Sweet and savory, tangy, salty. Mouth watering yet? These gluten-free tartlets with brie and date are one of the most popular appetizers at my parties. But it’s funny, I get side-long glances from people when they hear what’s in these small bites. And then they taste them . . . and the plate is usually empty in seconds.
Check out more of my gluten-free appetizer recipes including my feta and apricot tartlettes, gluten-free appetizer tartlets with apple and gluten-free Thai coconut chicken on baby bok choy. There are plenty of kid-friendly and adult appealing recipes.
Tartlet Ingredients
Tartlet Shells – For a quick and easy shell use gluten-free tortillas. Siete Foods cassava tortillas, Rudis and BFree are good for this recipe. Brown rice wraps/tortillas do not work well because they are much too brittle.
My preference is to make my gluten-free crepes for the shell. It’s a little more work but I think it’s worth the effort and the crepes are more pliable to shape into the pan. Here is my post on how to make gluten-free crepes. It has excellent step-by-step instructions on making gluten-free crepes and is easier than you may think. I make them a day or two ahead to make it quicker on the day of.
If you make the gluten-free crepes ahead of time, cut out the circles needed for the tartlette shells. They do very well in the refrigerator for a week or for several months in the freezer. Wrap tightly in plastic wrap and then put into a zip top bag. They will stick together when cold, so warm the stack briefly (in the microwave works well) to make separating them more easy.
Dates – You may not be a fan of dates, but this is no ordinary date filling. The dates are simmered with cinnamon, orange juice and red wine until they are melting. The tangy orange and red wine are perfect for taming the super sweet dates.
Make Ahead
These gluten-free tartlets can be assembled completely and be refrigerated or frozen (unbaked). Refrigerate for a week or for several months frozen. I just wrap the tartlettes in the mini muffin tin tightly in 2 layers of plastic wrap. Thaw and then bake as directed in the recipe.
Gluten-Free Tartlets with Brie and Dates
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Ingredients
Gluten-Free Crepes (tartlet shell) or use gluten-free tortillas*
- 1/2 c milk milk substitutes are fine
- a pinch of salt
- 2 eggs room temperature
- 1/2 c gluten-free flour blend, without xanthan gum, guar gum or inulin
- 2 tbsp unsalted butter melted and cooled slightly
Tartlette Filling
- 4 oz wedge of brie
- 6 large or 8 small pitted dates
- 2 Tbsps orange juice
- 1/4 c red wine
- 1/4 tsp cinnamon
- 1/2 cup chopped walnuts or pine nuts
Instructions
- Make the filling
- Roughly chop the dates.
- Place the dates, orange juice, cinnamon and salt into a small (non-stick preferred) pan over medium heat. Stir often.
- When the dates become very soft and start to melt turn up the flame to high and add the wine. Let it simmer until most of the liquid is evaporated.
- Remove the pan from the heat and use a wooden or plastic spoon to smash the dates. Set aside to cool. This will allow the mixture to thicken.
- Make the crepes for the tartlet shells (or skip this and use tortillas)
- Put the eggs and milk in a blender and blend for a few seconds. Add the dry ingredients and blend for 10 seconds.
- Drizzle in the butter with the blender on low. Cover the blender and blend on medium a few seconds more.
- Heat a non-stick skillet over a high flame for 1-2 minutes. Brush very lightly with butter and turn the the heat to medium-high
- Swirl and gently shake the skillet as you pour inΒ the batter to spread it evenly. Use 1/4 c batter for a 10-12" skillet and 2 Tbsps for an 8" skillet. It should be aΒ thin coating of batter. If you put in too much batterΒ simply pour it out.
- Once the crepe is set, flip itΒ over and cook another 10 seconds. Do not brown it since it will cook more in the oven.
- Transfer to a plate and cover. Continue this process and stack the crepes on the plate keeping covered. The crepes will not stick together (unless you refrigerate them).
- Pre-heat the oven to 350Β°
- Assemble the Tartlets
- Cut the brie into approximately 1" inch pieces.
- Ideally the crepes (or tortillas) should be cut toΒ 2Β½ β³-3" circles. Use a biscuit cutter or the mouth of a glass. If using tortillas, heat them in the microwave for 7-8 seconds to make them a bit more pliable and cut out just like the crepes.
- Spray the muffin tins with canola or baking spray. Reheat the cut circles in the microwave for a few seconds if they have cooled. Cover the warmed circles with a towel while you work.
- Take one circleΒ and pushΒ it into a well of the muffin tin. No need to worry if it cracks a little bit.
- Spoon in about 1 teaspoon of the date mixture, add a piece of brie and top with about 1 tsp chopped walnuts.
- Bake the tartletsBake for 10 minutes and serve immediately.
Notes
2/3 c potato starch
1/3 cup tapioca starch
My favorite appetizer!
Thank you!