Spring is a beautiful time of year for so many reasons, and in the food world it's the ideal time to enjoy seasonal citrus fruits, with their abundance of antioxidant-rich nutrients. For this Citrus Tart I’ve made the most of the fresh, crisp, sweet and sour flavours of orange and lemon, and teamed them with the creaminess of nuts and eggs for a new take on a classic spring dessert.

Citrus tart
Serves 8
GF : DF : RSF

Tart

Ingredients
1 cup (100grams) whole walnuts
1 cup (100 grams) almond meal
4 tablespoons rice malt syrup
3 tablespoons coconut oil, melted
Pinch sea salt

Method
Place the walnuts in a food processor and pulse until coarse and crumbly.

Mix walnut crumb with remaining ingredients in large a bowl and push into a lined 25cm diameter tart tin. Chill in the fridge for 30 minutes to set the pastry.

Whilst chilling, preheat oven to 180C. Bake at tart in middle oven for 10 minutes until golden on the edges. Allow to cool completely before filling with citrus curd.

Citrus curd

Ingredients
1/2 cup fresh orange juice
1/2 cup fresh lemon juice
1 teaspoon orange zest
4 eggs
4 egg yolks
1/4 tablespoons maple syrup
3/4 cup coconut oil, melted

Method
Place a small stainless steel bowl over a small saucepan of simmering water. Turn the heat to low. Pour in the lemon juice, orange and lemon juice, zest, eggs, yolks and maple syrup, whisking until well combined.

Gradually whisk in the coconut oil, 1 tablespoon at a time until it is completely melted. Turn the heat to medium, continuing to whisk.

The mixture should gradually become thicker until a curd consistency. Once thick enough to coat the back of a spoon, allow to cool completely then pour into tart and place in fridge to set for one to two hours.

Jacqueline Alwill is a qualified, practicing nutritionist, author of Seasons to Share and director at The Brown Paper Bag.