A fruit tart is a classic dessert found in fancy French bakeries, but it’s easy to make at home! Use your favorite fresh berries for the perfect summer dessert.
Fruit tarts are one of my favorite summer desserts. I love the combination of buttery crust, creamy vanilla filling, and fresh, sweet berries. And while they may look like they take hours to make, fruit tarts are actually pretty simple to put together—at least when you use this recipe!
Easy Fruit Tart Recipe
Traditional French fruit tarts use a crust called pâte sucrée, which is made with flour, sugar, butter, and eggs. The dough is rolled out and then pressed into a tart pan. Once the crust is baked, it’s filled with a layer of pastry cream, then the fruit is arranged over the top. It might not sound like it, but the traditional recipe is a lot of work.
This fruit tart is every bit as delicious as those beautiful French bakery fruit tarts, but it’s easy enough for anyone to make! Instead of the complicated crust, we use frozen pie dough here. No muss, no fuss, and it gives you more time to focus on the pastry cream and beautiful fruit topping!
(For more recipes that use store-bought pie crust, try my Banana Cream Pie, Coconut Cream Pie, or Classic French Silk Pie!)
Although fresh berries are a traditional choice here, summer stone fruits like peaches, nectarines, and plums are great, too, and some fruit tarts are also made with kiwi. Just cut them into slices and arrange them in a circular pattern.
Ingredients
See recipe card below this post for ingredient quantities and full instructions.
- Frozen pie dough – Thaw this before you start the recipe.
- Whole milk – Whole milk gives you the creamiest fruit tart filling!
- Granulated sugar
- Egg yolks – Here’s the best way to crack an egg.
- Cornstarch
- Salt
- Vanilla extract – A vanilla bean can be used instead, if you prefer.
- Mixed berries – Use a combination of blueberries, strawberries, raspberries, or blackberries. (Try my ice water hack for reviving strawberries that are past their prime!)
- Apricot jam – Melt this in the microwave just before applying it as a glaze.
How to Make a Fresh Fruit Tart
1. Form the Crust
Preheat your oven to 350ºF. Roll out the pie dough with a rolling pin until it’s about an inch larger than your tart pan. Carefully lay the dough into the pan, pushing it into the bottom and sides to form the crust. Trim any excess dough with a paring knife.
2. Bake the Crust
Cover the shell with parchment paper, then fill it with pie weights, beans, or rice. Bake for 12 minutes, then remove the parchment and weights, and return the crust to the oven for another 10 to 15 minutes, or until the crust is golden brown.
3. Warm the Milk
Pour the milk into a medium saucepan and heat to just below a simmer, stirring frequently to prevent the milk from scorching.
4. Finish the Pastry Cream
Whisk the egg yolks and sugar in a large bowl; once the mixture is smooth, stir in the cornstarch and salt. Temper the milk into the yolks, then pour the yolk mixture back into the saucepan. Cook for another 6 to 8 minutes, or until the mixture thickens. Remove from heat.
5. Chill the Pastry Cream
Whisk in the vanilla extract and pour the pastry cream into a bowl. Cover this with plastic wrap, pushing the plastic onto the surface of the cream to prevent a skin from forming. Chill in the fridge for 2 to 3 hours.
6. Assemble the Fruit Tart
Fill the cooled tart shell with pastry cream, then use a rubber spatula to smooth the top. Arrange the fruits on top of the cream in a decorative pattern. Brush the fruit with the melted apricot jam.
7. Chill Again
Place the assembled fruit tart in the refrigerator and chill for 3 to 4 hours before serving.
How to Store a Fruit Tart
A fruit tart is best served the day it’s made, but it can be stored in the fridge for up to two days. Wrap it in the tart pan with plastic wrap, or store leftovers in an airtight container.
FAQs
A fruit tart is typically made with a sweet, sugar cookie-like crust or a pie crust, then filled with pastry cream or fruit curd. Next, fresh fruit is arranged on top of the tart.
You can arrange the berries however you’d like! If you’re using a single, small fruit like blueberries or even raspberries, you can just scatter them over the top. Larger fruits like strawberries and blackberries look nice in a circular or spiral pattern. If you’re using a few different berries, you can make rings of each one.
Wondering what makes a fruit tart have that beautiful shiny look? It’s an apricot glaze! It’s made by melting apricot jam, then it’s brushed on top of the tart after adding the fresh fruit.
Blackberries, raspberries, and blueberries don’t need to be cut, but strawberries should be cut into slices, halved, or quartered, depending on the size of the berries and the look you want.
More Summery Fruit Desserts
Fruit Tart
Ingredients
- 1 frozen pie dough thawed
- 2 cups whole milk
- 1 cup granulated sugar
- 6 egg yolks
- ¼ cup cornstarch
- ¼ tsp salt
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- 4 cups mixed berries such as blueberries, strawberries, raspberries, blackberries
- ¼ cup apricot jam melted
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350F. Carefully roll out the pie dough to 1” larger than the tart pan and gently lay the dough into the pan, pushing to form the crust. Cut excess dough off with a paring knife. Cover the shell with parchment paper and add pie weights or beans/rice. Bake for 12 minutes, remove the parchment and weights, and return to the oven for another 10-15 minutes or until the crust is golden brown.
- For the pastry cream, in a medium saucepan heat the milk to just below a simmer stirring to prevent scorching.
- In a large bowl, whisk together the egg yolks and sugar until smooth. Add the cornstarch and salt and continue to whisk until combined. Temper the milk into the yolks and return everything to the saucepan. Continue to cook for another 6-8 minutes or until the mixture thickens. Whisk in vanilla and pour into a bowl to cool. Cover with plastic wrap, being sure to push the plastic onto the surface. Chill in the fridge for 2-3 hours.
- Fill the cooled tart shell with pastry, smoothing the top with a spatula. Arrange the fruits on top in a decorative pattern. Brush the fruit with melted apricot jam, reheating as needed. Chill for 3-4 hours before serving.
