.  (Especially when I am currently living somewhere that is hot for this time of year).  I miss Oregon fall season--the cool weather, rain and falling leaves this time of year.  I also had three apple trees in our backyard growing up, and though they were small, misshapen tart little ones, they produced a great applesauce or apple pie.

Though the apples I picked are good plain, they honestly aren't amazing; I'm an apple snob and Fujis are not usually my variety of choice.  I also learned the hard way they do not produce the tastiest dried apples.  They do however, cook well and I was curious to see how the perform in a raw dessert with other flavors enhancing the fresh apple taste.  The verdict?  Amazing!  My husband even exclaimed it tastes like apple pie, and with the "crumb" topping, it is similar to a crumb-topped apple pie.  I made four little mini tarts in this super convenient Chicago Metallic 4 Cavity Tartlett Pan, 10.60 by 9.90 by 1.30-Inch (the removable bottoms make it so easy to get the tarts/pies out), but you can use a regular sized pie pan to make one large one as well.

*to make them truly raw, you can use dried vanilla bean instead of vanilla extract and ground sunflower seeds instead of oats unless you have access to raw rolled oats, and raw honey instead of maple.  See bottom of page for additional substitutions!

Mini Apple Tarts
yields 4

Ingredients:

Crust:
1 cup dried mulberries
1/2 cup dates
1/2 cup almonds
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
dash sea salt
1-2 tablespoons filtered water as needed

Filling:
2-1/2 to 3 small apples
1/4 cup dates
2 teaspoons ground chia seeds
3/4 teaspoon cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon allspice

Topping:
1/2 cup roughly ground sunflower seeds or oats
1/2 cup almonds
2 teaspoons pue maple syrup
1 teaspoon melted coconut oil
1/4 teaspoon cinnamon

Directions:

1.  Spritz or rub a mini tart or regular pie or tart pan with oil of choice.  I used a Misto Brushed Aluminum Olive Oil Sprayer with olive oil for convenience, but rubbing coconut oil in the pan works perfectly too.  Set aside.

2.  Pulse the seeds or oats with the almonds in a food processor or chop with a knife until they are crumbly and coarse.  Stir in the remaining topping ingredients until it looks like a yummy granola.  Set aside.

pulse oats and almonds together until crumbly, not fine

Mix all topping ingredients together

Stir until mixed well and resembles granola

3.  In a food processor or similar device, mix the mulberries, dates and almonds, vanilla, cinnamon and sea salt until it comes together like raw cookie dough.  Add a little water if necessary for dough to stick together.  Press this mixture into the bottom and up the sides of the dish you are using.

either white or purple-black mulberries will do!

4.  Peel and very thinly slice the apples.  I did this by hand; some food processors have an attachment to create very thinly sliced items, but I didn't mind if they weren't perfect; some pieces were thicker and I liked the varying texture.  Set aside.
5.  Puree the dates, cinnamon, allspice, ground chia all together with 1 to 1-1/2 of the apples.  It should be like a chunky applesauce.  Scrape down the sides as needed to get it as combined and smooth as possible.

6.  Mix the filling mixture with the remaining sliced apples, coating it well.

7.  Divide the filling/apples amongst the mini pans or place it all into your one large pan.  Top with the topping.  Freeze for 20 minutes to set, and store frozen.  Let thaw in the fridge or at room temperature just until the apples unfreeze but it is still chilled and set.  Also, you can freeze them and zap it in the microwave for a few seconds until the apples defrost if you're in a hurry.  We only have one left so I can tell you they keep for three days at least; they very well may keep longer and I'll update this with the exact maximum storage time if we can keep them around longer than a few days!

Alternate ingredients:
-Raw honey can be used instead of maple syrup
-I used gluten-free oats in the topping, but other seeds or regular oats work well too
-Almonds may be replaced with sunflower or pumpkin seeds for a nut-free option
-The chia seeds may be omitted in the filling though it may seem a little thinner (and with less protein!)
-Raisins or cranberries may be used in place of mulberries; I had just recently purchased an overpriced bag of organic dried mulberries from Whole Foods, so that's the only reason I didn't use another dried fruit.

This is the Misto I use to have a non-aerosol way of spritzing my pans with avocado or olive oil.
I love it!  Also, Amazon sells organic mulberries too if your local store does not.  Use the links below if you're interested to help me out and enable me to continue with my free recipes and sites!

This is 2-day old still delicious raw apple tart--perfect with chai tea!

Fresh apple tarts: gluten-free, vegan and raw!