Diya Tarts (Eggless)

Happy Diwali !
I know I am a day late but it was such a busy day yesterday from cleaning the house, (making vaanya eat her breakfast while she watched Teletubbies!), searching for the diwali decorations, (giving vaanya a bath), preparing the dough for the tarts, (snatching the unscrewed Odomos(mosquito repellent cream) from vaanya which was about to go in her mouth), receiving phone calls for diwali wishes from all near and dear ones, (making vaanya eat her lunch and put her to sleep).....My list may sound too long, boring and neverending but in all these daily activities, I attempted to try these tarts for my mother who very lovingly had asked me to make something for the traditional exchange of sweets on Diwali.

Diwali or Deepavali literally means 'Rows of lamps'. It is the festival of lights and is celebrated to mark the victory of good over evil.

'Tamaso ma jyotir gamaya' - meaning 'Lead me from darkness to light' sums the significance of celebrating Diwali. Diyas represent light or knowledge and are lit as a symbol of goodness, harmony and truth.

Ingredients: For 12 tarts

• 3/4 cup refined flour
• 30 gms unsalted cold butter cubes
• cold water as required for making the dough
• 6 roasted almonds
• 6 roasted cashewnuts
• 1/4 cup dark chocolate, in pieces
• 2 tbsp cream
• little cream, for decoration
• few drops of orange food colour, for decoration

Procedure: 

Take flour in a bowl and rub the butter cubes with the flour till the mixture resembles coarse breadcrumbs.

Add cold water 1 tbsp at a time and knead to get a smooth dough. Do not overknead. 

Wrap in a plastic sheet and let it rest in the fridge for 1/2 hour. 

Roll the dough with a rolling pin on a floured surface to 1/8 " thickness.

Gently press the rolled dough to the bottom and sides of the tart tin. Trim excess and make few holes on the dough with a fork.

Refrigerate for another 1/2 hour to set.

For a step by step pictorial demonstration refer here

I used a boat shaped shallow tart tin and just rolled the dough at one end to give it a diya shape.

Preheat oven to 180 degree Celcius and bake the tarts for 10-15 mins or till they get a nice brown colour.

With the leftover dough, roll out thin and cut rough flame shape with a stick(a leaf shape) with a knife.

Bake for 5 mins at 180 degree Celsius or till they get a brown colour.

For the filling:

Chop the roasted nuts (you can use any nuts and dry roast them on a heated pan)

Put them in the prepared tart shells

Melt the dark chocolate on a double boiler or microwave for 1 min. Add 2 tbsp cream and mix well.

Pour this in the tart shells over the nuts.

Mix few drops of the orange food colour in some cream and coat the prepared flames.

Fix the flames on the chocolate at the pointed end and refrigerate to set.

These super easy eggless nutty chocolate tarts were an instant hit and I was such a glad and proud Baker of the beautiful day.
Hope you had an amazing and safe Diwali.

Sending this recipe to Diwali Bash,
Celebrate Navratri/Diwali  brainchild of Jagruti,
My Diwali Basket Event

Bon Vivant# 10- Festive Feasts

Happy Diwali
Amrita