Cool, creamy, and refreshing lemon blueberry tart comes together with 10 ingredients. The simple lemon filling sits in a flaky shortbread crust and is swirled with homemade blueberry sauce. After the first bite of this sweet, tangy, and buttery tart, it’s impossible to put your fork down. Enjoy this beautiful dessert for Mother’s Day, Father’s Day, spring or summer celebrations, and more.
I knew a tart or pie version of our beloved lemon blueberry cake would be a hit in my household AND with many of you reading this. I’m always dreaming up ways to use this unbeatable flavor combination such as lemon blueberry muffins, glazed lemon blueberry scones, lemon blueberry babka, or lemon blueberry cupcakes. A beautiful tart with tons of fresh flavor was definitely my imagination’s top choice. I cannot wait for you to try this one.
One reader, Judy, commented: “Loved this recipe. It was creamy, tangy, and not too sweet. The shortbread crust was easy to make and came out perfectly. Looks fancy, even though it is a pretty easy recipe. I loved the extra blueberry sauce, so I will make extra next time. Definitely a keeper! ★★★★★”
Lemon Blueberry Tart Details
- Texture: I went back and forth about which type of crust to use for this lemon tart, but shortbread seemed most fitting. It’s pleasantly crumbly with a flaky texture that melts in your mouth. The crust contrasts perfectly with the creamy and lush filling on top, making this one of our favorite spring dessert recipes and Easter brunch recipes.
- Flavor: If I were to describe the taste of pure sunshine, it would definitely be this lemon blueberry tart. The lemon flavor is delightfully fresh and bright, and there’s just enough tang to complement all the sweetness. You really only need a small slice since there’s such a strong punch of flavor, but honestly I’ve never witnessed anyone stopping at 1 serving. (HA!)
- Ease: There are 3 components to the tart and each must be prepared separately, but there’s nothing really complicated about the entire process. Take your time and read through the recipe before you start.
- Time: It only takes about an hour to prep and bake the tart. But you’ll want to cool and chill it before serving, so set aside a few hours to complete the entire recipe. It’s wonderful when made the day ahead, too! Oatmeal lemon crumble bars are another excellent option for an even quicker lemony treat.
3 Parts to This Recipe
- Buttery Shortbread Crust: I make this shortbread crust with a lot of different desserts and it always reminds me of pie crust, but it’s so much easier. There’s no food processor or pastry cutter needed—instead simply combine melted butter with sugar, vanilla, salt, and flour and press into a tart pan or pie dish. You don’t even need to chill the dough before using. You’ll notice we use the same crust for our raspberry streusel bars, apple pie bars, and we double the recipe for our lemon bars. Keep in mind that these other desserts may require different oven temperatures and that’s because the desserts take longer, overall, to bake through. We bake the crust at 350°F (177°C) for this particular tart recipe.
- Lemon Filling: A lot of lemon tarts are prepared with a curd filling, but this one is thick, creamy, and rich. I use a similar lemon filling for our creamy lemon pie. I halved it for this tart, then cut down on the egg yolks. The egg yolks help the filling set, but I wanted the finished tart to remain soft. I think you’ll really love it. We’ll use only 1 egg yolk.
- Blueberry Sauce Swirl: You’ll enjoy pure blueberries without much else in the way. We hardly add any sugar to the blueberry sauce (some is needed to help them break down), so the natural flavor can really shine. Cook it on the stovetop for a few minutes, let it cool a little bit, then swirl some into the lemon filling. Feel free to strain it if you don’t want any blueberry lumps. You can use a toothpick or knife to swirl.
Can I Use a Graham Cracker Crust Instead?
A graham cracker crust will fall apart and crumble under this wet filling, so I suggest sticking with the shortbread crust for this recipe. If you wish to use a graham cracker crust, make these lemon blueberry cheesecake bars instead.
The shortbread crust dough is thick and a little greasy—don’t be nervous if it looks a little wet. Press it tightly into your pan and pre-bake it before adding the filling.
Creamy Lemon Tart Filling
You need one 14 ounce (weight) can of full-fat sweetened condensed milk, lemon juice and zest, and 1 egg yolk. That’s it. Fresh lemon juice is best. Here is a wonderful juicer if you don’t have one and if you need a recommendation for a zester, I use and love this one.
Spread the filling into the pre-baked crust.
I recommend making the blueberry sauce first so it’s ready when you need it. The recipe moves pretty quickly once you begin pre-baking the crust.
How to Make Mini Lemon Blueberry Tarts
Try using this recipe for about 10 mini tarts in mini tart pans. I don’t recommend a muffin pan for turning this recipe into mini tarts. Divide crust mixture between each mini tart pan (bake these in batches if you have less than 10), press firmly into the bottom, and bake for 8 minutes to help set the crust. It’s usually easiest to bake mini tart pans on a larger baking sheet. No need to poke holes in the crust before adding the filling as directed for the full size tart below. Pour filling into warm crusts, drop a few tiny spoonfuls of blueberry sauce on each, then swirl as directed below. Bake for 9-10 minutes or just until the centers no longer jiggle. Cool completely, then chill for at least 1 hour before removing from tart pans and serving. (Or serve in tart pans.)
Lemon Blueberry Tart Variations
If you want to switch up some flavors, be our guest! Here are the variations we tested. We’re unsure of the results outside of these listed changes, so let us know if you try anything else.
- Lime Tart: Switch the lemon juice and zest for lime juice and zest. Feel free to keep the blueberry swirl or skip it. You could also use the strawberry, raspberry, or blackberry swirl.
- Strawberry Swirl: Replace blueberries with 1 cup chopped fresh or frozen strawberries. You can’t really detect the strawberry seeds in the baked tart, but feel free to strain the sauce through a fine mesh sieve before swirling into the filling.
- Raspberry or Blackberry Swirl: Replace blueberries with 1 cup fresh or frozen raspberries or blackberries and add 1 more teaspoon of sugar to the sauce (for a total of 3 teaspoons). Strain the finished sauce through a fine mesh sieve to remove the seeds before swirling into the filling.
- We haven’t tested other citrus besides lime or lemon. We do not recommend swapping the lemons for orange zest/juice because the tart will be very, very sweet. You really need the tang from lemons or limes. We haven’t tested this recipe with grapefruit.
See Your Lemon Blueberry Tarts!
Many readers tried this recipe as part of a baking challenge! Feel free to email or share your recipe photos with us on social media. 🙂
Print
Lemon Blueberry Tart
- Prep Time: 1 hour
- Cook Time: 35 minutes
- Total Time: 4 hours (includes chilling)
- Yield: serves 8-10
- Category: Dessert
- Method: Baking
- Cuisine: American
Description
There are 3 parts to this creamy lemon blueberry tart and each are prepared separately before bringing them all together. For best success, take your time and read through the recipe before starting.
Ingredients
Blueberry Sauce
- 1 teaspoon cornstarch
- 2 teaspoons lemon juice (or water)
- 1 cup (140g) fresh or frozen blueberries (do not thaw)
- 2 teaspoons granulated sugar
Shortbread Crust
- 1/2 cup (8 Tbsp; 113g) unsalted butter, melted
- 1/4 cup (50g) granulated sugar
- 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
- 1 cup (125g) all-purpose flour (spooned & leveled)
Filling
- 1 (14 ounce weight) can full-fat sweetened condensed milk
- 6 Tablespoons (90ml) lemon juice (about 2 lemons)
- 1 teaspoon lemon zest (1 lemon)
- 1 large egg yolk
Optional Garnishes
- Lemon slices, blueberries, leftover blueberry sauce, whipped cream
Instructions
- Blueberry Sauce: Using a fork, mix the cornstarch and lemon juice together in a small bowl until the cornstarch has dissolved. Set aside. Warm the blueberries and sugar together in a small saucepan over medium heat. Stir occasionally for 3 minutes, mashing the blueberries as best you can against the bottom and sides of the pan to help break them up. Stir in the cornstarch mixture. Cook for 2 more minutes as the sauce thickens, stirring and mashing the blueberries to break them up as desired. Remove sauce from heat and set aside at room temperature until step 6. Makes about 1/2 – 2/3 cup blueberry sauce and you’ll use about half for the swirl. (Reserve extra for garnish/serving.)
- Preheat oven to 350°F (177°C).
- Crust: Mix the melted butter, sugar, vanilla extract, and salt together in a medium bowl. Add the flour and stir to completely combine. The dough will be a little greasy and very thick. Using a silicone spatula or your hands, press dough firmly into a 9-inch tart pan (no need to grease it), making sure the layer of crust is even on the bottom and all around the sides. It may seem like it won’t fit, but it will. You can use the bottom of a measuring cup to pack the crust in too, but sometimes it sticks.
- Bake for 15 minutes or until the edges are very lightly browned. Remove from the oven. Using a fork, poke a few holes all over the top of the warm crust (not all the way through the crust). This helps the filling stick.
- Filling: Whisk all of the filling ingredients together until combined. Pour into warm crust. Stir up the blueberry sauce because it has likely thickened. It can still be warm when you use it in this step. If it’s too thick, warm it in the microwave for 5-10 seconds. Drop spoonfuls of blueberry sauce all over the top, 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. Shimmy the pan back and forth 2-3 times to let the sauce and filling settle down into the crust a bit.
- Bake 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. (Tip: Err on the side of under-baking because the filling also has a chance to set up in the refrigerator. You want a creamy soft filling.)
- Remove tart from the oven and place on a cooling rack. Cool completely at room temperature, then chill 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 with optional garnishes including any leftover blueberry sauce.
- Cover leftovers tightly and refrigerate for up to 1 week.
Notes
- Make Ahead & Freezing Instructions: You can bake, cool, and chill the tart 1 day in advance. See step 7. The filling must be poured on a warm crust so it will stick, so I don’t recommend pre-baking the crust ahead of time. You can prepare the filling and blueberry sauce in advance though. Cover both and refrigerate until ready to use. The blueberry filling will be quite solid after refrigerating, so warm it up on the stove or in the microwave until thinned out again. (It can be warm when you swirl it into the filling.) Baked and cooled tart freezes well up to 3 months. Thaw overnight in the refrigerator before serving.
- Special Tools (affiliate links): Glass Mixing Bowls | Whisk | Silicone Spatula | 9-inch Tart Pan | Cooling Rack
- Tart Pan: A 9-inch tart pan with or without removable sides (it doesn’t matter) is ideal for this recipe. If you use other size tart pans, the bake times and thickness of the tart will differ. You can also use a 9-inch pie dish, but slicing the tart isn’t quite as neat. The bake times are the same. For mini tart pans, see post above. I don’t recommend a springform pan because the crust leaks. We haven’t tested this recipe in a round cake pan or as bars.
- Blueberry Sauce: If you don’t want blueberry lumps in your tart, feel free to run the blueberry sauce through a fine mesh sieve.
- Sweetened Condensed Milk: Make sure you are using sweetened condensed milk, not evaporated milk. There are no successful replacements for sweetened condensed milk in this particular recipe– it’s really the key ingredient. (Sometimes half-and-half or heavy cream works as a substitution, but then you’ll have to test with varying amounts of sugar since both are unsweetened.) Use one 14 ounce can full-fat sweetened condensed milk. Do not use fat free because the tart will not set. Keep in mind that 14 ounces is the listed weight on the can. 1 standard 14 ounce can is a little over 1 liquid cup.
Reader Comments and Reviews
I’m sorry, but the result looked truly terrible. The cream was noticeably more runny than in the video, and when baking, it turned brown and bubbly, despite the correct settings. It still tastes good, but the consistency is disgusting haha
COULD YOU USE A PACKAGED SUGAR COOKIE DOUGH MIX FOR CRUST?
Hi Barbara, We haven’t tested it but let us know if you give it a try.
I made mini tarts and was planning on 10, however neither the crust or most importantly the filling was enough for 10, optimal, especially for the filling would be 6 – I should have doubled the filling.
My first time making a tart and it came out delicious! Thank you Sally for ALL your amazing recipes.
Hello: Made the lemon blueberry tart for a community potluck yesterday. While the filling & blueberry sauce were delicious, I was disappointed with the shortbread crust. It was crisipy around the edges but the base did not bake through. You could see raw dough in the middle. (Too much butter? Not enough flour?) Not very appetizing. I am an experienced baker and followed your directions to the letter. Not sure what else I could have done other than bake the shortbread base all the way through and add the cooked filling afterwards. Any tips are greatly appreciated. Thank you.
Hi Christine, you can try baking the crust for longer next time before adding the filling, so sorry the crust didn’t turn out for you!
Hi Sally – can this tart be frozen after baking?
You bet! From the recipe Notes: Baked and cooled tart freezes well up to 3 months. Thaw overnight in the refrigerator before serving.
flavor is pretty good, and a beautiful presentation too. i found the crust fairly underbaked after the 15 + 17 minutes of cooking. couldnt continue cooking it because the tart itself was essentially overdone at 17 minutes. yummy but probably wont make again
Reece, this was my experience. As it was I thought the filling was overbaked, but it tasted fine and the texture was good. Very disappointed in the base.
This tart was absolutely delicious. To get the sauce to a creamer consistency, I used a hand blender.
This tart was absolutely delicious. To get the sauce to a creamer consistency, I used a hand blender.
Hi Sally! I LOVE this recipe and so does my family! I always bake this for special occasions- and when I feel like a treat:)! The only thing that I was thinking is that it may be easier to bake mini lemon blueberry tarts rather than a larger one that I cut into pieces ( just for grab-and-go purposes ). Can you tell me how I would adjust certain steps to make this possible ( bake time, measurements, etc. )?
See section in post “How to Make Mini Lemon Blueberry Tarts” for more details. Enjoy!
I followed this recipe to a tee using fresh blueberries. RAVES! I was patient with the crust to smoosh it into the tart pan and it was very forgiving. It’s not a crust you can over-work from what I can tell. I was not concerned about blueberry lumps or pretty swirl patterns. I’m not a great baker, but I try all kinds of things. This is easily the best thing I have ever made.
everyone loved this one! cant wait to try again with a different fruit
What can i use in place of sweetened condensed milk?
Hi Rory, sweetened condensed milk is a key ingredient here and can’t be substituted.
I love this recipe it is soooooooooooooooo tasty
Love Love Love Sally’s lemon- blueberry tart! It’s easy to make & a definite crowd pleaser. I doubled the filling as I only have a 10” tart pan. I’ve made this recipe 4 times in the last two months & will make it again! Topping it off with a dollop of homemade whipped cream is heavenly!
I don’t have a tart pan. I have glass 9×11, or a springform.
Would this recipe transfer?
Hi Judy, we don’t recommend a springform pan because the crust leaks. See recipe notes for details on pan options.
How can I scale this up to fit an 11″ tart pan?
Hi Donna, we’re unsure of the exact measurements for an 11-inch tart pan, but it shouldn’t be a problem to scale it up. Let us know if you try it!
If I am going to make these in a muffin pan, do I need to adjust the baking time?
Hi Christine, We don’t recommend using this shortbread crust in a muffin pan, it puffed up too much when we tested it. You can certainly try it, but we recommend sticking to a full size or use mini tart pans. You could use a graham cracker crust instead, or the graham cracker almond crust from our creamy lemon pie (which is basically the same filling recipe we use here).
Ok thank you! Will the filling take less baking time if I do it in a muffin pan?
Hi Christine, yes, but we are unsure of the exact bake time. Let us know how it goes!
Thank you so much for this recipe. I use the shortbread crust recipe to make tartletts in a muffin pan. It’s now a staple in our home, and one of the only dishes I consistently have great results with.
This recipe turned out very well for me, and really was far simpler and easier to make than I thought it would be! First off, I used a 9-inch pie pan, because I didn’t have a tart pan, and that worked just fine, although it would have looked prettier in a tart pan. Second, I weighed all of my ingredients out to be sure the amounts would be correct – and for some reason the shortbread crust dough was very greasy and was not very thick, it definitely wasn’t as the recipe described, but I still tried to spread it out in the pan as it was supposed to go, I pre-baked it 12 minutes instead of 15, because the dough was so thin, especially around the edges, I didn’t want it to burn at all.
Also, my blueberry sauce didn’t thicken much, for some reason, and I had even cooked it a bit longer than the recipe said to. But it still tasted good in the tart, and I spooned some on top, but it looked rather messy and spread around too much on the tart since it was still quite liquidy.
I baked the tart for 17 minutes and it was done, and it was the perfect consistency. I garnished it with fresh whipped cream, and that was a nice addition, though not needed, I feel, the tart was excellent on its own.
Even though I was worried about how the shortbread crust would be, it turned out tasting great, and was a good texture. The filling was also great, and I liked having the texture and taste of the blueberries in it, although I may make it without the blueberries next time, for something different.
Overall, this was definitely a success, and although it looks intimidating, it really was quite simple, and I enjoyed the process of making it!
Can you use a pie tin instead if you don’t have a tart pan?
Hi Brenda, you can use a 9-inch pie dish, but slicing the tart isn’t quite as neat. The bake times are the same.
Can I make Lemon Blueberry swirl a day before serving
Absolutely! See the make ahead instructions in the recipe Notes. Enjoy!
Is there anything I can substitute for the egg yolk, or can I leave it out for someone with an egg allergy?
Hi Tovah, we haven’t tested this recipe to be egg-free. The yolk helps the filling set. Sorry we can’t help more!
I used 1 Tablespoon of aquafaba to replace the egg yolk and it worked perfectly.
Hi! I ordered the tart pan you recommended. Do you not find the bottom too loose?
Hi Cindy! It hasn’t been a problem for us. Just remember to pick it up from the edges and we always place another pan under this one to catch any drips (we always do this with a pan with a removable bottom).
Delicious! The extra blueberries on top + whip cream really put it over the top. Even my 3 year old said I need to make it over and over forever. I also hate to cook and I could totally do this!
Could we use blue berry conserve/jam instead of making the blueberry sauce? Difficult to find blueberries on my side of the world!
Hi Sonia, We haven’t tested it, but that shouldn’t be a problem. Jam is sweeter than this blueberry mixture, so the sweetness will change. Let us know if you try it!
I made this for Easter and it turned out amazing! I made vanilla whipped cream with a little bit of lemon zest and topped it with blueberry sauce and some fresh blueberries. If I didn’t have to share with everyone else I probably would have eaten half of it!
I made these in mini tarts when you 1st posted this recipe years ago, and the family still asks for this every Easter. Great recipe. Thank you!
Hi. Could you add the blueberry sauce to your creamy lemon pie, if we need a larger dessert?
Definitely!
Golly I just didn’t love this recipe. The crust is wonderful but the lemon filling didn’t do it for me. It’s too sweetened condensed milk forward, that’s mostly what I taste, with some lemon flavor.