Lemon Curd Tarts with Blueberry Sauce

These Lemon Curd Tarts with Blueberry Sauce are a sweet, simple treat. With an easy shortbread crust, a fresh blueberry syrup, and lemon curd filling, they make a delicious and stunning dessert. 

I'm on a berry kick right now. Can't get enough of the sweet, juicy, colorful berries around here.

My favorite thing about the berry season ahead of us is that it simplifies everything. Berries bring all the confetti to the party so all I have to do is show up and maybe wear a hat. Which is to say, just adding whipped cream to a bowl of fresh berries is something to get excited about.

So, letting berries do what berries do best, I added them to a simple shortbread tart crust filled with lemon curd. Voila! We've got a summer dessert winner here for sure

You can easily make this tart in a larger tart pan, but there's something about dessert miniaturized that makes it feel so fun, especially for the kids. So, popping these into four mini tart pans won me some good mom points. It's a good way to kick of summer break. 

Lemon Curd is fun to make (I like this recipe) but honestly, school let out a week ago and I've got four kids crawling the walls here now. I'll take a good shortcut wherever I can find one.

So, with simplicity in mind, I pulled some Lemon Curd from Stonewall Kitchen out of my pantry and put it to good use. It's delicious, as I've come to expect from Stonewall Kitchen and it made these lemon curd tarts both quick and tasty - my kind of summer treat.

We love lemon curd on scones, muffins, and even stirred into our morning oatmeal. But in a recipe like these lemon curd tarts, the lemon curd really shows you what its made of. And lemon curd with berries, well, I can't talk too much about it because I need another taste.

You can definitely just fill the shortbread crust with lemon curd and top it with fresh blueberries and whipped cream and call it good. We've done that here a few times recently and it's delicious and simple.

However, when I decided to share these lemon curd tarts we've been enjoying, I wanted a little more color in the photos (because food that looks prettier tastes prettier, right?), I decided to make a simple syrup. Boiling the blueberries with a little bit of water and sugar not only makes the berries turn that gorgeous purple color that I love, but it also makes the flavor more rich and deep. Turns out the blueberry syrup isn't just for looks after all!

We've got a lot of summer plans ahead of us, but eating berries and tarts is at the top of our list this year. Give it a try - you'll see what I mean!

For more Berry Desserts check out these Strawberry Crumble Bars, these lighter Cantaloupe Blueberry Lemon Parfaits, or my favorite Raspberry Galette.

Yield: 1 (9 inch) tart or 4 Mini Tarts

Lemon Curd Tarts with Blueberry Sauce

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Ingredients

For the crust

• 2 cups all purpose flour
• ¼ teaspoon salt
• 1 cup unsalted butter, softened
• ½ cup powdered sugar
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract

For the filling

• 2 generous cups of lemon curd
• 1 cup whipped cream
• lemon zest for garnish

For the Blueberry Sauce

• 1 pint fresh blueberries (about 2 ½ cups)
• ¾ cup water
• ¼ cup sugar
• 1 tablespoon cornstarch, dissolved in 2 tablespoons water

Instructions

For the Crust:

1. In a large bowl, whisk together the flour and salt. In a separate bowl, using an electric or standing mixer cream together the sugar and butter until fluffy. Mix in the vanilla. Reduce mixer speed to low and add in the flour until just incorporated, being careful not to over mix. Using your hands, press the mixture together to form a ball and wrap tightly in plastic. Refrigerate for 30 minutes.
2. Preheat oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit. Grease one 9 inch tart pan, or four mini tart pans. Press the chilled dough into the bottom of the pan(s) and up the side(s) to about ¼ inch thickness. Bake for approximately 15 minutes, or until the edges of the crust begin to lightly brown. When you remove it from the oven, press it down gently if it has risen up in places. Let cool completely.
3. Fill cooled tart shells with lemon curd and top with whipped cream.

For the Sauce

1. Place the berries, sugar, and water into a small saucepan. Bring to a low boil over medium heat and boil for about 3 to 5 minutes, or until berries begin to pop. Reduce heat to a low simmer and stir in the dissolved cornstarch. Simmer for another 2 to 3 minutes, or until sauce has thickened.
2. Serve the warm sauce over the tarts for a melty, creamy dessert, or serve the sauce chilled over the tarts for a cool summer treat.