This festive fresh fruit tart is picture perfect for a patriotic summer holiday! Fresh strawberries and blueberries from the farmer's market tops a sweet and creamy custard base in a cookie crust.
PREP TIME 20 minutesminutes
Additional Time 1 hourhour
COOK TIME 30 minutesminutes
TOTAL TIME 1 hourhour50 minutesminutes
YIELD 8servings
Ingredients
For the crust:
1large egg yolk
1tbspheavy cream
½tspvanilla extract
1 ¼cupsflour
2/3cupconfectioners’ sugar
¼tspsalt
8tbsp(1 stick) cold buttercut into cubes
For the filling:
1(8 oz) brick of cream cheesesoftened
½cupconfectioners’ sugar
½tspvanilla extract
2tbspmilk or cream
For the topping:
2cupsfresh strawberriescleaned and sliced thin
1cupfresh blueberrieswashed and dried
Instructions
For the crust:
To make the crust, whisk together the egg yolk, cream, and vanilla in a small bowl and set aside. Pour the flour, sugar, and salt into the bowl of a food processor and process briefly to combine. Scatter the butter cubes over the flour and process to cut the butter into the flour. The mixture should resemble a coarse meal after 15 1-second pulses.
With the machine running, pour in the egg mixture. Turn off the machine as soon as the dough forms a large ball. Turn the dough onto a sheet of plastic wrap and form it into a 6-inch disc. Wrap tightly and refrigerate for 1 hour or up to 48 hours.
Remove the dough from the refrigerator. (If refrigerated for more than an hour, let stand at room temperature until malleable.) Unwrap the dough and roll out on a lightly floured surface. Transfer the dough into a removable bottom tart pan and gently press into place. Trim any excess off the top by rolling a rolling pin over the top to cut the edge. Freeze for 30 minutes.
Preheat the oven to 375°F with the oven rack in the middle position. Set the tart pan on a baking sheet and gently press a square of tinfoil onto the surface of the frozen shell making sure to cover the edges. Bake for 30 minutes, rotating halfway through the baking time. Remove the tin foil and continue to bake until light golden brown, 5-8 minutes longer.
For the filling:
Beat together the softened cream cheese, powdered sugar, and vanilla on medium-high speed until smooth. Add the milk or cream and continue to beat until light and fluffy. Spread the cream cheese mixture evenly over the cooled tart shell.
To decorate:
Place the strawberries in circles starting at the outer edge and working towards the center. You can sprinkle the blueberries all over the top or make neat rows, whichever you prefer!
Chill until ready to serve. Drizzle with chocolate sauce or dollops of whipped cream if you choose.
Notes on making it ahead:
You can make the dough up to 48 hours ahead of time, but the crust is best on the day it is baked.
You can blend the cream cheese filling the day before, but allow it to come to room temperature before trying to spread it in the pan.
The crust is sturdy and travels well for entertaining!