Lemon Curd Fruit Tartlets

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Shortbread tartlets filled with lemon curd and fresh fruit.

Prep Time30

Cook Time40

Resting Time4

Total Time5 10

Course: Dessert

Cuisine: American

Keyword: fruit tart, fruit tartlets, lemon curd tart, mini fruit tart, mini tart

Servings: tartlets

Calories: 192kcal

Whisk dry ingredients (flour and cornstarch) together and set aside.
Cream butter and sugars with paddle attachment, on medium-low speed, until fluffy and pale in color (about 5 minutes).
Add egg and extract and mix on low speed until thoroughly combined. Scrape down the paddle with a spatula, and then continue to mix on low speed for another 30 seconds to ensure everything is fully incorporated.
Add dry ingredients, all at once, and mix on low speed just until dough starts to come together and no dry bits remain. Do not overmix.
Turn dough out onto cling wrap, tightly wrap, and refrigerate overnight (or for at least 4 hours).
Knead, roll out ¼" thick using flour, cut out 3" circles of cookie dough, and gently press dough circles into sides and bottoms of tart pans.
Use a tart tamper, shot glass, or condiment ramekin to press dough flat into bottom of tart pans. Remove excess dough from tart pans with knife or by gently pressing with the palm of your hand.
Gently press dough against sides of tart pans so that it rises about ⅛" above the top of the tart pan.
Freeze filled tart pans until dough is firm before baking.
Preheat oven to 350°F
Fully bake for 18-25 minutes, until edges begin to darken in color.
Immediately after removing shells from oven, use your tart tamper, shot glass, or condiment ramekin to tamp down inside of tart shell while still hot.
Once cool, remove shells from pans.

Sift together cornstarch with white sugar.
Add to saucepan on medium-low heat with ½ cup of boiling water, and whisk to combine.
Lightly whisk together egg yolks in a glass bowl. Then slowly drizzle in half of the sugar/water mixture while whisking, so you don't cook your eggs.
Pour egg mixture into saucepan, and whisk in lemon juice and lemon zest.
Simmer on low, stirring frequently, until curd reaches desired thickness. It can take 10-15 minutes to thicken up.
To test thickness, drop a spoon full of curd onto a cool countertop or glass plate, and allow to sit for a minute. Your cooled curd should be the consistency of thick jam.
When curd is desired thickness, remove from heat and whisk in butter.
Allow curd to cool, then transfer to a piping bag or container, and refrigerate until fully set.
Pipe or spoon curd into shells. Make sure not to overfill them, so curd doesn’t spill out when you add fruit. Top with fruit, and serve immediately.

Pressing the dough above the height of the tart pans will prevent the sides of the tart shells from sinking down too low during baking.
Freezing shells for 10-20 minutes before baking will prevent your dough from shrinking down too much during baking. Freeze until they feel firm to the touch.
Tamping down inside of shells after baking will allow more room for filling.
Baked shells will stay fresh in an airtight container at room temperature for 1 month.
These tarts are good with pretty much any soft fruit you like. Strawberries, blackberries, raspberries, blueberries, kiwi, lychee, dragon fruit, papaya, mango, mandarin orange, peaches, cherries, pineapple. You really can’t go wrong here!
Lemon curd will last in the refrigerator for 7-10 days, or you can freeze for up to 3 months.
If you need to make these tarts a day ahead of serving, or perhaps you need to travel some distance with them, there are a couple things that you can do to make sure they don't get soggy, and the fruit stays pretty.
- - Brush inside of tart shells with an egg wash, and bake at 350°F for a couple minutes. This provides a barrier between the shells and the curd, so the shells don't get soggy.
- - Brush fruit with a glaze. Microwave a ½ cup of apricot jam (or any light colored jam/jelly) and 1 tablespoon of water for 20-30 second increments until jam is melted. Then brush glaze onto fruit with a pastry brush.