One of the reasons I love baking is because of the joy it brings. In this case it’s joy and sunshine. These vibrant, lemon tarts are pure sunshine. With only four ingredients, they’re so easy to make that you’ll be surprised at how silky and delicious they are.
22vanilla sandwich cookies, finely crushed (including the filling)I used Golden Oreos.
3tablespoons melted butter
1 ½cups (12 oz or 340g)mascarpone cheese, softened
1cup (10 oz or 283g)lemon curd, homemade or store bought
whipped creamoptional
Instructions
Preheat oven to 350ºF. Place six 4-inch tart pans with removable bottoms* on a baking sheet.
In a medium bowl, mix crushed cookies with melted butter until well combined.
Press crumb mixture firmly into tart pans with the back of a spoon or the bottom of a small cup. It's important to press firmly, especially on the sides.
Bake tart shells for 8 minutes. Let cool completely.
In a medium bowl, stir mascarpone cheese with a spatula until smooth. Fold in lemon curd until well combined.
Fill cooled tart shells with mascarpone mixture. Refrigerate tarts until set, about 2 hours.
Carefully remove tarts from tart pans. Serve with a dollop of whipped cream if desired.
May is when I get to pull out all of my summery recipes. These pretty little Strawberries & Cream Tarts remind me of a summer day. The kind of day when you’re outside enjoying the sunshine and you’re craving a cool, refreshing dessert. This strawberry cream filling alone is so delicious that I could just eat the entire bowl with a spoon. But since I’m extra, I had to create an aesthetic dessert with it.
I used my favorite tart shells for this recipe, but this would also be delicious with those little pre-made graham cracker pie crusts if you want to take a shortcut. The reason I love this tart crust recipe so much though, is that it actually tastes delicious. Once, a few years ago, I purchased a beautiful, small fruit tart from a famous bakery. The fruit was vibrant and glistening and the pastry cream filling was sweet and silky. Now we need the sound of a mic drop, because the tart crust was hard and flavorless, like cardboard! Ever since then, I knew I would settle for nothing less than a delicious tart crust.
2cups (16 ounces)strawberry pureePlus more for garnish
½cup (3.5 ounces)granulated sugar
3tablespoonswater
2teaspoonsunflavored gelatin powder
½cup (4 ounces)cream cheese, softened
½teaspoonstrawberry extract
½teaspoonvanilla extract
½cup (4 ounces)cold heavy whipping cream
Instructions
Tart Crust
In a bowl, whisk together flour, powdered sugar and salt. Set aside.
Work in butter and egg yolk with a pastry blender or with your fingers, until pea size pieces are formed.
Add ice water, one tablespoon at a time, until dough comes together.
Form dough into a disc. Wrap in plastic and refrigerate for one hour.
On a lightly floured surface, roll dough to a scant 1/4-inch thickness
Cut dough into six 5-inch rounds. Press rounds into six 4-inch or 4 1/4-inch tart pans.*
Dock the bottoms of pie crusts with a fork. Freeze for 30 minutes.
Heat oven to 375ºF. Place tart pans on a large baking sheet.
Line tart shells with six 6-inch parchment rounds. Fill with pie weights. (You can use dried beans or rice if you don't have pie weights.)
Bake tart shells for 12 minutes. Remove parchment paper and pie weights. Continue baking until tart shells are light golden brown, about 4-6 more minutes.
Meanwhile, place 3 tablespoons of water into a small bowl. Sprinkle gelatin powder over the top of water. Let sit until water is absorbed, about 5 minutes.
Pour the gelatin mixture into the warm strawberry reduction mixture and stir until fully incorporated.
In a large bowl, beat cream cheese on low speed with an electric mixer until smooth.
Add extracts and beat until combined.
Add the strawberry reduction mixture to the cream cheese a little at time. Beat until well combined.
In a medium bowl, beat heavy whipping cream with an electric mixer at high speed until stiff peaks form.
Fold whipped cream into strawberry mixture.
Spoon into cooled tart shells. Smooth tops with a small offset spatula. Refrigerate for two hours. Garnish with sliced, fresh strawberries.
