Maids of honour, also known as Richmond maids of honour, are traditional English tarts that date back to the 16th Century. They were reputedly a favourite of Henry VIII. Unlike some of his other favourites, they thrived, and are still around today, despite the fact that he was supposed to have tried to lock the recipe away (it was either the recipe or the cook) to keep it for himself.
Traditionally, these are made with curd cheese, and this recipe for vegan maids of honour uses the plant-based go-to for all things creamy and cheesy: cashew nuts. It’s an especially easy recipe, using shop-bought puff pastry, and the filling ingredients are simply mixed together in one bowl.
The baking time is just 15 minutes, and they’re equally good eaten warm or left to cool. The recipe is for 24 tarts, but they’re quite addictive and tend to go fast.
Lemon juice and zest give the creamy cashew filling a cheese-cakey tang. Some recipes add lemon curd or jam or raisins, but I think these are best at their simplest.
vegan maids of honour…
ingredients
- 375 g puff pastry (ideally the ready-rolled kind)
- 100 g vegan margarine
- 90 g icing (confectioner’s) sugar
- 120 g cashew nuts
- zest of a large lemon and 35 ml juice
- 60 ml oat or other non-dairy milk
- 20 g ground almonds
- 40 g self-raising flour
method
- Set the oven to 180°C/360°F and prepare a shallow bun tin or tins – enough for 24 tarts. Unless you are absolutely confident of its non-stick credentials, lightly oil and line the base of the tin with disks of baking paper. This sounds fiddly, but it takes a couple of minutes and will save time when it comes to lifting the tarts out of the tin.
- If you’re using unrolled puff pastry, roll it to a thickness of 2-3mm. Stamp out disks (I used a 7 cm cutter for the pictured tarts) and press these into the bun tin.
- Warm the margarine a little in the microwave (not essential but makes it easier to mix). Then add the sugar and mix thoroughly with a spoon or whisk until it’s smooth and light.
- Grind the cashew nuts in a grinder/processor until they resemble ground almonds.
- Add the cashew nuts to the margarine and sugar mixture, together with the lemon juice and zest. Mix thoroughly.
- Add the oat milk and mix again.
- Lastly, add the ground almonds and sift in the flour. Stir these through until thoroughly combined.
- Transfer the mixture to the cases using two teaspoons. You can level them a little but leave a gap around the edge for the pastry to expand.
- Bake for around 15 minutes. They will puff up and turn golden brown, then sink back a little when removed from the oven.
- Remove them to a cooling rack once they’re cool enough to handle. They can be eaten warm or cold, and will also store for a day or two in an airtight tin once cool.
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