Blackberry Tart: How to Make this Delicious Recipe

Blackberries are one of my favorite fruits. Honestly, I’m not a huge fruit person, I prefer veggies (is that weird?), but blackberries are definitely one I enjoy. I love the tartness and the firm texture. Although I always eat them raw, I realized I’ve never actually baked with them. I decided it was worth trying to bake with them since I do love baking with fruit. I’ve made a few fruit-based pies before, but never mini tartlets. That’s why I decided to try making a blackberry tart. Instead of making one full-size blackberry tart, I decided to try this blackberry tartlet recipe.

For this blackberry tartlets recipe, you do either need mini tartlet pans like the ones I used, or a larger tart pan. Either option will work, I just love the little bite-sized blackberry tartlets because I think they are so cute. This recipe is actually quite easy to pull off. The crust recipe is no-fail. I’ve made it several times and it always turns out great. If you have a food processor, it is so easy to make this tartlet pastry in minutes.

The only thing I would change about this recipe next time is that I would probably smash down the berries a bit so they weren’t quite so whole. I thought they would burst during cooking, but they actually stayed in tact really well. Although I think this makes them look pretty, I think it would have been nice if they had been a bit flatter in the tart. Next time, I would like to add some fun shapes or lattices on top so they look more like pies.

The main difference between a pie and a tart is the fact that the tart doesn’t have the crust on top. But I honestly do prefer pies most of the time because I just love the savory pie crust with the sweet filling. If you do like berry pies or tarts, I’m sure you’ll love these blackberry tartlets. The blackberry tarts turned out so well and they taste great too. I absolutely love the tart filling from the berries and the lemon mixed with the savory and buttery crust. They are so good! 

You can find more tart recipes here and pie recipes here.

Blackberry Tart

Ingredients:

For the Tartlet Pastry 

1 1/4 cups unbleached all-purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
1 1/2 teaspoons granulated sugar
1 stick cold unsalted butter, cut into 1/2-inch pieces
1/2 cup cold water
2 tablespoons cider vinegar
1/2 cup ice

For the Filling

4 cups blackberries fresh, not frozen
1/2 cup white sugar
1/4 cup all-purpose flour
2 tablespoons lemon juice freshly squeezed
1 tablespoon lemon zest
1 tablespoon butter, cold, chopped thinly
2 tablespoons white sugar

Directions:

Make the Pastry: Add the flour, salt, and sugar together in the food processor and pulse a few times. Add the butter pieces and pulse until the butter pieces are the size of peas; be careful not to over-blend. Combine the water, cider vinegar, and ice in a large measuring cup or small bowl. Add 2 tablespoons of the ice water mixture into the flour mixture, and pulse until it is fully incorporated. Add more of the ice water mixture, 1 to 2 tablespoons at a time and pulse to mix until the dough comes together with some dry bits remaining.

Remove the dough to a cutting board. Squeeze and pinch with your fingertips to bring all the dough together, sprinkling dry bits with more small drops of the ice water mixture, if necessary, to combine. Shape the dough into a flat disc, wrap in plastic, and refrigerate for at least 1 hour, preferably overnight, to give the crust time to mellow. 

Make the Filling: In a bowl, toss together the blackberries, sugar, flour, lemon juice, and lemon zest. Combine thoroughly.

Make the Blackberry Tart: Spoon this mixture into the tart shell. Sprinkle 1 or 2 tablespoons white sugar over the berries, and then sprinkle thinly chopped cold butter on top. Place the tart on a rimmed baking sheet (to catch any juices) and bake for 15 minutes at 400 F, then turn down the heat and bake for an additional 15 minutes at 350 until the crust is golden brown and berries are bubbling.