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 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.
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. 🙂
PrintLemon 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 rubber 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): Small Saucepan | Glass Mixing Bowls | Whisk | 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.
This was delicious! Didn’t have a tart pan so used a pie dish and it worked out fine – aside from being a little tricky to get the first slice out. A lot easier to make than it may seem at first glance!
This tart was delicious! I baked it for 16 minutes, and it was definitely done so I appreciated the warning about not overbaking. The filling was soft and creamy, not rubbery. The lemon flavor was just the right amount of tanginess, I could easily eat far too much of this in one sitting.
10/10 recommend this recipe! Extremely easy and delicious, everyone loved it. The shortbread crust on this tart is the perfect pairing. I Should’ve made two for our dinner party. Thanks again, Sally !
Great recipe! This was my first tart. It came together easily and tastes great!
This was easy and delicious-a winning combo. I doubled the zest because I love lemon and we used frozen mixed berries as that is what we had on hand. I did find the short crust to be less tender than others I’ve tried, however, that could be attributed to all the “help” my 5 year old sous chef provided.
We did seive the berries as mixed berries have more seeds than blueberries alone. I think I’ll try it with blueberries alone next time for a purer flavor.
I baked the tart for 15 minutes in a rectangular pan and it was perfectly set.
I am not a blueberry fan but have always been intrigued by the lemon/blueberry combo and when I saw this recipe I knew this was the one to try. So glad I did! Super delicious and smooth with the condensed milk. Best part? Since the recipe is so simple my five year old was able to help me make it.
I made it with raspberries. It turned out great. I made my own condense milk. I guess I only failed to make a good crust. It came out a little too hard, like a butter cookie. It must be the flour I used. Still it is an handsome, refreshing and easy to make tart. I will make it with sour cherries and chocolate filling next time.
Love how easy this recipe is for an impressive, delicious dessert!
In fact, the secret of success is quite simple: no artificial flavours, just fresh lemon juice, zest and blueberries. So you can expect a taste sensation and colours, beautiful presentation and a feast for the palate.
This is my new favourite tart recipe! I can’t believe it’s taken me this long to feel comfortable with making pastry, but I almost went and bought pre-made tart pastry because I was that afraid of making my own.
BUT! This is the easiest dump and stir pastry and results in a crisp and crumbly pastry that will be my new go-to pastry recipe!
This recipe was so easy, and amazingly delicious! I made one last weekend (long distance) with my son, and one this weekend for some family that are visiting.
This tart was delicious and beautiful. It came together quickly and enjoyed by many.
Made this today and it turned out perfect! I used gluten free flour in the crust and its so buttery and delicious. Definitely making this again!
Creamy, lemony delicious flavor with a flaky, buttery crust. I divided the recipe in half for my four 4-inch tart pans. It fit perfectly. My shortbread crust needed 11 minutes to lightly brown and I used the zest of two lemons, but otherwise followed the recipe as written. I love how fancy they look for how uncomplicated the recipe is. Will make again for sure!
Very tasty and the recipe is so simple to follow
First time making a tart and it came out perfect. Super easy and straight forward instructions. Tart came out of the pan with no issues.
Sally,
Regular pie crust is still something I need to perfect, so would you recommend using this shortbread crust for French Silk Pie?
Hi Al, you know, we haven’t tested the French Silk Pie with this crust. There isn’t enough to go up the sides of a pie dish, so it would really just be mostly on the bottom of that pie. If you try it, let us know.
I’ve never made a tart before and usually don’t love lemon desserts but this was delicious! Great balance of tartness and sweetness. I used a glass pie pan and worked perfectly.
Delicious and simple recipe. I had to kinda double the filling amount for the size of my “tart pan” – actually pie form – but either way came out amazing! Thank you for always making and publish these incredible recipes.
Is it ok to use this crust when making a pudding pie? Oreo crust is too sweet and not crazy over graham cracker. This looked great. Do you think it would work ?
Hi Maureen, without trying the pudding pie recipe ourselves it’s hard to say for certain, but that should work. You may need less filling / more shortbread crust depending on your recipe. Hope this is helpful!
This was so quick, creamy, and delicious! Definitely, a keeper! I want to try it with other combinations.
This was so quick, creamy, and delicious! Definitely, a keeper! I want to try it with other combinations.
I made this Tart today and its a total winner! I used picked blueberries (frozen, picked last fall) and it turned great! The instructions were very easy to follow and it sure comes together fast. Absolutely delicious, i had to practice self control and not eat too much at once
This was my first tart recipe ever, nervous at trying it but so surprised at how quickly it came together and how impressive the finished tart looks. My family was also impressed and after sending my daughter a photo of it, she wants me to bake one for her birthday next week. Happily, that won’t be difficult! Anyone on the fence about trying this recipe-try it, you will use it over and over again. I know I will!
So lemony and delicious! The buttery crust, the silky lemon luciousness, and the blueberry swirl was everything! Thanks Sally for another fabulous dessert!
This was delicious! Tangy and sweet – prefect combo.
This was a delicious dessert that had a nicely contrasting & rich crust, balanced with a tart lemony filling & the blueberry topping was a nice complement. Super easy to make & I always like a reason to use my mini tart pans.
Swapped the blueberries for mixed frozen berries…delicious! Thanks for another great recipe!
This looks so fancy and the recipe was easy to follow. Waiting impatiently to taste test this beauty.
This tart was so delicious! I usually don’t like pie crust but this was different, I really enjoyed it. The filing was just the right sweetness and the flavour was perfect. My husband and kids gobbled this up!