Transport yourself to a Parisian cafe with this simple recipe for Mini Lemon Tarts!
Featuring deliciously short buttery crusts, creamy vegan lemon curd, and bright, juicy raspberries, these adorable vegan lemon tartlets are tasty and twee enough to win the coveted Paul Hollywood handshake.
These delectably bright and zingy lemon curd mini tarts are perfectly suited to serving for elegant functions like high tea, ladies’ luncheons, Mother’s Day brunch, Easter, or dinner parties.
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📖 Recipe Overview
- These veganized French lemon tarts look just like what you’d find in the window of a French patisserie.
- Only a handful of ingredients are required, and they’re all easy to find.
- Using a food processor makes the process of making vegan tart crust super quick and easy.
- My lemon mini tarts are perfectly portioned, making them ideal for potlucks, bake sales, or other parties where you don’t want to fuss with a knife.
Love all things lemon? Check out my vegan lemon cake, lemon meringue pie, lemon cheesecake, lemon raspberry cheesecake bars, vegan lemon cookies, or lemon lasagna next!
🧾 Ingredients Needed
As promised, you only need a few basic ingredients to make these citrusy vegan fruit tarts:
Ingredients Notes
While all of the ingredients you’ll need for these lemon curd tarts are pretty self-explanatory, here are a few notes to keep in mind:
- All-Purpose Flour - This is also sold as “plain flour” on this side of the pond.
- Granulated Sugar - If you live in America, make sure to opt for certified organic sugar to ensure that it is vegan.
- Non-Dairy Milk - I prefer using unflavored, unsweetened milk here, but other dairy-free milk will also work.
- Vegan Lemon Curd - While you’re welcome to swap in store-bought curd, my homemade version is absolutely luscious.
- Fresh Raspberries - For decoration. Feel free to swap in other berries or sliced fruit as you wish. You can also add edible flowers or use a mix of fruits to suit your tastes.
- Raspberry Preserves - Either jam or jelly will work beautifully here.
🥣 How To Make Mini Lemon Tarts
Find the complete list of ingredients, quantities, and instructions in the recipe card at the end of this post.
Making French-style lemon tarts vegan is easier than you might think. Here’s how it’s done:
Step 1: Make the pastry. In your food processor, pulse the pastry ingredients for about 30 seconds, until they form a dough consistency. Gently knead the dough into a smooth ball and wrap the dough in cling film or place it in an airtight container and refrigerate for at least 30 minutes.
Step 2: Roll out the chilled dough on a lightly floured surface to around ½ a centimeter thickness.
Step 3: Cut out dough circles using a fluted cookie cutter slightly wider than the circumference of the tins, re-rolling the leftover dough if needed.
Step 4: Place the pastry rounds into the tins, using your fingers to gently ease them into the sides and bottom. Pierce several holes into the base of the pastry using a fork.
Step 5: Blind bake the crust. Line the pastry shells with rounds of parchment. Fill each base with baking weights and blind bake in the oven for 15 minutes. Carefully remove the parchment paper and bake until light golden brown. Place the tins on a cooling rack.
Step 6: Glaze the pastry. Heat the raspberry jam over a double-boiler or in the microwave so that it becomes runny and glossy. Use a pastry brush to coat the pastry shells evenly.
Step 7: Fill the cooled pastry shell with the lemon curd, using a piping bag for best results.
Step 8: Assemble & Chill. Arrange the raspberries on top, carefully pressing them down into the curd to secure them. Lightly brush the berries with the remaining melted raspberry jam. Place the tarts back into the fridge to firm up.
🍓 Optional Variations
I love this mini lemon tarts recipe just the way it is written. But there is plenty of room for you to add your own flair. Here are a few ideas to get your creative wheels turning:
- Add a layer of vegan meringue.
- Make it extra creamy by using my vegan lemon custard as your filling.
- Swap out your berries and preserves to match the season. Strawberries, blueberries, blackberries, cranberries, or mango are all lovely alternatives to raspberries.
- Use a different curd like orange or passion fruit for a different flavor experience.
📝 Recipe Tips
Roll your pastry evenly. This will ensure even baking and prevent the dreaded “soggy bottom!”
Don’t try to reuse your “edible” weights (e.g. rice, beans, lentils) as food after baking. Keep them in a separate container labeled as pie weights!
Don’t rush the chilling process. These vegan tarts need several hours to firm up in the fridge, or you’ll risk the lemon curd spilling out of the shells after the first bite.
💬 FAQs
Yes! That said, I do recommend leaving the raspberry decorations off if you do, as the cellular structure of the berries changes under extreme cold and they will weep when you defrost them.
To freeze, wrap well in plastic cling wrap and place in a freezer-safe container for up to a month. To serve, defrost overnight in the fridge, then decorate and enjoy.
Keep covered with plastic wrap or in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 3-4 days.
Make sure to blind bake the tart shells until they are golden and lightly crisp, then use the raspberry preserves as a sealant to prevent any sogginess.
🍋 More Vegan Fruit Tart Recipes
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📖 Recipe
Description
Equipment
Ingredients
- 200 g (1 ½ cups + 1 tbsp) all-purpose flour, (plain flour)
- 125 g (½ cup) vegan butter
- 35 g (⅕ cup) granulated sugar, *see notes
- ½ teaspoon sea salt
- 1 tablespoon non-dairy milk
- 1 batch vegan lemon curd
- 200 g (1 ⅔ cups) fresh raspberries
- 90 g (¼ cup) raspberry preserves or raspberry jam
Instructions
- Make the pastry: In your food processor, pulse the flour, vegan butter, sugar, salt, and non-dairy milk for about 30 seconds, until the ingredients form a dough consistency.Gently knead the dough into a smooth ball and wrap the dough in cling film or place it in an airtight container and refrigerate for at least 30 minutes.Preheat your oven to 175°C (350°F). Lightly grease the base and sides of 6x4" mini tart tins with some oil or vegan butter.
- Using a rolling pin, roll out the chilled dough on a lightly floured surface to around ½ a centimeter thickness. Using a fluted cookie cutter that's wider than the circumference of the tins to cut out circles, re-roll leftover dough if needed.Carefully lift the pastry circles into the tins and use your fingers to gently ease the pastry into the side of each tin.Pierce several holes into the base of the pastry using a fork.
- Blind bake the crust: Take several sheets of parchment paper and cut them into circles slightly larger than the tins. Scrunch it up, and then smooth it out into the pastry shellS. Fill each base with dried beans, rice, lentils, or baking beads. Blind bake in the oven for 15 minutes. Carefully remove the parchment paper and beans/baking beads and bake for another 7-8 minutes until light golden brown. Place the tins on a cooling rack.
- Glaze the pastry: Heat the raspberry jam over a double-boiler or in the microwave so that it becomes runny and glossy. Use a pastry brush to evenly coat the pastry shells.
- Make the filling: Make a batch of vegan lemon curd. Allow it to cool slightly for 10-15 minutes.
- Add the fillings: Use a piping bag or spoon to fill the cooled pastry shell with the lemon curd. Arrange the raspberries on top, carefully pressing them slightly down into the curd to secure them. Lightly brush the berries with the remaining melted raspberry jam.
- Chill: Place the tarts back into the fridge for 2 hours so that they firm up before serving. You can also leave it overnight and serve them the following day.
- Storage: Keep covered with plastic wrap or in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 3-4 days.
Notes
- Roll your pastry evenly. This will ensure even baking and prevent the dreaded “soggy bottom!”
- Don’t try to reuse your “edible” weights (e.g. rice, beans, lentils) as food after baking. Keep them in a separate container labeled as pie weights!
- To freeze, wrap the tarts without raspberry topping well in plastic cling wrap and place them in a freezer-safe container for up to a month. To serve, defrost overnight in the fridge, then decorate.
Nutrition
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