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Vegan Custard Tart With a Thin Mint Crust

Vegan Custard Tart With a Thin Mint Crust is the dairy-free dessert you have been waiting for. Chocolate and Thin Mint cookies paired with the smoothest vanilla vegan custard you've ever had.
Vegan custard tart with a thin Mint crust on a tray with mint | www.sustainablecooks.com
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Vegan Custard Tart With a Thin Mint Crust is the dairy-free dessert you have been waiting for. Chocolate and Thin Mint cookies paired with the smoothest vanilla vegan custard you’ve ever had.A vegan custard tart on a tray | Sustainablecooks.com

Each year during the cold and grey month of January, I await the onslaught at church. The attack is imminent and when it will happen can only be guessed.

I walk in on tiptoe each Sunday waiting for the elementary version of the Hunger Games to begin. I look left and see a flash of a brown or green vest. I look right and am blinded by pins and badges. It is too late. I am unarmed, outnumbered, and surrounded.

The Girl Scouts are here and they have cookie order forms. I succumb to my fate and let the inevitable happen.

The little Girl Scouts/Brownies/Daisy girls at church know a sucker when they see one and they come back to me year after year. My rule is I will order two boxes from each girl per year. They are all so proper and sweet with their “thank you for supporting Girl Scouts Mrs. Cook”. Don’t you Mrs. Cook me you tiny conniving cookie pimps. I’m not supporting anything other than a sheer addiction to having Thin Mints and Samoas being in my mouth. They know my shame and they love it.

And then I spend the next month not making eye contact with the eager little girls at the tables outside the grocery store.

Vegan Custard Tart With a Thin Mint Crust

“Why a custard tart made with Thin Mints,” you say?

“Why the hell not” is what I say!

“And why vegan”? you ask.

Y’all are n-o-s-y.

I love butter, cream, milk, cheese, etc., in desserts. Well, not really cheese. Gross. But, I was dairy-free for a year while nursing my oldest, and about two months while nursing my youngest and I always craved creamy and delicious desserts. Back in my day – I’ll wait while you finish rolling your eyes thank you very much – easy dairy-free desserts cost either a ton of money…or they tasted like paste mixed with horse poop.

No need to know how I would know what horse poop would taste like. I told you to never ask me about my business!

This Vegan Custard Tart With a Thin Mint Crust is my way of paying it forward to the other non-dairy people out there. It’s my gift to the world. Some people are dedicated to solving the Middle East peace crisis. Others will cure diseases and heal the sick.

Me? I make vegan tarts that taste amazing.

You’re welcome world.

Boy stealing a cookie from Vegan custard tart with a Thin Mint crust | Sustainablecooks.com

Hold The Phone…Are Thin Mints Vegan?

You bet your sweet ass they are! When I was dairy-free the discovery that Thin Mints (and Junior Mints!) were both vegan was a complete and utter Godsend.

Have no idea what the Girl Scouts actually are? The Girl Scouts are a US-based leadership development organization for girls. And once a year those little ankle biters are released on the world and they sell their cookies to the masses.

Girl Scouts may be called Girl Guides in other countries, but it is unclear if they all sell cookies as well. Amazon does ship Girl Scout cookies for twice the “street value” price. You can use a mint and chocolate wafer cookie like a grasshopper in place of Thin Mints but if you don’t consume milk make sure to check the label.

How Do I Make Cashew Cream?

When blended, cashews create a delightful cream that can be the base of many delicious desserts including Creamy Chocolate Vegan Ice Cream. There is a secret to creating the creamiest cashew cream though. Want to know what it is? Yeah, you do.

It’s soaking! Ya gotta soak those nuts people.

I have a Vitamix blender which is like using a flamethrower when you really just need a match. I saved for it for a year and it’s worth every penny. But if you have a conventional blender or a food processor, you’ll still get great cashew cream as long as you soak the nuts. The recipe below calls for a minimum of four hours, but you’re better off with twelve if you can swing it.

How to Make Vegan Custard Tart With a Thin Mint Crust

The recipe comes down to three categories – the crust, the vanilla custard, and the chocolate ganache.

Vanilla Custard Filling

Soak cashews in water overnight or at least for four hours. Drain cashews and place in a high-powered blender.

Soaked cashews in a strainer for a vegan custard tart | www.sustainablecooks.com

In a small saucepan, heat the milk, dates, sugar, vanilla extract, and vanilla bean. Cook over medium heat until sugar is dissolved.

Add the milk mixture including the vanilla bean to the blender with the cashews and blend until completely smooth. You may need to scrape down the sides a few times during the process. Refrigerate for 30 minutes.

cashew cream for a custard tart in a blender | www.sustainablecooks.com

Thin Mint Crust

In a food processor pulse Thin Mints until they are a fine dust. Add the melted coconut oil and pulse until it forms a wet paste. It will be very sticky so use a butter knife to spread it to the sides of the pan. And then you’re going to need to lick that butter knife when all is said and done.

Thin Mint crumbs in a food processor for a vegan custard tart | sustainblecooks.com

Bake for 11 minutes. Your house is going to smell amazing – like chocolate and mint. During this time you’re going to start to have inexplicable feelings of deep intense love for me. Lean into that. Don’t run from it.

Chocolate Ganache

In a microwave-proof bowl heat the chocolate chips and coconut oil for 45 seconds. Remove from microwave and let sit for 1 minute. Stir. Heat for an additional 40 seconds in the microwave. Remove and let sit for 1 minute. Stir. Return to the microwave for an additional 30 seconds if the chocolate isn’t smooth.

Pour the melted chocolate over the cooled Thin Mint crust. Place in the freezer for 20 minutes to set. Lick the bowl.

pouring chocolate over a Thin Mint crust | Sustainablecooks.com

Assembly

Remove the crust and ganache from the freezer and pour in the vanilla custard. Place back in the freezer for at least three hours.

boy taking photo of a vegan custard tart | www.sustainablecooks.com

So the next time a wee little Girl Scout bats their eyelashes at you, go ahead and buy a box of Thin Mints. You’re supporting leadership development and now you’re on your way to the best vegan dessert you’ve ever made.

Take that world peace.

Vegan custard tart with a thin Mint crust on a tray with mint | www.sustainablecooks.com
Print Recipe
4 from 1 rating

Vegan Custard Tart With a Thin Mint Crust

Prep Time20 minutes
Cook Time11 minutes
Total Time31 minutes
Vegan Custard Tart With a Thin Mint Crust is the dairy-free dessert you have been waiting for. Chocolate and Thin Mint cookies paired with the smoothest vanilla vegan custard you've ever had.

Ingredients

Thin Mint Crust

Chocolate Ganache

Vanilla Custard Filling

Instructions

Vanilla Custard Filling

  • Soak cashews in water overnight or for at least four hours.
  • Drain cashews and place in a high-powered blender.
  • In a small saucepan, heat the milk, dates, sugar, vanilla extract, and vanilla bean. Split and scrape the vanilla bean ahead of time, but also add the cut bean to the milk mixture. Cook over medium heat until sugar is dissolved.
  • Add the milk mixture including the vanilla bean to the blender with the cashews and blend until completely smooth. You may need to scrape down the sides a few times during the process. Refrigerate for 30 minutes.

Thin Mint Crust

  • Preheat oven to 350 degrees. 
  • In a food processor pulse Thin Mints until they are a fine dust. Add the melted coconut oil and pulse until it forms a wet paste. It will be very sticky so use a butter knife to spread it to the sides of the pan. I only cover the bottom of the pan and don't bother with the sides.
  • Bake for 11 minutes. It will not look cooked when you remove it from the oven. The batter will be tacky and you'll be very concerned about my instructions. Give it time and allow it to fully cool. It will become hard; swearsies!

Chocolate Ganache

  • In a microwave-proof bowl heat the chocolate chips and coconut oil for 45 seconds. Remove from microwave and let sit for 1 minute. Stir. Heat for an additional 40 seconds in the microwave. Remove and let sit for 1 minute. Stir. Return to the microwave for an additional 30 seconds if the chocolate isn't smooth.
  • Pour the melted chocolate over the cooled Thin Mint crust, making sure the chocolate covers the entire bottom of the crust. Place in the freezer for 20 minutes to set.

Assembly

  • Remove the crust and ganache from the freezer and spoon in the vanilla custard. Place back in the freezer for at least three hours.
  • Let sit at room temperature for 10 minutes prior to cutting. Store any leftovers in the freezer.

Notes

Milk - use your preferred milk. Dairy or plant-based milk will both work. If using plant-based milk, I highly recommend Califia Farms almond milk. It's super creamy and smooth. Locally, our Target has the best price.
If you don't have a vanilla bean, simply increase the amount of vanilla extract to 2 tsp.
The yield of the cookie crumb crust is 1 cup before adding the coconut oil.
Thin Mints are a chocolate covered mint wafer cookie sold by the Girl Scouts in the United States. They are vegan. You may replace with any chocolate and mint wafer like a grasshopper cookie.
The chocolate ganache does make the tart a challenge to just eat with a fork. Give your guests a knife or simply leave off.
Pressed for time? Make the crust (without the ganache) a day ahead and store in an air-tight container. 
 
Nutrition Facts
Vegan Custard Tart With a Thin Mint Crust
Amount Per Serving
Calories 428
* Percent Daily Values are based on a 2000 calorie diet.

Looking for more vegan desserts? Check out my Vegan and Dairy-Free recipe archives.

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6 comments on “Vegan Custard Tart With a Thin Mint Crust”

  1. This is scrumptious, even if you aren’t vegan!  Very rich and creamy, and the chocolate mint crust is the BEST!  I personally think the ganache isn’t really necessary, but hey, who am I to turn down more chocolate?!!4 stars

  2. Recipe sounds amazing and it’s good to know someone else has a weakness for Samosas and Thin Mints. Your description of the Girl Scouts had me laughing, but I have to admit I was a bit disappointed that you mentioned “soak the nuts” without a silly comment :-). Maybe it was too obvious so you bypassed it? It made me giggle even without the silly comment.

    • Did you know that depending on where you live in the country your Samoas could be called “Caramel Delights”? I guess there are two different bakeries that produce the cookies and they have slightly different names.

      I know, I know. I figured the soaked nuts sentence was so obvious and I almost couldn’t bring myself to be basic about it. Or maybe I’m just growing up?

      Nah, that can’t be it.

  3. Yummy to the max. I was just thinking I ate a hershey mint layer cookie crunch once this month but,this sure takes the cake!!! Thanks for the info.. Enjoy the week. Good reads!!!!Why can’t I resist those girl scout cookies?????lol.