Blueberry Kuchen: Round III (Paleo, AIP)

Oh blueberry kuchen, what a transformation we’ve had together. I first introduced my friend Susie Shubert’s summertime dessert back in 2010, when I shared the Kingfield Market Berry Bake Off-winning recipe with TC Taste/Minnesota Monthly Magazine readers…about one month before I quit eating gluten.

The next summer, I made a gluten-free version, using almond flour in the crust. Damn tasty!And this year, given the autoimmune protocol/AIP, I just had to take one more run at it, this time with sweet potato flour. I’ll tell you what – it’s still delicious. Woo hoo! (Take note that the crust dough makes a fantastic blueberry – or other fruit – crisp topping as well.) Huge thanks to Jessica Flanigan at AIP Lifestyle for the inspiration to give this a try (you must check out her stunning Strawberry Lemon Tart with Rose Cream). I didn’t even know sweet potato flour existed! I ordered it online and am pretty thrilled with my early experiments.

Ditto my early experiments with tiger nut flour as well. Tiger nuts are not nuts at all, but small root vegetables with a sweet and nutty taste. It’s perfect in short crusts like this, definitely worth ordering a bag and playing with it.

I’m so happy my beloved kuchen is so adaptable because it really is one of the yummiest, easiest, crowd-pleasingest desserts in my repertoire. The blueberries are the star – both cooked and raw – so hurry and make one of the versions before summer completely closes up shop.

Like the revamped kuchen, you’ll perhaps notice some changes here at Fresh Tart. My bio and about page are updated, with a recipe index under development. (I know, I should have had one all along…) Please take note of the very exciting “Paleo Approach Approved” badge (above and right) from The Paleo Mom which is a thumbs up for my autoimmune protocol recipes. It’s like getting a star on your homework from your very favorite teacher – I’m thrilled! There’s a new landing page in the works with menu shortcuts to favorite recipe categories, instructional videos (plans underway), menu plans, and shopping/product links for hard-to-find paleo and AIP ingredients like, for instance, sweet potato flour. It’s great fun working on all of it even if it takes longer to get in place than I would like.If you are new to following the AIP and you do make the kuchen, do yourself the favor of having very small servings at a time. Because they’re so concentrated, flours of any kind deliver a giant amount of an otherwise well-tolerated food into our bodies. Ditto sweeteners like maple syrup. Even cooked fruit is very concentrated and it’s easy to accidentally eat a large serving which is a path to an unhappy tummy – I speak from experience! The goal with a treat is to enjoy something special, to even be nourished by it – not to be sick from it. One of the best things about a paleo/whole food style of eating is becoming very, very connected to how food makes you feel. It’s honestly why I don’t often bake, eat, or share paleo-fied treats. But in the case of this long-time favorite, I’m willing to make a delicious exception! 🙂

xo Stephanie

Blueberry Kuchen (Paleo, AIP)
Adapted from recipes by Susie Shubert
Serves 10

For the crust:
1 cup tiger nut flour
1/2 cup sweet potato flour
1/2 cup arrowroot starch
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1/4 cup coconut sugar (can be omitted or substitute maple sugar)
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup avocado oil (or melted coconut oil or cultured ghee if you can tolerate them), perhaps more

For the filling:
6 cups blueberries, divided (you can use all fresh blueberries; or use 4 cups frozen wild blueberries for the cooked filling, 2 cups fresh blueberries for the raw topping)
1/4 cup maple syrup (more to taste)
2 teaspoons arrowroot starch
1 tablespoon cold water

To make the crust:
Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.

Add sweet potato flour, arrowroot starch, cinnamon, sugar, and salt to the bowl of a food processor and pulse to combine. Add 1/2 cup of oil and pulse until dough starts to come together in walnut-sized clumps. If it does not, add 1 tablespoon more of oil at a time, pulsing with each addition, to achieve the right texture.

Press dough evenly into a 10 1/2-inch removable bottom tart pan (or springform pan, which is what I used, creating a 1-inch high edge to the crust). Bake for 20 minutes or until crust is lightly browned (watch carefully, it will go from almost done to overdone very quickly). Set on a rack to cool to room temperature.

To make the filling:
Add 4 cups of the blueberries and maple syrup to a medium saucepan. Set over medium heat and bring blueberries to a simmer. Turn heat to low and simmer for 20 minutes (perhaps longer if you use frozen blueberries), stirring occasionally, or until blueberry juices are starting to thicken. Pull blueberries from heat. Whisk together arrowroot starch and water and whisk into hot blueberries to thicken the sauce further. Cool to room temperature. (Taste the filling after it’s cooled; you’ll get a much better sense of how sweet it already is. Add maple syrup to taste if desired.)

To assemble the kuchen:
Pour cooked blueberry filling into the tart shell and spread evenly. Top with fresh blueberries. Serve as is or with coconut milk ice cream.