Orange Poppy Seed Tart

Orange Poppy Seed Tart
Tart with a crispy oats-almond crust, creamy poppy seed filling and orange curd topping
Course Dessert
Cuisine Austrian
Category dairy-free, vegan
Jump to Recipe

Does the smell of poppy seeds make your mouth water? Does the taste of poppy seeds please your palate? And you don’t mind having a little poppy seed smile either? Then I can strongly recommend you this tart.

I love poppy seeds.

  • Braided poppy seed bread for breakfast (we call it Mohnflesserl in Austria)
  • Potato noodles with melted butter and poppy seeds or yeast dumpling filled with plum jam topped with poppy seeds for launch (we call it Mohnnudeln and Germknödel)
  • Rolled sweet bread filled with poppy seeds at tea time (we call it Mohnschnecken)
  • Soft pretzel sticks topped with poppy seeds as an evening snack (we call it Mohnlaugenstangerl)

Something with poppy seeds is always a good idea. When I started baking, it was clear for me, that I have to make a tart with a thick layer of poppy seed filling. Everything homemade, of course.


Poppy seeds do not taste if whole. Only when you grind them, the precious oil and its taste is released. When you grind poppy seeds by yourself, you can choose whatever consistency you like. Do you like it fine and creamy? Or do you like it coarse, so that you can still feel the poppy seeds?

The poppy seed filling is covered with a thin layer of fruity orange curd. The freshly grated orange peel gives it its intense taste and nice color. The taste of orange fits perfectly with the taste of poppy seeds. If you prefer, you can also put lemon curd on top. You will find a recipe for lemon curd in the post of my “Dark Chocolate Lemon Tart”.

As with my other tarts, this one also has a delicious crispy crust. It is made from rolled oats and almonds and sweetened with some maple syrup. If you like the crust to be more soft and less crispy, then try the no-bake version by skipping the bake step.


For the crust you need to blend the rolled oats and the almonds into a loose coarse meal. Therefore, you will need a high-speed blender or a food processor. Take care that you will not process too long. Otherwise, a very sticky marzipan-like dough will form.

Use whole poppy seeds to prepare the poppy seed filling. There are several varieties of poppy seeds. The so called Waldviertler Graumohn from Austria (gray poppy seeds) have a very mild taste and do perfectly suit for sweet dishes. Blue poppy seeds have a very intense taste and are used to sprinkle bread like Mohnflesserl or buns. White poppy seeds have an intense nutty taste and do also suit well for sweet dishes. Soak the poppy seeds overnight or in hot water for one to two hours. Afterwards, wash the poppy seeds thoroughly under hot running water. Poppy seeds are harvested from the dried capsules of poppies. Unless the other parts of the plant, poppy seeds themselves do not contain any alkaloids (narcotics). But they can be contaminated during harvest. By washing off the poppy seeds, any residues can be further reduced1.

You need fresh organic oranges for the curd, as the peel is used. The oranges should also be fresh so that they still contain a lot of juice. Wash the oranges off thoroughly to get rid of the natural wax layer which forms on oranges and other ripe citrus fruits. If you like, you can also use the orange pulp. The orange pulp contains further valuable vitamins and nutrients. In this case, you can use the preparation method as described for the lemon curd of my “Dark Chocolate Lemon Tart”.

I garnished the tart with whole almonds, which have been caramelized with maple syrup. And I also had a few candied chocolate-coated ginger pieces lying around. There is always something you will find in your pantry.


Do you like the recipe? Or do you know someone who would love it? Then please share it with your friends.

Did you try the recipe? Then please post a photo of it on Instagram and mention @andacupofcoffee.blog.

Enjoy,
Gerald

andacupofcoffee.com
recipes for awesome and mind-blowing food


Orange Poppy Seed Tart

Tart with a crispy oats-almond crust, creamy poppy seed filling and orange curd topping
Preparation 30 minutes
Cook/Bake 30 minutes
Chill 1 hour
Total 2 hours
Course Dessert
Cuisine Austrian
Servings 8 people
Calories 565 kcal

Equipment

  • Tart pan with removable bottom (Ø 24 cm)
  • High-speed blender or food processor

Ingredients
  

Tart Crust

  • 175 g rolled oats
  • 75 g whole almonds
  • 75 g rapeseed oil or melted coconut oil
  • 3 tbsp maple syrup
  • 2 tbsp cocoa powder optional

Poppy Seed Filling

  • 150 g whole poppy seeds soaked overnight
  • 100 g cashews soaked overnight
  • 100 ml maple syrup
  • 50 g rapeseed oil or melted coconut oil
  • 3 tbsp orange juice take from ingredients of the orange curd

Orange Curd

  • 2 pcs organic oranges zest and juice
  • 100 ml unsweetened almond milk or other non-dairy milk
  • 2 tbsp maple syrup
  • tbsp corn starch
  • 1 tsp turmeric optional, just for the color

Instructions
 

Tart Crust

  • Preheat oven to 180 °C / 350 °F top and bottom heat. For no-bake simply skip this step.
  • Add almonds and rolled oats into a high-speed blender or food processor and pulse until a coarse meal is formed.
    75 g whole almonds, 175 g rolled oats
  • Add oil, maple syrup and cocoa powder and process into a moist mixture like wet sand. The dough should be sticky, otherwise, add another tablespoon of oil or maple syrup.
    75 g rapeseed oil, 2 tbsp cocoa powder, 3 tbsp maple syrup
  • Press the mixture firmly into the tart pan starting with the sides and completing with the bottom. Use a small dough roller to get a nice uniform shell.
  • Bake to get a more crisp shell: Place in the oven for 10 to 12 minutes and then set aside to cool. No-bake to get a more soft shell: Place in fridge for 30 to 60 minutes.

Poppy Seed Filling

  • Add poppy seeds, maple syrup and orange juice into the high-speed blender or food processor and grind for a while.
    150 g whole poppy seeds, 100 ml maple syrup, 3 tbsp orange juice
  • Add cashews and oil and blend into a creamy mixture like a smooth paste (or whatever texture is preferred).
    100 g cashews, 50 g rapeseed oil
  • Put the finished mixture into the tart and place it in the refrigerator.

Orange Curd

  • Grate the orange part of the orange zest. Then juice the oranges.
    2 pcs organic oranges
  • Mix in the corn starch into the almond milk and set aside.
    1½ tbsp corn starch
  • Add orange juice into a small sauce pan and put over medium heat. Let reduce to about half of the original amount.
  • Whisk in maple syrup, orange zest and turmeric and put over low heat.
    2 tbsp maple syrup, 1 tsp turmeric
  • Whisk in the almond milk with the corn starch. Whisk frequently, until the curd starts to thicken. Continue stirring continuously with a spatula until the curd is smooth.
    100 ml unsweetened almond milk
  • Let the curd cool down and spread it onto the poppy seed filling.
Category dairy-free, vegan

1) Scientific opinion on the risks for public health related to the presence of opium alkaloids in poppy seeds