Strawberry Tart

An easy homemade tart crust is baked until crisp and golden brown, then all you have to do is whip together cream cheese with fresh lemon and vanilla, spread it inside the tart shell, and top with sliced sweet strawberries. A simple brushing of melted jam gives this fresh strawberry tart recipe that pastry case glistening finish. This delightfully simple French-inspired confection is one of my favorite recipes to make when strawberries are at their peak. If you love strawberry dessert recipes, then you should try my strawberry cheesecake recipe, strawberry shortcake recipe, and easy strawberry rolls next!

What You Need To Make This Recipe

Cold unsalted butter – in order to make the pastry shell nice and tender, make sure your butter is cold and hard from the fridge. Ice water – another trick for making your tart shell dough flaky is using very cold water to gather it together. The ice water helps keep the butter cold, plus adds enough moisture to hydrate the flour. Heavy whipping cream – in order to whip your cream to stiff peaks, reach for whipping cream, not heavy cream, as it contains more fat. Also, remember that cold cream will hold air much better, so start with a chilled mixing bowl, chilled beaters, and chilled cream to start. Block-style cream cheese – to avoid any unsightly chunks of cream cheese in your mousse filling, make sure the cream cheese is softened to room temperature before starting. Granulated sugar – a standard white granulated sugar or natural cane sugar will both work well in this strawberry tart recipe. Lemon juice – fresh is always best. To get the most juice from your fruit, roll it firmly on the countertop several times before slicing it in half. This will loosen up the pulp, making the juice squeeze out much easier. Feel free to add grated lemon zest for a more intense lemon flavor. Vanilla extract – for adding complexity and richness in flavor. Feel free to use an equal amount of vanilla bean paste or powder instead. Fresh strawberries – select unblemished fresh berries that smell fragrant and are deep in color. Red currant jam – for glazing the strawberries. You’re also welcome to use apricot preserves or strawberry jam or jelly.

How To Make Strawberry Tart

1. In the bowl of a food processor, pulse together the flour, sugar, and salt until combined. Add the butter, and pulse until very crumbly, about 30 seconds. Drizzle in the ice water, and pulse a few times until the mixture is crumbly, but sticks together when pressed between your fingers.
2. Turn out the tart dough onto a lightly floured surface and shape it into a disk. Wrap in plastic wrap and refrigerate for 1 hour or up to 2 days.Preheat oven to 400°F. Roll out the chilled dough onto a lightly floured surface into a 13-inch circle.
3. Transfer the dough to a 10-inch tart pan with a removable bottom. Press the dough into the bottom and sides of the pan, and trim off any excess hanging over the sides.
4. Poke the bottom of the crust all over with a fork. Line the tart crust with a piece of parchment paper and add enough dried beans or pie weights to fill the tart. Blind bake for 20 minutes or until the edges are dry and lightly golden brown. Remove pie weights and continue to bake for an additional 5 to 8 minutes until the bottom appears dry and the crust begins to pull away from the sides of the pan. Let the crust cool completely in the pan before removing.
5. In a large bowl, beat the whipping cream on medium-high speed until stiff peaks form, about 2 minutes.
6. In another large bowl, beat the room temperature cream cheese on medium-high speed until smooth and fluffy, about 2 minutes. (No need to clean the beaters between the cream and cream cheese.) Add the granulated sugar, lemon juice, and vanilla, beating until smooth, about 1 minute.
7. Gently fold in the whipped cream until combined.
8. Spoon the filling into the cooled pastry shell, spreading it into an even layer.
9. Arrange strawberries on top of the cream cheese filling, fanning them out in concentric circles around the center.
10. In a small bowl, microwave the jam and water until bubbling, about 30 seconds. Brush the jam mixture over the sliced strawberries. Refrigerate the strawberry tart for 1 hour or until ready to serve.

Pro Tips For Making This Recipe

Don’t overwork the dough. The secret to tender pastry is making sure the butter is well distributed throughout the flour mixture and that the dough isn’t overworked. The food processor is a very powerful tool, so make sure you’re using the “pulse” function to ensure you don’t overdo it. Freeze pastry dough discs ahead of time for easy prep. Want to get a headstart on your dinner party? The pastry dough can easily be made up to a month or so ahead of time, then wrapped very tightly in several layers of plastic wrap and frozen. To use, allow it to defrost overnight in the fridge for 24 hours, then roll and shape as directed. How to Pick Good Strawberries – Fresh berries are at the center of this easy strawberry tart, so it’s essential that you pick the very best ones. I suggest grabbing local, in-season berries from your farmer’s market for the absolute best flavor. Otherwise, just make sure the berries are bright red with firm, unblemished skin. Finally, give them the sniff test — if they smell fragrantly of berries, they should taste that way, too!

If you’ve tried this Strawberry Tart recipe, then don’t forget to rate the recipe and let me know how you got on in the comments below, I love hearing from you!