This simple tart recipe is a perfect budget-friendly real food dessert - made with minimal sugar, loaded with fruit, whole grains, and topped with lightly sweetened yogurt and fresh mint.
- 1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
- 1/2 tsp salt
- 3/4 cup (1 1/2 sticks) butter, softened
- 1/2 cup sugar
- 1 large egg yolk
- 1 tsp vanilla
- 3/4 cup yogurt cheese* or cream cheese, softened
- 3-4 tbsp maple syrup
- 1/2 tsp vanilla (optional)
- 2-3 cups assorted fruit, washed, dried, and chopped (as appropriate) (peaches, kiwis, pineapple, and/or berries)
- 1-2 tbsp fresh mint leaves, as a garnish (optional)
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In a medium-size bowl, combine flour and salt.
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In a large bowl, beat together butter and sugar on high with an electric mixer until creamy. Continue to beat as you add egg yolk and vanilla, until completely blended.
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Reduce mixer speed to low and stir in flour and salt just until it is blended and a thick dough starts to form. Do not overmix.
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Lightly flour your hands and press the dough into a ball. Cover the bowl and refrigerate it for about 30 minutes (this will make the dough easier to work with).
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Preheat the oven to 350 F. Use butter to grease the bottom and sides of a tart pan or line an 8x8-inch square baking dish with parchment paper (you can also simply grease the baking dish, but you won't be able to lift the crust out of the pan for a prettier presentation).
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Remove the dough from the fridge. Flour your hands and place the dough in the center of the pan. Use the heels of your hands to gently work the dough evenly across the bottom of the pan and up the sides. Use a fork to prick the crust in several places (this helps ensure even baking).
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Bake in the center of the oven for 30-40 minutes, until the crust is a light golden brown (the edges will be slightly darker) and baked through.
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Place on a wire rack to cool completely, about 2 hours.
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In a medium-size bowl, whisk together the yogurt cheese, maple syrup, and vanilla until smooth and creamy. If using cream cheese, you may need to use an electric mixer.
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Generously spread the frosting across the cooled crust and top with fruit as desired.
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Use scissors to chop a few mint leaves. Leave the rest whole. Sprinkle them across the tart as a garnish.
1. Healthier/Breakfast Version:
To make the crust more wholesome, substitute the flour with part or all whole wheat or spelt flour. You can also use 1/4 cup honey or maple syrup instead of sugar. These changes will make the crust more hearty and breakfasty, but it is still delicious!
2. *Go here to learn how to make Yogurt Cheese!
3. Gluten-Free? Try this pie crust recipe (it's egg-free too!)
4. Dairy-free? Try this Coconut Cream Topping (you can substitute maple syrup for the sugar, but it will make the texture less firm)
5. To Make the Strawberry Flower Design (as Pictured):
- Thinly slice a large handful of strawberries that are roughly the same size. Line them up, bottom/pointed end facing outward, in a large circle around the outside of the tart. Line up the next inner ring of strawberry slices, setting them slightly in-between and over the top half of the outter ring of berries.
- Repeat the layers until the empty circle in the center is roughly 3-inches across.
- Slice the top off one strawberry and place it in the center of the tart.
- Fill the gap between the center berry and the strawberry flower with blueberries.
- If you are using a square baking dish, fill the corners with blueberries as well.
- Use scissors to chop a few mint leaves. Leave the rest whole. Sprinkle them across the tart as a garnish.
6. Mini Fruit Tart Variation:
Obviously, a mini tart pan would be ideal, but here is how to do it with a muffin pan!
- Line a muffin tin with paper liners and press the crust into the bottom and sides of each muffin cup.
- Bake for 10-15 minutes, until lightly golden brown.
- Allow the crust to cool completely.
- Gently remove paper liners and top the tarts as usual.