Making good – and we mean good – pasta frolla (shortcrust pastry) without butter and eggs is not impossible, but it’s no picnic either.
So what were we thinking of doing? Obviously, to raise the stakes, creating a pasta frolla that is not only vegan, but also gluten free, with reduced sugar and fat content. All this without giving up on an amazing flavour and texture.
Be a Saint Thomas and try it to believe. Amen.
We couldn’t resist the temptation to make a pastry that tasted good and was healthy at the same time. So, after several attempts, we achieved a truly satisfactory result in terms of taste, plasticity, ease of execution and shelf life.
As the title suggests, the recipe is inspired by Suspiria, Dario Argento’s cinematographic masterpiece, which we reviewed in this article.
This is certainly a personal interpretation, which we may or may not agree with, but we believe it is important to respect a person’s creative vision, in the kitchen as in other areas.
We thought of the tarts because this pastry, in our eyes, inevitably calls to mind Susy, the protagonist of the film: delicate and feminine, but at the same time decisive, not anonymous or frivolous; moreover, in the film there are many fairy-tale references and, among many memories, we remembered the blueberry tart prepared by Snow White for the seven dwarfs.
Find below the instructions for 3 tarts (ø12 cm aluminium mould) and some extra biscuits.
Preparation time
1 h
Cooking method and time
Convection oven at 180°C (356°F) for 10-12 minutes.
Storage
For 5-6 days, inside a hermetic container or under a cake cover.
They can be frozen, taking care to leave them to defrost it at room temperature for about 1 hour; in this case the consistency will understandably be a little softer, but still good.
Ingredients
– 150 g gluten-free cake flour;
– 50 g corn flour;
– 40 g peeled almonds;
– 8 g baking powder;
– 1 pinch iodized salt;
– 40 g maple syrup (grade A);
– 70 g deodorised coconut oil (organic);
– 60 g natural almond drink (organic and with no added sugar);
– as much raspberry jam or other jam to taste (no added sugar).
Caution: for people with coeliac disease, all ingredients with risk of contamination must be gluten-free certified.
Useful information before cooking
- We use coconut oil, a saturated fat, which will be of great help when working with and rolling out the shortcrust pastry as it will give structure and plasticity to the dough; remember, this is a dough made from gluten-free flour, which therefore requires some basic technical precautions.
As already mentioned, although this oil has a high level of saturated fatty acids, it is still a medium-chain fatty acid and has many beneficial properties (improved brain function and cognitive ability, support for the immune system, increased absorption of calcium in the intestine, balancing of hormones, anti-inflammatory, antibacterial and antifungal properties, etc.).
However, this does not mean that it is wise to consume large quantities every day: as with any food, moderation is always the best way to go.
- The baking powder will make the shortcrust pastry even more crumbly.
- Almond drink in its natural state will give the shortcrust a slight milk-like taste; using it cold from the fridge will help the coconut oil to solidify. In this case, we would not recommend using another vegetable drink simply because the fatty component from the almonds is useful for balancing the structure of our gluten-free shortcrust pastry.
N.B.
Digitalis Purpurea™ points out that no nutritional information in this article can replace medical advice, as each individual has unique physiological characteristics which, in the event of deficiencies or illnesses, must be necessarily checked by a general practitioner or specialist.
Therefore, the information published in this article is for information purposes only and should not be regarded as medical advice, a medical prescription or any other kind of prescription.
Instructions
1.
Put the coconut oil in a cup; if it is solid, to let it melt, put the cup inside a container full of hot water. From time to time, stir with a teaspoon to speed up the process. When it has completely melted, it is very important not to use it hot, but to let it cool down, because this will allow us to work better the shortcrust pastry. If you need it, put the cup in the previous container for a few minutes, filling it this time with cold water; but be careful: don’t leave it to its fate, otherwise, it will solidify again and you will have to start all over again.
2.
Place the gluten-free cake flour and cornflour in a large bowl, add the baking powder and sift it through a sieve. With the help of a mixer, grind the peeled almonds into flour and add it to the previous powdered ingredients, together with a pinch of salt.
3.
Add the maple syrup to the coconut oil and, although they will not blend together, mix them a little.
4.
Now, mix the liquids with the solids and add ¾ of the natural almond drink (cold); not all of it because it will depend on the gluten-free flour mix you are using: it may require more or less liquid, so please add it with caution, as you can always add the remaining part if necessary.
Knead quickly so as not to heat the dough too much and as soon as it is cohesive and homogeneous divide it into two parts, which you will put in the fridge for 15 minutes, wrapped in cling film; in the meantime, take the opportunity to clean the work surface.
5.
At the end of this short break, take one of the two parts of the dough; leave the other one to rest further in the fridge because you will use it later. Using a rolling pin, roll out the shortcrust pastry on a sheet of baking paper until it is about 5 millimetres thick.
Now, put the (ø12 cm) mould for tarts on the pastry and press it well; remove the excess dough, turn the mould upside down and gently push the dough towards the bottom, without pressing too much; it is not necessary to oil the mould or use baking paper.
Fill the base of the tarts with your favourite jam, taking care not to go over the edge (about 3-4 teaspoons); we have chosen to use raspberry jam, but of course they are also delicious with blueberry jam, peach jam, berry jam, etc. In the meantime, preheat the oven to 180°C (356°F), in fan mode.
Knead what was left several times and, with the remaining dough, make strips to arrange in the usual grid shape, other tarts and/or biscuits until there is no more shortcrust pastry. Being gluten-free, it may be necessary to knead what was left several times. But don’t worry: with the quantities we recommend, the shortcrust pastry will always come together. If you want to increase/decrease the quantities, remember to respect the proportions; otherwise the recipe will not work.
6.
Bake the tarts and biscuits in a preheated convection oven at 180°C (356°F) for 10-12 minutes; do not get too distracted and do not leave the oven: time is crucial in this recipe. After 10 minutes do the toothpick test, both on the edges and in the central part of the tart: the toothpick should come out well clean and dry from the edges and slightly dirty, but tending to dry, in the middle (consider the presence of jam); if necessary bake for another 2 minutes, but keep an eye on them. The biscuits, however, should already be cooked and lightly browned; remove them from the oven.
7.
When cooked, open the oven door all the way and let the tarts dry on the grill for 5 minutes. Then remove them from the oven and let them cool for at least 30 minutes before tasting, so that the shortcrust pastry has time to rest.
We hope that baking these tarts will bring you the same joy that we have in our hearts every time we bake them.
What about you? What dish would you prepare to pay homage to this beautiful film?
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