Aquafaba Explained & Raspberry Coconut Macaroon Tart

It took longer than I would like to admit to start using aquafaba in my egg-free recipes…I was certainly missing out on a lot. I wasn’t convinced that the bean flavor wouldn’t appear in the finished dessert…a mistaken assumption I am happy to admit.

For those of you new to this vegan dessert miracle discovery, Aquafaba means water (aqua) and bean (faba), essentially referring to the liquid that beans, most of the time chickpeas, is cooked in. It’s not sure why yet, but this liquid replicates the characteristics of eggs helping to bind ingredients as well as foaming and thickening. You can use the water from canned chickpeas or the liquid from cooking the chickpeas yourselves at home.

Aquafaba is now my absolute favorite egg-replacer especially in a traditional recipe calling for egg whites. As for whole eggs…I continue to use a “flax egg” or “chia egg. however, instead of the 3 tablespoons water and 1 tablespoon flax or chia, I’m using 2-3 tablespoons aquafaba. The flax or chia act as the egg yolk and the aquafaba replaces the egg whites.

Here is an estimate of the amount of aquafaba you need when replacing eggs:

One whole egg = 1 tablespoon ground flax or chia mixed with 2-3 tablespoons aquafaba

One egg white = 2 tablespoons aquafaba

One egg yolk = 1/2 tablespoon ground flax or chia mixed with 1 tablespoon aquafaba

Other benefits to using aquafaba to replace eggs:

It is safer relative to eggs with a lower risk of egg-associated illnesses such as salmonella.
It is more economical as you are using a food item that you would have normally thrown away
Unlike eggs, when whipped, you don’t run the risk of over-whipping, and can even re-whip if needed later on.

The best consistency of aquafaba is similar to egg-whites…you don’t want it to be watery…but not too thick like jelly either. It needs to be somewhere in between. Since I buy my aquafaba from the local “Chickpea and Beans” store for 50fils, it’s at the correct consistency. If it’s too thin then heat in a saucepan until it is reduced by about 25%, then cool before using. And if it’s too thick add some water. Don’t worry about it too much, there is no perfect consistency, just make sure you have something as close as possible to egg whites. Leftovers can be stored in the fridge for up to 1 week, or frozen.

In the recipe below I used aquafaba to create a meringue what was a filling for a tart. It is best to whip the aquafaba while cold. And when creating a foam as you would for meringue you need to add an acidic component. I use cream of tartar but lemon juice can also be used, however I’ve never tried myself. For each 1/2 cup of aquafaba you will need about 1/2 teaspoon cream of tartar or 2 teaspoons lemon juice.

Of course you can’t make meringue without adding sweetness. Although several types can be used, for the best consistency and to keep the white color I would use finely ground sugar or powdered sugar. And it’s best to add the sugar slowly while whipping.

Now you can add any flavor you like such as vanilla, or rose water…or add some cacao powder to make chocolate meringues and bake them as is. However I’m not a big fan of eating baked meringue as is….I prefer to incorporate it into a dessert like with the recipe below. Compared to egg-white meringue, baked aquafaba meringue turns moist and sticky after a while.

For more information about egg replacers in baking download my Guilt-Free Desserts ebook which has 5 exclusive recipes you won’t find here on the blog.

On to the recipe!

This is that perfect any time of day recipe. The oats and raspberry jam give it a breakfast-y feel, but it works perfectly well in the afternoon with a cup of tea, or served for dessert at a dinner party.

I’ve adapted this recipe from the book A Modern Way to Eat by Anna Jones – a lovely cookbook with over 200 vegetarian recipes. I changed her Cherry and Rose Water Macaroon Tart recipe to make it vegan and gluten-free. The main change though is the use of Aquafaba to replace the egg whites. I love when I find recipes that use egg whites, because with Aquafaba it’s so easy to make it vegan.

Now if you’re not vegan, but like the sound of those flavors (coconut, rose water and raspberry yes please!) then just use egg whites…you will need the whites from 4 large eggs and you leave out using the cream of tartar.

Other alternatives and replacements for the ingredients below…

I used raspberries and raspberry jam…I also made it with fresh figs when they were in season with fig jam…but preferred raspberries. You could use fresh strawberries and strawberry jam, but I would only use the fresh strawberries as a topping and not add them to the meringue as they can get watery. Of course you can leave out the fresh fruit all together and just use the jam. Speaking of jam…you can also make your own chia jam if you like for an added nutritional boost.

I used gluten-free oats ground to make a flour for the crust. If you have buckwheat flour, I would expect it would also work, but I haven’t tried. If you don’t have an issue with gluten then use any type of whole-grain flour such as spelt or whole-wheat. You can use rye, but it has a strong flavor. I would avoid flours such as quinoa or coconut though.

You can use coconut oil but I prefer it chilled and then pulsed with the dry ingredients. If your coconut oil is not already cold, scoop out the required amount and place in a small bowl and chill in the fridge until firm. Then cut up into pieces before adding it into the food processor.

Don’t have cream of tartar? Use 2 teaspoons lemon juice instead.

Now for the sugar…I use coconut sugar in the base, but chose to use cane sugar in the topping to keep it a nice white color. If you don’t mind the change in color go ahead and use coconut sugar in the topping, but make sure to grind it first. You can use cane sugar in the base too, but avoid any liquid sweeteners in either the base or the topping as it will mess up the dry to liquid ratio of the recipe.

Now let’s get baking!

Aquafaba Explained & Raspberry Coconut Macaroon Tart

Cook Time: 0min

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Ingredients:

Tart Base

200g oat flour
1 teaspoon cardamom powder (optional)
100g coconut sugar
1/4 teaspoon salt
80g coconut oil, chilled
1/4 cup cold water

Filling & Topping

120ml aquafaba, chilled
3/4 teaspoon cream of tartar
1/3 cup (80g) cane sugar (I used Layla Sugar from Natureland)
2 teaspoons rose water
11/3cups (100g) desiccated coconut
1 cup (100g) fresh raspberries
1/2 cup all-fruit raspberry jam (or chia jam)
1/4 cup chopped pistachios

Instructions:

To make the base

Pre-heat the oven to 375F or 190C and line a 9inch springform pan or loose-bottom tart pan with parchment paper. Brush the sides with a little bit of coconut oil. Place on a baking sheet and set aside.
Place the oat flour, cardamom, sugar, and salt and pulse to combine and break down the sugar.
Add the chilled coconut oil in chunks and pulse until it breaks down to pea size pieces or smaller. Slowly add the cold water and pulse a few times. Stop and check to see if the mixture sticks together when you press it with your fingers. If yes then it’s ready to use. Otherwise add a little more water and pulse again just until the mixture holds together.
Transfer the mixture to the prepared pan, and press down with your fingers and up the sides about 2cm (1 inch). Bake for 10-15 until. It won’t brown much since it’s already brown, but will no longer seem wet.
Let cool while you make the filling. Keep the oven on.

To the make the filling

Place the aquafaba in a medium bowl with the cream of tartar, and beat with a hand-held or stand mixer for a few minutes until frothy. Slowly add the sugar 1 tablespoon at a time, mixing for a minute on high speed between each addition. Continue beating until the aquafaba has formed a glossy meringue with stiff peaks…don’t worry you can’t overheat aquafaba.
Now fold in the rose water followed by the coconut until incorporated. Finally add two thirds of the raspberries reserving the rest for the top.
Bake for about 30mins until the edges turn golden brown. Let cool then add the raspberries and chopped pistachios. Slice and enjoy!

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