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Loaded with a lush assortment of seasonal berries and other fruit, there’s nothing quite as lovely as a Fresh Fruit Tart. You’ll also learn some baking basics, like a tart crust and pastry cream, along the way.
Fresh Fruit Tarts are a professional-looking dessert that anyone can master. If you’ve never gotten the hang of crumb coats on cakes or pastry bags full of frosting, fear not. This is a dessert you can handle.
There are a few different steps, but each one is, I hope, simple to understand and easy to execute. It’s also a lesson in baking basics as you explore tart crusts and pastry cream.
Then let your creativity shine when choosing and applying the fruit of your choice. You can arrange fruit in a pattern or just pile it organically, but either way, your Fresh Fruit Tart going to look lovely and oh-so professional. Prepare to impress!
Table of Contents
Recipe ingredients
At a Glance: Here is a quick snapshot of what ingredients are in this recipe.
Please see the recipe card below for specific quantities.
Ingredient notes
- Vanilla: ½ vanilla bean, split, may be substituted for the vanilla extract in the pastry cream.
- Fruit: Choose an assortment of different types, colors, and shapes. You could also decorate on a theme such as tropical (pineapple, kiwi, mango) or winter citrus (red grapefruit, blood orange, and clementine).
- Apricot jam: Brushing some warmed apricot glaze over your fruit is like adding a shiny top coat. It keeps the fruit hydrated and looking its best. Apple jelly works too. Strawberry jelly tastes good but will tinge the fruit pink.
- Pie weights: Used when blind-baking a crust so the crust stays flat. You can use store-bought pie weights or substitute dried beans (you cannot eat the beans after they’ve been baked). After baking, cool the beans completely and store them in a plastic bag for future baking projects.
Step-by-step instructions
To make the pastry cream:
- In a medium saucepan over medium heat, heat milk until tiny bubbles appear on the surface, about 6 to 8 minutes (about 180 degrees). Stir to prevent the milk from scalding.
- In a large bowl, whisk together egg yolks and sugar. Whisk in cornstarch and salt.
- While whisking constantly, pour in half of the hot milk.
- Whisk in remaining hot milk and return to saucepan.
- Cook over medium heat, whisking constantly, until the mixture thickens to a firm consistency, about 5 to 8 minutes.
- Whisk in vanilla, then pour into a bowl. Cover with plastic wrap, pressing it directly onto the surface of the pastry cream. Refrigerate until chilled, about 2 to 3 hours.
To make the tart crust:
- In a standing mixer fit with the paddle attachment, or with an electric mixer by hand, cream the butter and powdered sugar together on medium-high speed until pale and fluffy, about 3 minutes.
- Scrape down the sides of the bowl and add egg. Continue mixing until combined, scraping down the bowl as necessary. Add vanilla and salt and mix until combined. Reduce mixer speed to low. Add flour and baking powder and blend until the dough comes together.
- Scrape dough onto a piece of plastic wrap. Wrap tightly and chill at least 1 hour.
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees. On a lightly floured surface, roll out dough to a thickness of 1/8-inch to 1/4-inch.
- Loosely roll the dough around the rolling pin, then gently unroll it over a 9-inch tart pan. Press the dough firmly into the bottom of the pan and up the sides.
- Trim any excess dough.
- Cover the dough with parchment paper or foil. Fill with pie weights or dried beans (you will need about 2 pounds). Bake 12 minutes.
- Remove pie weights or beans and parchment paper or foil.
- Return to oven and bake until golden brown and fully cooked, about 10 to 15 minutes longer. Cool completely.
To assemble the fruit tart:
- Fill cooled tart crust with chilled pastry cream.
- Arrange fruit in a decorative pattern.
- Using a pastry brush, brush fruit with melted apricot glaze (reheat as necessary if glaze cools and becomes too sticky).
Recipe tips and variations
- Yield: This recipe makes 1 (9-inch) tart with 8 slices (including 4 cups pastry cream).
- Storage: Store leftovers covered in the refrigerator for up to 4 days.
- Make ahead: This fruit tart is a showpiece and should be served the day it is assembled. However, unbaked tart dough may be refrigerated for up to 2 weeks or frozen for up to 3 months. Thaw overnight in the refrigerator before rolling out to bake. The pastry cream can be made up to 4 days in advance. Store covered in the refrigerator with plastic wrap pressed directly on its surface.
- Butter: For a buttery pastry cream flavor, softer texture, and a lovely shine, add 2 tbsp. butter with the vanilla in Step 3 of the pastry cream.
Recipe FAQs
A classic fruit tart has a pastry crust filled with vanilla pastry cream. It’s topped with assorted fresh fruit, often arranged in a decorative pattern, and finished with an apricot glaze. The glaze gives the tart a beautiful shine and also helps preserve the fruit.
For the most attractive fruit tart, select a variety of different types, colors, and shapes. You could also decorate on a theme such as tropical (pineapple, kiwi, mango) or winter citrus (red grapefruit, blood orange, and clementine). Avoid fruits that turn brown when cut such as apples and bananas.
Servings always depending on how you slice it, but a fruit tart will normally serve 6 to 8 adults.
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Fresh Fruit Tart
Equipment
- Tart Pan (use one with a removable bottom)
- Stand Mixer (this is my favorite heavy-duty KitchenAid)
Ingredients
For the pastry cream:
- 2 cups whole milk
- 1 cup granulated sugar
- 6 egg yolks
- 1/4 cup cornstarch
- 1/4 teaspoon Salt
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract (see note 1)
For the tart dough:
- 7 tablespoons butter softened
- 1/2 cup powdered sugar
- 1 egg
- 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1/4 teaspoon Salt
- 1 1/4 cups all-purpose flour sifted
- 1/4 teaspoon baking powder
For the fruit tart:
- 1 pint Fresh cut fruit such as strawberries, blueberries, blackberries, raspberries, peaches, mango, and kiwi (see note 2)
- Apricot jam melted, as needed (see note 3)
Instructions
To make the pastry cream:
- In a medium non-aluminum saucepan over medium heat, heat milk until tiny bubbles appear on the surface, about 6 to 8 minutes (180 degrees). Stir to prevent scalding.
- In a large bowl, whisk together egg yolks and sugar. Whisk in cornstarch and salt. While whisking constantly, pour in half of the hot milk. Whisk in remaining hot milk and return to saucepan.
- Cook over medium heat, whisking constantly, until the mixture thickens to a firm consistency, about 5 to 8 minutes. Whisk in vanilla and pour in to a bowl.
- Cover with plastic wrap, pressing it directly on to the surface of the pastry cream. Refrigerate until chilled, about 2 to 3 hours.
To make the tart dough:
- In a standing mixer fit with the paddle attachment, or with an electric mixer by hand, cream the butter and powdered sugar together on medium-high speed until pale and fluffy, about 3 minutes.
- Scrape down the sides of the bowl and add egg. Continue mixing until combined, scraping down the bowl as necessary. Add vanilla and salt and mix until combined.
- Reduce mixer speed to low. Add flour and baking powder and blend until the dough comes together (do not over-mix). Scrape dough onto a piece of plastic wrap. Wrap tightly and chill at least 1 hour.
To blind-bake the tart crust:
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees. On a lightly floured surface, roll out dough to a thickness of 1/8-inch to 1/4-inch. If the dough crumbles or breaks apart, press it back together with your fingertips.
- Loosely roll the dough around the rolling pin, then gently unroll it over the tart pan, preferably with a removable bottom (9 inches, or substitute a pie plate).
- Press the dough firmly into the bottom of the pan and up the sides. Trim any excess dough. Cover the dough with parchment paper or foil. Fill with pie weights or dried beans (you will need about 2 pounds, see note 4). Bake 12 minutes.
- Remove pie weights or beans and parchment paper or foil. Return to oven and bake until golden brown and fully cooked, about 10 to 15 minutes longer. Cool completely.
To assemble the fruit tart:
- Fill cooled tart crust with chilled pastry cream. Arrange fruit in a decorative pattern.
- Using a pastry brush, brush fruit with melted apricot glaze (reheat as necessary if glaze cools and becomes too sticky).
Recipe Video
Notes
- Vanilla: ½ vanilla bean, split, may be substituted for the vanilla extract in the pastry cream.
- Fruit: Choose an assortment of different types, colors, and shapes. You could also decorate on a theme such as tropical (pineapple, kiwi, mango) or winter citrus (red grapefruit, blood orange, and clementine).
- Apricot jam: Brushing some warmed apricot glaze over your fruit is like adding a shiny top coat. It keeps the fruit hydrated and looking its best. Apple jelly works too. Strawberry jelly tastes good but will tinge the fruit pink.
- Pie weights: Used when blind-baking a crust so the crust stays flat. You can use store-bought pie weights or substitute dried beans (you cannot eat the beans after they’ve been baked). After baking, cool the beans completely and store them in a plastic bag for future baking projects.
- Yield: This recipe makes 1 (9-inch) tart with 8 slices.
- Storage: Store leftovers covered in the refrigerator for up to 4 days.
Nutrition
Meggan Hill is a classically-trained chef and professional writer. Her meticulously-tested recipes and detailed tutorials bring confidence and success to home cooks everywhere. Meggan has been featured on NPR, HuffPost, FoxNews, LA Times, and more.
I’ve made this twice now and it’s delicious! I’m always looking for short cuts and found I could skip the rolling and cooling the crust dough by scraping in into my tart pan, covering with plastic wrap, and molding into place with my fingers, then removing the wrap and baking. I also added the juice of one lemon the second time around for added tartness and thought it improved the recipe.
Glad you tried, and enjoyed, my recipe, Amanda! – Meggan
Hi Meggan,
I saw you made this with almond milk but I was curious if you think oat milk could work as a substitute?
Thank you!
I would think the oat milk would be just fine. That is my instinct. I haven’t tried it so I cannot guarantee 100%, but I really cannot think of why it wouldn’t work if almond does. Almond milk definitely works! I think because of all the egg yolks, it’s going to thicken up whether you like it or not 🙂 Thank you! – Meggan
I love the fruit tart, I’ll be sure to try one
MMMMMmmm delicious
Hello! Looking forward to trying out this recipe! Was wondering if it’s possible to use a non-dairy milk alternative instead of whole milk for the pastry cream?
Hi Samantha! I haven’t made it with non-dairy milk but I’m willing to try, I don’t know how much time you have to hear back from me. I plan to make it tomorrow with almond milk, I will reply here and email you directly with the results. I hope that’s fine. I will let you know tomorrow (Wednesday March 13th). Thank you for your patience! -Meggan
Hi again Samantha! As promised, I made the pastry cream with almond milk today. It’s delicious! It seemed a little thicker and less smooth, in my opinion, compared to cow’s whole milk. But, the taste was great, the texture for sure works, and I have no regrets. I’d probably always make it with almond milk in the future because you cannot really tell, and dairy is hard on my stomach. I highly recommend this substitution! I used Almond Breeze brand unsweetened original almond milk (not vanilla flavored). I hope this information is helpful and that you’re able to make the pastry cream without cow’s milk if you want to. Thank you very much! 🙂 -Meggan
Hi! This recipe looks great! I was just wondering about the filling, though, it seems like it would be a lot for a tart. How tall was the tart pan that you were using? Does this make an excess amount?
Hi Eileen, thank you for writing. I use a 9-inch tart pan, which is about 1-inch tall and holds about 4 cups, which is about how much pastry cream this recipe makes. When topped with the fruit, the tart will be higher than the pan itself. I hope you try this recipe. Please write back with any more questions! – Meggan
I made this tart for my husband’s birthday and he loved it!! Thank you so much!!
For sake of time could I use a premade pie crust in a aluminum pan?
Absolutely, Loren! The pastry cream makes about 4 cups, and should fit well in a 9-inch pie crust (they hold about 5 cups.) The slices will be shaped like pie and the crust will taste different, but shouldn’t be an issue otherwise. – Meggan
Made this last night and it was a big hit! Thanks for such a great recipe. Easy to follow and foolproof! I only used half of the cream filling and pile up more fruits and it still came out great. Will try some of your other recipes. Thank you again!
You’re so welcome, Lina! I’m happy it was a hit! Please write if you have any questions on any other recipes, I’m here to help! – Meggan
Hey, I want to try to make this but I don’t have any apricot jam. Is there any substitution I could use?
You can honestly use any jam for the purpose of adding shine. I just suggest apricot because that color is the least noticeable. I’ve used strawberry and it works, it just colors the fruit more (but it still does the job and tastes good). So I would say, see what jam you have and choose the one that has the lightest color. You can also just try it on a little piece of fruit (maybe an extra one not on the tart) and see how it looks. WORST CASE SCENARIO you are allowed to leave the jam off if you want to. It just adds shine and helps seal the fruit for longer storage (like in a bakery case at a store). It tastes good too. But if you hate the way all of your jams look or you feel like they are just messing it up because of the color, don’t feel obligated to use it. Good luck! -Meggan