When you need a recipe to feed a crowd, these mixed berry tarts have a butter crusty and burst with fruit flavor. The citrusy whipped topping brings it all together.
Berry Tartlets Recipe photo by Taste of Home

Tarts come in all shapes and sizes, from rustic to large fluted pastry filled with fruit. Miniature berry tarts are especially pleasing, though. When it comes to baking pies and tarts, you can use different pans or none at all. For this recipe, you simply cut out rounds from buttery, flaky pie dough, and place them in muffin tins. What could be easier?

Once filled with a mixed berry medley, these berry tarts bake in the oven to a beautiful golden brown. Then they’re topped with a blend of lemon curd and whipped cream, which adds just enough of a citrusy flavor to make this tart recipe really stand out. These are a perfect dessert for a crowd or any time you need pretty individual treats.

Ingredients for Berry Tarts

  • Double-crust pie dough: This recipe needs enough dough for a double-pie crust. You can buy this at most grocery stores, or make one at home if you’re feeling crafty.
  • Cornstarch: Just a touch of cornstarch helps thicken the filling and make those berry juices a bit jam-like (yum).
  • Frozen berries: Frozen berries are great because they’re super easy to find and use, and they retain many of the original nutrients found in fresh berries. We use the mixed berries because they offer a delightful sweet-tart flavor, but you could use a single berry of your choosing, if you fancy.
  • Heavy whipping cream: Heavy whipping cream whips up nice and thick, which is what you want for this recipe. It will hold up to the curd without losing any of that dreamy fluffiness.
  • Lemon curd: The bright, tart flavor of lemon curd helps to balance the fruity sweetness of the berries, as well as the creamy richness of the whipped cream.

Directions

Step 1: Make the tart shells

A Cookie Cutter and Dough on a CounterTMB Studio

Preheat the oven to 400°F. On a lightly floured surface, roll the pie dough to 1/8-inch thickness. Using a 4-inch round cookie cutter, cut out 12 circles total, saving the scraps to roll out again and repeat. Press the dough circles into bottoms and up sides of an ungreased muffin tin.

Step 2: Make the fruit filling

A Spoonful of Berries in a Muffin TinTMB Studio

Mix the sugar and cornstarch together, and then toss with the berries and lemon juice. To fill the tarts, spoon 2 tablespoons of the fruit filling into each pastry cup.

Editor’s Tip: Feel free to use a mix of fresh berries in this recipe. If you’re sticking with frozen, here are a few extra tips for baking a fruit pie with frozen fruit.

Step 3: Bake the berry tarts

Bake on a lower oven rack until the crust is golden brown and the filling is bubbly, 24 to 26 minutes. Cool for at least 10 minutes before transferring the tarts to a wire rack. Let the tarts cool completely before serving.

Step 4: Make the whipped topping

A Hand Holding a Spoon Over a Small Fruit TartsTMB Studio

For the topping, beat the cream until soft peaks form. In another bowl, stir together the lemon curd, sugar, vanilla and 1 tablespoon of the whipped cream. Gently fold the remaining whipped cream into the lemon curd mixture. To serve, spoon the whipped topping over the tarts. Top with fresh berries if desired. Refrigerate the tarts until you’re ready to serve them.

How to Store Berry Tarts

Store the cooled berry tarts, covered, in the refrigerator for up to three days. It’s better to store the tarts and whipped topping separately, if possible.

Berry Tart Tips

A Plate of Berry TartsTMB Studio

How do you make a double-crust pie dough?

Combine 2-1/2 cups all-purpose flour and 1/2 teaspoon of salt; cut in 1 cup cold butter until crumbly. Gradually add 1/3 to 2/3 cup of ice water, tossing with a fork until dough holds together when pressed. Divide the dough in half, and shape each into a disk. Wrap the disks, and refrigerate for one hour.

Can you use premade tartlet shells?

Absolutely! Frozen or refrigerator mini pie or tart shells work fine here. You can also use refrigerated pie dough and cut out your own shells with a cookie cutter.

Can you make these berry tarts ahead of time?

You can make elements of these berry tarts ahead of time. For instance, making the tart dough and topping a day or two before baking and serving the tarts is fine. Or you can bake the tarts and store in the refrigerator for up to three days before serving. Just leave off the whipped topping until you’re ready to serve them.

What can you serve with berry tarts?

The lemon curd whipped topping is delicious on these tarts, but you can also make whipped cream (scented with lemon zest, if you like). Adding extra berries on top adds freshness to the tarts and also looks lovely.

Berry Tarts

Bring spring flavors together in these delectable miniature tarts. Raspberries and blueberries both work well with the whipped cream and lemon curd mixture—or choose your favorite berries instead. These sweet treats are great for a ladies tea, brunch or spring holiday celebration. —Mary J. Walters, Westerville, Ohio
Berry Tartlets Recipe photo by Taste of Home
Total Time

Prep: 25 min. Bake: 25 min. + cooling

Makes

1 dozen

Ingredients

  • Dough for double-crust pie
  • 2 tablespoons sugar
  • 1 tablespoon cornstarch
  • 1 package (12 ounces) frozen unsweetened mixed berries, thawed
  • 1 tablespoon lemon juice
  • TOPPING:
  • 1/3 cup heavy whipping cream
  • 1/4 cup lemon curd
  • 1 teaspoon sugar
  • 1/4 teaspoon vanilla extract
  • Fresh berries, optional

Directions

  1. Preheat oven to 400°. On a lightly floured surface, roll dough to 1/8-in. thickness. Using a 4-in. round cookie cutter, cut 12 circles, rerolling scraps as necessary. Press circles onto bottoms and up sides of 12 ungreased muffin cups.
  2. Mix sugar and cornstarch; toss with berries and lemon juice. Spoon 2 tablespoons filling into each cup. Bake on a lower oven rack until crust is golden brown and filling is bubbly, about 25 minutes. Cool 10 minutes before removing from pan to a wire rack; cool completely.
  3. For topping, beat cream until soft peaks form. In another bowl, mix lemon curd, sugar, vanilla and 1 tablespoon whipped cream; fold in remaining whipped cream. Spoon over filling. If desired, top with fresh berries. Refrigerate until serving.

Nutrition Facts

1 tartlet: 241 calories, 14g fat (9g saturated fat), 42mg cholesterol, 160mg sodium, 26g carbohydrate (9g sugars, 1g fiber), 2g protein.