When I think of summer, tarts are the first food that pop into my head, they're just that good. Light, sweet, and everything you want a dessert to be. Plus, you can make SO MANY different types of tarts. Fruit tarts? Amazing. Chocolate tarts? To die for! Lemon Blackberry tarts? JACKPOT. They're just so full of flavor, light, and extremely well balanced between sweet, sour and tangy. I LOVE IT. Lemons + blackberries = a match made in heaven. Every bite is a dream. The best part? It's actually pretty simple. It doesn't require a lot of hands on time. Just a lot of waiting for different components to chill in the fridge. One more thing: these aren't any normal tart. They're tartlettes, mini tarts. How CUTE!
Happy baking friends!
Sarah <3
How to make the perfect tart shell
First things first, I recommend using a high quality tart mold. Here are some recommendations: this one, and this one.
I also suggest baking them on a silicon baking mat which allows for a perfectly baked base.
When it actually come times to preparing the crust, you need to make sure that you do not over-work the dough. If you do, the crust will become tough and could shrink immensely as it bakes.
Since we are blind-baking these tarts (the tart crusts are baked separately from the filling) it is CRUCIAL that you poke the base of the dough (when it's in the mold) before baking. This will ensure that it does not poof up and it stays intact.
How to store a lemon blackberry tart
This is pretty tricky, tarts are best eaten the day they are made. BUT, if you really want to store it for later it's best to place them in an air tight container placed in the refrigerator. I recommend placing the blackberries the day that you are serving them mainly because blackberries go bad quick and you really want fresh ones for this dish. I also recommend only storing the tarts for around 4 days because I really don't think it would last more than that.
For my visual learners: watch the video below↓
Recipe Details:
Yield: 7 Pieces
Time spent
Prep time: 30 minutes | Cook time: 15 minutes | Total time: 2 hours 45 minutes
Ingredients
For the Crust:
1/4 cup flour
1 stick butter
1/4 tsp. salt
1/4 cup sugar
1/2 egg (1/2 egg white+1/2 egg yolk)
For the Custard:
2 cups milk
4 egg yolks
1/4 tsp. vanilla
3 tbsp. cornstarch
1 tbsp. butter
2 drops lemon flavoring or lemon zest from one whole lemon
Toppings:
Blackberries
Powdered sugar (optional)
Instructions
Using a stand mixer or hand mixer, mix together your flour, sugar, salt.
Add the egg and then your butter and mix until it forms a dough. (using a dough attachment is ideal for this).
Cover the dough with cling wrap and refrigerate for 30-45 minutes.
Pour your milk into a pot and set the heat to medium.
Add the egg yolks one at a time and stir after you pour each one.
After you have mixed in all of your egg yolks, add your sugar and vanilla.
Add in 1-2 drops of lemon oil/flavoring. You can substitute this by using lemon zest extracted from one whole lemon.
Put in your cornstarch and whisk. You will notice that the mixture is getting thicker.
Finally, incorporate your butter into the custard. Take off of heat.
Using a sieve, remove any large lumps in the custard. This will ensure that the custard is smooth.
Cover the custard with cling wrap, lightly pressing onto the surface of the custard to prevent a skin from forming. Refrigerator for one hour.
Once the dough is done sitting in the fridge, roll it out between two sheets of parchment paper. You can prevent it from sticking further by sprinkling the parchment sheets with flour.
Cover your tart mold with the dough and press on it until the dough is cut out into the shape of your mold. Repeat with the rest of your molds until you do not have any dough left.
Poke the dough around the mold (about 5-6 times) and bake at 350 degrees for 15 minutes.
Using a piping bag or spoon, fill in the tart shells with the custard.
Decorate the top with blackberries and dust with powdered sugar (optional).
Tips
Before serving, I highly recommend refrigerating the tarts for at least 25 minutes. Tarts are best eaten chilled.
Since the tart crust is being blind-baked, it is important that you prick the base of it with a fork. This will prevent air from getting trapped in the crust and ultimately the crust from rising.
If you notice that the edges are becoming lightly browned/golden brown, take it out of the oven! The time it takes to bake a tart crust is up to your situation: the size of your tart pan, the type of tart pan you use, the heat settings on your oven, etc. The timing for taking it out of the oven is around 15 minutes so as long as it is near that time, you will be good to go!
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