Home > Dessert > Fruit Tart Recipe with the Best Cream (VIDEO)

August 12, 2022

Fruit Tart Recipe with the Best Cream (VIDEO)

This homemade Fruit Tart Recipe is just like the kind you’ll find at fancy French bakeries, with a shortbread crust and vanilla pastry cream and topped with beautiful fresh fruit. Watch the video tutorial and see how easy it is.

We love making bakery-style French desserts at home, from our Classic Eclair Recipe to our Peach Galette Recipe. If you feel the same, this Homemade Fruit Tart is a must-try!

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Fruit Tart Recipe

If you’ve ever been to an authentic French patisserie, you’ve probably seen the stunning fruit tarts in the bakery case, alongside the almond croissants and cream puffs. The fruit tarts are beautifully arranged and glistening – almost too pretty to eat!

Did you know you can make one at home that’s even better? I’ll show you how to make the perfect Sweet Tart Crust (pate sucre), vanilla Pastry Cream filling, and how to arrange the fruit. Here’s why you’ll love this fruit tart recipe:

Impressive – No one will believe you made this beautiful fruit tart yourself!
Fresh and perfect – When you buy a tart, sometimes you take it home and realize the fruit is a little past its prime. Make it at home and you can make sure all the fruit is at the peak of ripeness.
Versatile – Use the seasonal fruit you have on hand and enjoy this tart year-round.
Easier than you think – While making a fruit tart does take time, there’s nothing about the process that’s difficult.

Fruit Tart Video Tutorial

Watch Natasha make this fruit tart recipe, then grab the ingredients and give it a try yourself!

Ingredients

Scroll down to the recipe card below this post for ingredient quantities and full instructions.

Pastry cream – Make a batch of my Pastry Cream Recipe. This can be made up to 3 days ahead.
Sweet tart dough – Use my Pate Sucre Recipe.
Fresh fruit or berries – You’ll need 4 cups of fruit such as strawberries, blueberries, raspberries, blackberries, kiwi, mandarins, etc.
Apricot preserves – Combine this with a tablespoon of water to glaze the fruit.

Overhead view of ingredients for a fruit tart

The Best Fruit for a Fruit Tart

Use fruit based on the season you are in. You can change up your fruit tart in so many ways. Here are some of our favorite fruits to use:

Berries – Strawberries, blueberries, blackberries, raspberries
Stone Fruit – Cherries, peaches, nectarines, apricots, plums
Currants – Black currants, Red currants
Citrus – Clementine or mandarin orange segments
Tropical fruits – Mango, kiwi, starfruit

Overhead view of fruit used to make a tart

Pro Tip: Avoid fruit that discolors quickly, such as banana or apple, unless you are planning to serve immediately after assembling. Also, avoid fruits that release a lot of juice such as melon or sliced citrus. Berries should be rinsed and dried thoroughly with paper towels; turn raspberries upside-down on a paper towel so any water in the hollow center drains out.

How to Make a Fruit Tart

You can get a head start on this recipe by making both the pastry cream and tart dough in advance.

Make the pastry cream – Do this first, since it needs time to set. Let the cream cool to room temperature, then refrigerate it for at least 2 hours, or up to a few days ahead of time.
Make the tart crust – Follow the recipe for the tart dough. Once baked, set the tart pan on a wire rack and cool completely to room temperature.
Add the pastry cream – Once the crust has cooled, carefully release it from the pan and set it on a serving platter. Spread the pastry cream into the tart pan.
Arrange the fruit – Top the pastry cream with the fruit; you can do this in rings or just scatter it over the top.
Make the glaze – Microwave the apricot preserves and water in a heat-safe bowl for about 30 seconds, or until the preserves are softened. If the preserves have bits of fruit, you can strain them out.
Glaze the tart – Use a pastry brush to brush the preserves evenly over the fruit.

6 photos showing process of filling and topping a fruit tart

Pro Tip: If you are serving right away, you can skip the glaze, although it adds an extra layer of flavor and the glossy finish looks very professional.

Overhead view of a French-style fruit tart

Common Questions

What is a fruit tart?

A fruit tart is a classic French dessert made with a sweet crust, vanilla-flavored pastry cream, and glazed fruit on the top.

Can I use a different jam for the glaze?

Use a jam that is lighter in color such as apricot jam or apple jam. Other varieties will work but they do add a rosy color to your fruit.

Can I substitute the cream?

A cream cheese frosting is sturdy enough to make a nice base for a tart. You can also use a mascarpone-based frosting, which is easy and there’s no need to cook it.

Can I make this in a regular pie pan?

No, this recipe won’t work in a pie pan. You need to be able to remove the mold.

What is the best pan for making a fruit tart?

I use this 11-inch pan, which is what I use to make Quiche also. The bottom is removable, which makes it so much easier to get nice, clean slices. You can also use a 10″ round tart pan or a 9″ square tart pan.

Make-Ahead

You can easily make this fruit tart ahead of time, but I don’t recommend freezing it because the fresh fruit will release liquid into the filling after freezing and thawing.

To Refrigerate: Once assembled, this fruit tart will last for 1 to 2 days in the refrigerator, depending on the fruit you use. Whole berries will last longer than cut fruit.

Fruit tart topped with berries and mandarin segments

This authentic fruit tart recipe will give you a bakery-style dessert at home, and it’s easier to make than you think.

More Fruit Dessert Recipes

If you love home-baked pastries and desserts, then you won’t want to miss these fruit dessert recipes:

Fresh Fruit Tart Recipe

5 from 27 votes

Prep Time: 20 minutes

Cook Time: 25 minutes

Total Time: 45 minutes

This authentic French fruit tart recipe layers vanilla pastry cream and fresh fruit over a sweet homemade crust. You can even make the crust and pastry cream 2-3 days ahead of time and assemble them the day you are serving for the prettiest presentation.

Author: Natasha Kravchuk

Course: Dessert

Cuisine: French

Keyword: french fruit tart, fresh fruit tart, fruit tart recipe

Skill Level: Medium/Advanced

Cost to Make: $15-$20

Servings: 8 people

Ingredients

1 Sweet Tart Dough Recipe, Pate Sucre
1 Pastry Cream Recipe
4 cups fresh fruit or berries, strawberries, blueberries, raspberries, blackberries, clementine segments, etc
1/3 cup Apricot Preserves with 1 Tbsp water

US Customary – Metric

Instructions

Make Pastry Cream Recipe first since it needs time to set. Place a sheet of plastic wrap directly over the surface and cool the cream to room temperature then refrigerate for 2 hours to set. You can make the cream a few days ahead.
Make the Tart Crust Recipe in a 10 to 11-inch round tart pan. Once baked, remove from the oven and transfer the pan to a wire rack to cool completely to room temperature then carefully release the tart from the pan. You can leave the bottom of the pan on if you prefer.
Set the tart pan over your serving platter (it will be hard to transfer once the crust is filled). Spread the pastry cream evenly into the tart pan.
Arrange your fruit to your preference. You can either arrange fruit in rings or scatter it randomly over the top.
Make the Glaze: In a heat-safe bowl, combine apricot preserves and 1 Tbsp water and microwave for 30 seconds just enough to soften and loosen up the preserves. If preserves have a lot of fruit pieces, you can strain those out. Use a pastry brush to brush preserves over the fruit, applying an even coating over all the fruit.

Nutrition Disclosure

Natasha Kravchuk

Welcome to my kitchen! I am Natasha, the blogger behind Natasha's Kitchen (since 2009). My husband and I run this blog together and share only our best, family approved and tested recipes with YOU. Thanks for stopping by! We are so happy you're here.