A non-dairy torta: fresh plums in a nut crust with a citrus honey glaze

One of this weekend’s clients is lactose intolerant, so the meal had to be dairy free, other than fully ripened cheeses. That’s not as simple as you might think. Italian desserts, for example, largely do have milk, cream, butter, mascarpone or ricotta in them.

I juggled some recipes to pull off this easy dessert that they all liked very much. It’s very toasted walnut in essence when it’s done.

The crust:

Preheat the oven to 180°C or 350°F

.5 cup lard (butter is the usual fat here, so feel free)
1/3 cup brown sugar, packed
1.25 cups of plain flour
1/4 teaspoon of salt
1/4 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 cup chopped walnuts– the last of the old crop and the new ones will be ready any day now.

Using a mixer, whip the lard and brown sugar together until well-blended. Add the flour, salt and baking soda and mix well. Stir in the nut meats.

In hindsight I will tell you to grease a pie or tart pan, because this crunchy crust fell apart when I cut and served it. Anyway, press the mixture with your hands into the greased pan, and put it into the oven for 15 to 20 minutes. It will look like a nut cookie.

Just before you want to serve it, make the honey glaze using:

.5 cup honey
the grated rind of one lemon
the juice of 1/2 lemon
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon

Put them all in a pan and bring to a simmer and allow to simmer for a few minutes. Keep an eye on it so it doesn’t catch on and burn. You may be able to cut the plums while it cooks, or you may need to take it off the heat before the plums are ready. I guess it depends how fast you are with a knife.

You need a little less than a pound of plums. Cut in half about eight Stanley prune plums, remove the stones and cut the plums into nice crescents, about 3 per half plum. Arrange the plum crescents in overlapping circles to completely cover the crust. Pour the hot honey glaze over everything. Serve with a little pitcher of heavy cream for the dairy tolerant.

Sorry, no photos, because once again, I get way too busy when I’m working. Photos happen at home when it’s only me to worry about, or willing victims.