Vegan No-Bake Chocolate Cherry Tart (Black Forest-Inspired)

This decadent Black Forest-inspired cherry chocolate tart is the ultimate chocolate lover’s dream! Featuring a composition of layers: dark chocolate crust, cherry jam, and a silky smooth chocolate-cherry filling, this tart is full of interesting textures and strikes the perfect balance between sweet cherries and rich, silky chocolate. Plus it’s vegan, doesn’t require any baking, and even contains nutritious whole food ingredients like Medjool dates, cacao powder, and almonds.

I’ve you’ve taken a look at my recipe archives, you might’ve noticed that I’m a big fan of chocolate. It doesn’t matter whether it’s in ultra decadent brownies, whole wheat chocolate espresso scones, chocolate almond granola, or my Nutella-inspired chocolate hazelnut butter - I love all things chocolate. 🍫 So as a self-professed chocolate connoisseur, it’s only fitting that I created a recipe for one of the most chocolate-y desserts I could think of: a chocolate tart. 

Oddly enough, the inspiration for this recipe traces back to a visit to my parents’ house. When I asked for frozen fruits to make a smoothie, they brought out a giant, unopened (?) 4 pound bag of frozen cherries from their freezer. (Not unlike pulling out a rabbit out of a hat, their freezer (or rather, freezers) always seem to be full of surprises - perhaps the side effect of prolific Costco shopping habits.) While the bag didn’t instantly scream “chocolate cherry tart” in my face, I was so into that smoothie that once I got home, I immediately bought my own giant bag of cherries so that I could make more cherry smoothies. And while playing around with formulating a chocolate cherry smoothie recipe (coming soon!), I had a feeling that flavor combo would create a super decadent dessert - like a chocolate tart! 🤤 The idea sounded amazing, but the actual final tart recipe, which I very proudly present to you below, fulfills (actually, it surpasses) all my wildest visions I had for the tart. If you’re a fan of anything chocolate, and especially if you’re a fan of chocolate + cherry, I guarantee you’ll love this one. 

Why You’ll Love this Tart 

Heavenly textures. There are 3 main components in this tart - a dark chocolate no-bake crust, a middle layer of cherry jam, and a chocolate ganache top layer - all of which have varied but extremely complimentary textures. The crust is slightly chewy, the jam layer adds textured bits of cherry, and the chocolate ganache is ultra smooth and silky. 🤤 Together, they create a tart that not only tastes great but also feels interesting to eat - because no one wants a boring one-note dessert! 

Tastes insanely delicious and decadent. Textures are great, but they’d be pretty pointless if the flavors weren’t on point - which, BTW, they are. The tart is super rich and chocolatey, and the chocolate is complemented with notes of cherry inside the chocolate filling and the jam for that classic cherry + chocolate flavor combo! The flavors are reminiscent of Black Forest cake, but without the actual cake and in the format of a chocolate tart! It’s rich yet balanced, it’s super chocolate-y, and believe me - it tastes absolutely divine. 

Contains some whole plant foods. While this tart is definitely a decadent treat, there are some nutritious whole plant food ingredients in it! Almonds, Medjool dates, cacao powder, almond butter, and cherries add in a bit of fiber, protein, antioxidants, and natural sweetness - all while also contributing to its delicious flavors. And in case my mentioning of whole foods scares you off, I assure you their presence doesn’t make this tart taste any less indulgent - I promise it’s very rich! 

No baking necessary! No matter the time of year, I love a no-bake dessert. In the summer, it can be so oppressively hot that just the thought of turning on an oven nearly gives me a heat stroke. And during the winter holidays, I rely on my oven so much that having a dish that doesn’t need an oven is very much welcome. Luckily for us, we can skip the oven as none of the components of this tart (crust, jam, and filling) require baking. 

Ingredient Overview

There are 3 main components in this tart: a dark chocolate no-bake crust, a middle layer of cherry jam, and a chocolate ganache filling that’s infused with extra notes of cherry. 

Dark chocolate (date, almond, & cacao) no-bake crust. For its base, this tart uses a no-bake (read: easy to make!) crust that tastes like dark chocolate but is made up exclusively of whole food ingredients like almonds, dates, cacao powder, and almond butter, plus some sea salt. The crust uses almonds for the base “flour,” along with cacao powder (for the chocolate flavor) and Medjool dates (for sweetness and binding texture), plus some almond butter for additional binding and a bit of salt to balance out the flavor. You’ll just need a food processor to make the magic happen. The resulting mixture has a soft, crust-like texture that easily presses into a tart pan! 

Cherry jam. Nestled in between the crust and chocolate filling, there's a cherry jam that infuses the flavor of cherries into the tart! Not only is it a stovetop jam, meaning it’s quite easy to make, but the ingredients also couldn’t be simpler. In addition to the base of frozen (or fresh!) cherries, there’s some cane sugar for a bit of sweetness and lemon juice for a splash of acid that balances out the overall flavor of the jam for the right level of tartness and sweetness. 

Chocolate ganache filling. The silky chocolate ganache layer is almost deceptively simple to make. Start by melting some dark chocolate and coconut cream in a double broiler, then mix in some maple syrup for more sweetness and almond extract to add in notes of cherry. BTW, that’s not a typo! Almond extract is a curious ingredient - because both almonds and cherries (and some other stone fruits) contain benzaldehyde, their flavors are closely related. In this tart, the extract actually makes the filling taste more like cherries (not almonds, as you might expect!). Finally, the ganache is blended with some extra cherries to further accent its cherry flavor notes and achieve its perfect silky texture. 

Tips for Making this Tart

Refrigerate the coconut cream 24+ hours ahead of time. Ok, I know this might be somewhat annoying if you just landed on this recipe and you already have all the ingredients and you’re dying to make this tart ASAP (I get it), but you’ll need to refrigerate a can of coconut cream for a day (or more) before you can get started. Doing this allows the fatty cream to separate from the thin water, making it easy for us to scoop up the cream (the part we actually need!). Not separating the two (hence essentially working with a watered down coconut cream) will result in a texture that’s far too thin and might not even allow the ganache layer to set. Definitely want to avoid that. 

Measure the coconut cream accurately. Once you’ve separated the coconut cream from the water, you’ll actually need to use a food scale to measure the amount in grams or, if you don’t have a food scale, you can briefly microwave the cream and then measure it out in tablespoons/cups or milliliters. This is because it’s tough to measure solid coconut cream - if you try to pack solid coconut cream into measuring cups, you’ll inevitably end up with some gaps, which in turn will make the dark chocolate layer less creamy than it ideally should be.

Use high-quality chocolate. It should probably go without saying that the quality of ingredients always matters in cooking and baking. But since there’s quite a bit of chocolate in the filling (like, 8 full ounces to be exact 😅), it’s worth mentioning that the quality of the chocolate you use will have a pretty significant impact on the tart! Therefore, I recommend using the best quality vegan baking chocolate that you can access and afford. 

No-Bake Chocolate Cherry Tart (Black Forest-Inspired)

Vegan, Gluten-Free
Makes one 9.5-inch tart

Ingredients 

Cherry jam layer: 

• 4 cups fresh or frozen pitted cherries (measured after pitting; no need to thaw if using frozen)

• ¼ cup cane sugar

• 2 tablespoons freshly squeezed lemon juice

Crust: 

• 1 cup raw almonds

• 1 packed cup soft Medjool dates (about ~12 large dates), pitted

• ½ cup cacao powder

• ½ teaspoon sea salt

• ¼ cup almond butter

Chocolate filling: 

• 1 13.5-ounce can coconut cream (not coconut milk), refrigerated for 24+ hours first (to yield 150 ml/grams / ½ cup + 2 tablespoons solid coconut cream part only) (you will have leftover cream)

• 8 ounces / 225 grams vegan 70% baking chocolate, chopped

• ¼ cup maple syrup

• ½ teaspoon pure almond extract

• 1 cup / 165 grams fresh or frozen pitted cherries (measured after pitting), thawed and drained first if using frozen

Directions

For the cherry jam: 

1. In a medium saucepan, combine the cherries and sugar and bring to a boil, then turn down the heat and simmer for 5 minutes, stirring occasionally, until the cherries begin to soften. 

2. Use a metal potato masher, fork, or wooden spoon to mash the cherries. Continue simmering and stirring frequently until the jam has reduced and thickened, about 20-25 more minutes. In the last 2-3 minutes of cooking, stir in the lemon juice. 

   • Note: To test for doneness, use a rubber spatula to draw a streak through the jam. If there’s separation that holds for 1-2 seconds before the two sides of the jam converge back into the middle, it’s done or very close to done. 

3. Remove from heat and let cool for 5 minutes before transferring to the freezer or the fridge (if making ahead of time) to cool until ready to assemble the tart. 

For the crust: 

1. In the large bowl of a food, blend the almonds until they break down into small pieces resembling a coarse almond flour. 

2. Add in the dates, cacao powder, and salt and continue blending until well incorporated, about 45-60 more seconds. 

3. Add in the almond butter and blend again to combine. When pressed between your fingers, the texture should resemble a slightly sticky dough. 

4. Transfer the dough to a 9.5-inch tart pan and use your hands to press it down firmly and evenly onto the bottom and up the sides. Transfer to the fridge or freezer to chill for a few minutes while you prepare the filling.

For the chocolate filling: 

1. Remove the canned coconut cream from the fridge and scoop out 150 grams/milliliters of the solid cream from the top (the cream should have separated from the water at the bottom). If you don’t have a food scale, scoop out some coconut cream and warm it gently (you can microwave it in 10-second intervals) until it is liquid so that you can measure out ½ cup + 2 tablespoons of the cream. 

2. Add the coconut cream and chopped chocolate to a medium, heat-safe bowl. 

3. Prepare a double broiler by adding 1-2 inches of water into a small to medium pot and bringing the water to a very gentle simmer. Place the bowl with the chocolate/coconut cream on top of the pot. Use a whisk to mix constantly just until all the chocolate and cream have melted and blended together, then immediately remove the bowl from heat and turn off the burner. 

4. Add in the maple syrup and almond extract and whisk together to combine. 

5. To a blender, add the cherries and blend briefly to begin breaking them down. Add in the melted chocolate mixture and continue blending on high until the mixture is completely smooth. 

To assemble: 

1. To the tart pan with the prepared crust, add the jam and use a spatula to spread it evenly onto the bottom of the crust. Top with the chocolate filling and use a silicone spatula to distribute it evenly and smooth out the top. 

2. Transfer the prepared tart to the fridge to set for 6+ hours (or overnight) before slicing and serving. Serve with fresh cherries, if desired, and store any leftover tart in the fridge, covered.

Try the tart? I would very much appreciate your sharing a review in the comments below and sharing the recipe with a friend! 🍒🍫 And if you take a pic, tag me on Instagram (@teostinykitchen) when you share it so I can see how lovely your tart turned out!