Yes, these are vegan! Tart, tangy, and creamy lime filling with a sweet vegan chickpea meringue topping. You're going to love these!
My happy vegan life just got a whole lot better, and when you taste these tart and tangy vegan lime tarts with meringue you’re going to pucker up and lay a big one on me. Okay, maybe not, that would be weird, but you will be thanking me for sharing this recipe with you, especially on the heels of Cinco de Mayo.
Key lime pie has always been a favorite of mine and my son Griffin. We've never met one we didn’t like. Ever. Then I went vegan, and I had to watch him gobble up those slices of yum without so much as sticking a fork in it. Bummer!
Until today that is, because I just made a mouthwatering lime pie filling that’s every bit as good as the kind made with egg yolks and condensed milk. And mine is healthier.
To top it off I made a vegan meringue! Oh yes, I threw it down in my kitchen today. My juicer, my Best Blendtec Blenders
(affiliate), and mixer got a work out. But you don’t care about that, you just want to know how I managed to make a vegan lime pie filling – I couldn’t find key limes so I’m taking the key out of the title – and meringue that taste as good as they look. Am I right?
Let’s start with the filling. T.O.F.U.
Terrific
Organic
Fluffy
Underappreciated
Tofu.
People just don’t give the white block of fermented beans enough cred. You can transform it into almost anything, like I did right here.
Put a fourteen ounce block of tofu in your blender, along with three quarters of a cup of fresh squeezed lime juice – your kitchen will smell like summer – some water, tapioca starch, lime zest, sugar, and a pinch of salt and start blending. Dip your finger in and taste to make sure it’s sweet enough for you. I like a tart, make your mouth pucker filling, so I only put one-third of a cup of sugar, you might want more. You can also add a drop or two of green food coloring to give it a color boost.
Once it’s blended and you approve of the flavor, pour the mixture into a pan and cook on a low heat until it becomes thick and creamy. Then set aside to cool.
You have two choices with this filling, you can make it into one big pie, or you can make individual tarts. I was feeling like making bite size tarts, so I spooned the filling into cute little phyllo shells.
Now comes the super fun part, making the meringue.
When I first saw this recipe on One Green Planet I almost jumped up and did a cartwheel, until I remembered that I don’t do cartwheels, so I just pumped my fist in the air and yelled, “YES!” My poor dogs, I scare them way too often with my outbursts.
If you think that this sounds crazy, and a little gross (like my husband did, until I asked him to tell me what seemed grosser, plant brine or a chicken’s period?), I feel you. I have to admit that I wasn’t completely sold on this concoction when I first started to make it.
The brine smells funky, there’s no getting around that, but after you add the sugar and vanilla and it starts frothing, the smell disappears. Crazy right?
When you add the vanilla you’re going to wonder why my meringue looks white in the pictures and yours looks tan. The same thing happened to me, but like magic, after several minutes of whipping, the meringue turns as white as it does stiff.
You should whip the brine on a high speed for around ten minutes, maybe more depending on your blender. Just don’t give up, it will turn into what you see below, just be patient.
I’ll confess, I was a little nervous to taste it, because I so wanted to love it. No worries my friends, it tastes just like the meringues of my pre-vegan days. Yippy Skippy!
You can fill the phyllo shells with the vegan lime pie filling while the vegan chickpea brine meringue is whipping. When it’s ready, put a little dollop of meringue on each tart and put them on a cookie sheet, and then under the broiler for a few seconds. Just be sure to watch them carefully so they don’t burn.
Refrigerate them for at least eight hours so the filling firms up, and you’ll have delicious vegan lime tarts with meringue for your Cinco de Mayo dessert.
As I said before, you can make a whole pie if you want. I made a lemon meringue pie a few days ago, but I was impatient and wanted to photograph it before the filling set so the pictures didn’t turn out well. See.
I’ll be making another pie soon and I’ll share the recipe, and better pics, with you then.
In the meantime, get your lime on with these gorgeous and delicious tarts!
Affiliate
Vegan Lime Tarts with Meringue
Ingredients
- Filling
- 1 14 ounce container of firm tofu – drain the water
- 3/4 of a cup of fresh squeezed lime juice – approximately 5 to 6 limes
- Lime zest from two limes
- 1/2 cup of filtered water
- 1/3 of a cup of sugar – add more if the filling tastes too tart
- 2 tablespoons of tapioca starch
- 1/4 teaspoon of finely ground sea salt
- 1 or 2 drops of green vegan food coloring
- Meringue
- 1 16 ounce can of chickpeas – put a colander over a large mixing bowl and pour the chickpeas in to drain the brine into the mixing bowl. Put the chickpeas in an airtight container and refrigerate until ready to eat.
- 3/4 of a cup of finely ground sugar – grind regular sugar in a blender if you don’t have finely ground sugar
- 1/4 of a teaspoon of cream of tartar
- 1 and 1/2 teaspoons of pure vanilla extract
- 2 packages of phyllo cups or one pie crust if you prefer to make a pie
Instructions
- Filling
- Add the ingredients to a blender and blend until it looks like milk. You shouldn’t see any pieces of tofu.
- Pour the mixture into a medium sauce pan and cook on medium low heat until it becomes thick and creamy, like pudding. Set aside to cool.
- Meringue
- In a large mixing bowl add the cream of tarter to the brine and mix with a whisk attachment on a high speed until combined. Turn off the mixer and add the sugar and vanilla and mix on a high speed for ten to fifteen minutes or until the meringue forms stiff peaks.
- Put the phyllo cups on a baking sheet and fill with the lime filling. Top with a dollop of meringue and put under the broiler until the meringue begins to brown. Turn the pan to brown them evenly. Watch carefully so they don’t burn, never leave them unattended while they are under the broiler.
- Cover and refrigerate for at least eight hours so they set.
- You may have extra filling and meringue left over. Put them in a ramiken and make a "baked Alaska."
Christie says
You use regular tofu and not silken? Just wanted to check.
Linda Meyer says
Hi Christie, yes, use silken for best results. We're updating our older recipes to be more specific and this is on our list. Thanks for your question!