Celebrate the beginning of spring with a cool, creamy, and refreshing lemon blueberry tart. The flaky shortbread crust provides the perfect base for the rich lemon filling, and swirled homemade blueberry sauce brings the presentation and taste to the next level! Sweet, tangy, and buttery all at once, this tart is the perfect treat for spring gatherings.
Begin by gathering the following ingredients:
For the blueberry sauce:
1 teaspoon cornstarch
2 teaspoons lemon juice (or water)
1 cup fresh or frozen blueberries (do not thaw)
2 teaspoons sugar
For the shortbread crust:
1/2 cup unsalted butter, melted
1/4 cup sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 cup all-purpose flour
For the filling:
1 (14-ounce) can full-fat sweetened condensed milk
6 Tablespoons lemon juice (about 2 lemons)
1 teaspoon lemon zest (1 lemon)
1 egg yolk
Using a fork, mix the cornstarch and lemon juice together in a small bowl until the cornstarch has dissolved. Set this aside and warm the blueberries and sugar together in a small saucepan over medium heat. Stir occasionally for about three minutes, mashing the blueberries against the bottom and sides of the pan to help break them up. Stir in the cornstarch and lemon juice mixture and cook for two more minutes as the sauce thickens, stirring and mashing the blueberries to break them up as desired. Remove the sauce from heat and set it aside at room temperature. If you do not want blueberry lumps in your tart, run the blueberry sauce through a sieve.
After setting aside the blueberry sauce, preheat the oven to 350°F (177°C). Then make the crust by mixing the melted butter, sugar, vanilla extract, and salt together in a medium bowl. Add the flour and stir until completely combined. The dough will be a little greasy and very thick. Using a rubber spatula or your hands, press the dough firmly into an ungreased 9-inch tart pan or 9-inch pie pan, making sure the layer of crust is even on the bottom and all around the sides.
Bake the crust for 15 minutes or until the edges are very lightly browned. Remove it from the oven and, using a fork, poke a few holes all over the top of the warm crust, but not all the way through the crust. This will help the filling stick.
To make the filling, begin by whisking all of the filling ingredients together until combined. Pour them into the warm crust. Then stir up the blueberry sauce because it has likely thickened. If it is too thick to easily stir and swirl into the filling, warm it in the microwave for 5-10 seconds. Drop spoonfuls of blueberry sauce all over the top of the tart, using about half of the sauce. Reserve the rest of the sauce for serving. Using a toothpick or knife, gently swirl the sauce and filling together.
Bake the tart for 17-19 minutes, just until the center of the tart no longer jiggles when you give the pan a light tap. It will still be a little sticky on top. Avoid over-baking because the tart will taste rubbery. It is best to err on the side of under-baking because the filling also has a chance to set up in the refrigerator.
When it has finished baking, remove the tart from the oven and place it on a cooling rack. Allow it to cool completely at room temperature before chilling it in the refrigerator uncovered for at least 2 hours and up to 1 day. If chilling for longer than 2 hours, cover it. After chilling, remove the sides of the tart pan if your pan has removable sides.
Slice and serve this delicious tart with garnishes such as leftover blueberry sauce, lemon slices, fresh blueberries, or whipped cream. Cover any leftovers tightly and refrigerate them for up to one week. Because the tart sits in the refrigerator after baking, this is the perfect treat to make the day before, and coming straight from the fridge will ensure it is cold and refreshing. Enjoy!
Works Cited:
McKenney, Sally. “Lemon Blueberry Tart”. Sally’s Baking Recipes, 1 Apr. 2021, https://sallysbakingaddiction.com/lemon-blueberry-tart/.
Image Credits: Isabel Rogers