Blicky Bassy Apple Tart

This is my birthday week.  Everyone gets one now, so I want a piece.  I’ve even seen posts where people refer to their birthday months, but I’m not sure I have the balls to try that out just yet.

Add birthdays to a lengthening Easter fest, an extended American style Halloween, two months of Christmas and various other celebrations that seem to appear, and the pleasure ride never ends.

Pretty soon we’ll all be having ecstatic endless days of end to end joy, climate change and societal breakdown aside obviously, without having to worry about a boring, normal, run-of-the-mill day ever again.  Which makes me wonder when I’ll ever have the time to fit things in.

However, being the trooper I am, I’ve just about managed to cobble together a sweet tart with no dairy or wheat.

The topping was good but not as much of a revelation as the base according to my wife, who has had to avoid wheat due to its ability to annoy her stomach.  The revelation being that it’s better than a lot of the other pretend pastry she has had since being forced from wheat.

I haven’t made it dairy free because I’m looking to hop on to the very honourable vegan bandwagon.  It’s just my youngest is not able to eat it due to an ongoing stomach complaint.

If you have a nut allergy then this one isn’t for you.  I’m not avoiding all allergens.  This isn’t purgatory, and no one in the family has an allergy to them so far.  Fingers very much crossed.

I used the following ratios for the base, though you may want to build up the water, and add more if your pastry isn’t holding together:

• 58% Rice Flour
• 17% Fine Oatbran
• 25% Margarine (I used Stork)
• 10% Water
• 42% Caster Sugar

I baked this blind for 10 minutes on around 180 with a fan oven, until it’s just turning light brown.

For the first layer I used Oatly Creme Fraiche, grated orange peel, icing sugar and some vanilla essence.

I then mixed some ground almonds and some funky unrefined sugar called Colombian Panela I was given a while back, then sprinkled it so that it covered the first layer.

For the top layer I asked my son to decoratively place some apple slices, cut and splashed with apple brandy and a tablespoon or so of rapeseed oil. It was then lightly covered with icing sugar and baked for around 10 minutes.

We ate half hot and runny and weren’t too worried about it falling apart, but the other half went in the fridge to form.

So, that was happy “birthday eve” to me from me. It happened two days after I went out for some drinks for my birthday with friends. The “opening ceremony” of my birthday week.

What about Blick Bassy, I hear you cry, what was all that about? Well I had a lovely day on my actual birthday culminating in a wonderful, life affirming concert by the Cameroon musician Blick Bassy. It was in the intimate surroundings of St Pancras Old Church and we went home buzzing. Look out for him.

But, oh what a birthday! When would the fun stop?

The day after it seems.