Mini Easter Cheesecake Tarts
I made these little tarts last spring. So cute! Easter is the best time for them but really you can make them whenever. They look complicated. but are not hard at all though. Pick any color you want, like pink or purple or yellow. That’s what makes it fun. I like having my own small tart instead of cutting up a big one. Way better.
The crust is so buttery – doesn’t homemade crust just taste so good?! Inside there’s a creamy filling that’s like cheesecake but you don’t bake it. Lemon juice makes it a tiny bit tangy which I love. Those mini chocolate eggs go on top, the ones you see at stores in spring? You could use flowers instead. Fancy, and we love it.
Ingredients
For the pastry shells:
- 4 cups (500 g) pastry flour, get extra for your counter
- 1 ⅔ cups (375 g) butter without salt, needs to be soft
- 1 teaspoon (5 mL) salt
- 1 big egg yolk
- 2 teaspoons (10 mL) sugar
- 7 tablespoons (105 mL) whole milk, not cold
For the cheesecake filling:
- 12 oz (340 g) cream cheese, soft
- 4 teaspoons (20 mL) lemon juice from a real lemon
- ½ cup (50 g) powdered sugar
- ½ cup (≈120 mL) heavy cream
- 1 teaspoon vanilla
- 1 drop food coloring in gel form (I like pastel colors!)
- You can add mini chocolate eggs or flowers if you want
Makes eight 4-inch tarts. Work time is 1 hour maybe. Dough needs 2 hours in the fridge. Tarts need 2 more hours after you fill them.
How to Do It
Make the Pastry Dough
Get a big bowl. You can use a food thing that spins if you have one. Put your soft butter in there with salt, the egg yolk, sugar, and milk. Mix it up until it looks smooth and creamy.
Sift the flour first. Then add it to the butter stuff a little at a time. Just mix until it makes a ball shape. Don’t mix too much! If you’re using the spinning food thing just pulse it. Until it’s a ball.
Put dough on your counter with some flour dust on it. Knead it soft for a minute or two. Everything should look the same. Make it flat like a disk. Wrap it in plastic wrap really tight and put in the fridge for 2 hours at least. I hate waiting but you gotta do it!
Bake the Tart Shells
Your dough is cold now. Turn on the oven to 350°F. That’s 180°C if you use that kind. Get your eight 4-inch pans and put lots of butter on them. Like a lot. They stick if you don’t.
Roll the dough out on a counter with flour on it. About ¼-inch thick is good. Rolling it between two parchment papers is way easier, I always do that now.
Cut circles bigger than your pans. Press dough soft into each pan. Cut off the extra hanging over.
This part is important okay. Put parchment paper in each shell and fill with beans or rice. It’s called blind baking, stops the bottom from going puffy.
Poke the bottom with a fork lots of times. All the pans go on one big baking sheet and then bake for 30 minutes maybe.
Should be a little bit golden. Take them out. Let them cool all the way on a wire rack thing.
Whip Up the Cheesecake Filling
Get a medium bowl out. Beat the cream cheese with lemon juice and powdered sugar. Keep going until smooth. No lumps at all.
Different bowl now. Whip heavy cream and vanilla together until soft peaks happen. Takes a few minutes if you use a hand mixer. Fold it into the cream cheese stuff but be gentle. You don’t want to make all the air go away!
Fun part! Split your filling into two bowls. Or more if you want more colors. Just one tiny drop of gel food coloring in each bowl. Mix it up until it’s pretty and pastel. Pink and purple are my favorite but you can do whatever.
Put It All Together
Wait for shells to be totally cool. I mean all the way cool. Warm ones make the filling melt and that’s bad. Spoon the colored filling into each shell or you can pipe it if you want. Almost to the top but not quite.
Put filled tarts in fridge for 2 hours at least. The filling gets firm and the flavors get better.
Right before serving put your mini chocolate eggs on top. Or flowers. Makes them look Easter-y and cute.
Mini Easter Cheesecake Tarts
Ingredients
For the sweet short pastry shell
- 4 cups 500 g pastry flour, plus extra for dusting
- 1 ⅔ cups 375 g unsalted butter, at room temperature
- 1 teaspoon 5 mL salt
- 1 large egg yolk
- 2 teaspoons 10 mL sugar
- 7 tablespoons 105 mL whole milk, room temperature
For the cheesecake-style filling
- 12 oz 340 g cream cheese, softened at room temperature
- 4 teaspoons 20 mL fresh lemon juice
- ½ cup 50 g powdered sugar
- ½ cup ≈120 mL heavy cream
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1 drop gel food colouring of your choice
- Optional: small Easter chocolate eggs or edible flowers to garnish
Instructions
Prepare the short pastry dough
- In a large mixing bowl (or food processor), combine the softened butter, salt, egg yolk, sugar, and milk. Mix until smooth and creamy.
- Sift the flour and gradually add it into the butter-mixture, mixing just until the dough begins to come together in a ball. (If using a food processor: pulse until the dough just forms a ball.)
- Turn the dough out onto a lightly floured surface and gently knead for a minute or two until it’s uniform. Flatten into a disk, wrap tightly in plastic wrap, and chill in the fridge for at least 2 hours.
Shape and bake the tart shells
- Preheat your oven to 350 °F / 180 °C. Generously butter eight 4-inch tart pans.
- On a lightly floured surface, roll the dough out (ideally between two sheets of parchment) to about ¼-inch (≈6 mm) thickness. Cut circles slightly larger than the tart pan rims and gently press the dough into each pan, trimming off any excess.
- Line each shell with parchment and fill with baking beans or rice to blind-bake. Prick the dough generously with a fork. Place the pans on a baking sheet and bake for about 30 minutes, until the crusts are lightly golden. Remove from the oven and allow to cool on a wire rack.
Make the cheesecake filling
- In a medium bowl, beat together the cream cheese, lemon juice, and powdered sugar until smooth and creamy.
- In a separate bowl, whip the heavy cream with the vanilla extract until soft peaks form. Gently fold the whipped cream into the cream cheese mixture until fully incorporated.
- Divide the filling into two (or more) bowls and add a drop of gel food colouring to each to create pastel shades. Mix until uniformly coloured.
Assemble the final tarts
- Once the tart shells are completely cooled, spoon or pipe the coloured cheesecake filling into each shell, filling almost to the top.
- Refrigerate the filled tarts for at least 2 hours to firm up and let the flavors meld.
- Just before serving, top each tart with a few mini chocolate eggs or edible flowers for a cheerful Easter touch.
