Easy Apple Cream Tart with shortbread tart crust and no bake cream tart filling is a stunning apple dessert recipe that’s sure to impress! An easy apple tart recipe that can be made as a full size tart or as mini apple tarts. And decorated as like an apple rose tart or as intricately or simply as you choose!
Apple tart recipe
There are all sorts of comforting fall apple tart recipes that are fabulous to make when the weather starts to turn cooler. From baked apple tarts and caramel apple tarts, classic French tart tatins and many other apple tart recipes.
But this Apple Cream Tart is a different type of apple tart recipe than most envision when thinking of apple tarts.
A light, fresh, chilled cream tart. Made with a perfect shortbread tart crust and filled with a super easy to whip together tart cream.
It can be difficult to know how to make tart cream. Mainly because there are so many options for cream tart fillings with a whole range of difficulty levels.
This Apple Cream Tart recipe uses a very simple no bake cheesecake like filling made from sweetened cream cheese and homemade whipping cream that is so simple but has stunning results!
Ingredients
- Apples
- All-purpose flour
- Powdered sugar – also called confectioners sugar or icing sugar
- Unsalted butter – at room temperature
- Heavy cream – or heavy whipping cream, cold
- Cream cheese – room temperature
- Ground cinnamon
- Salt
Step by step instructions
- Whisk flour and sugar and salt together in a medium bowl.
- Then cut room temperature butter into small pieces and work into the flour mixture using your fingers or a pastry cutter until combined.
- Using either a large tart pan with removable bottom or multiple smaller tart pans place dough into pan and press evenly into bottom and up edges. Wipe edges smooth and prick bottom of the tart shell with a fork to prevent air bubbles from forming during baking.
- Chill tart shell in the refrigerator and preheat oven to 375 degrees.
- Place chilled tart shell on a baking sheet to prevent oven spills. And bake in preheated oven until golden brown, 15-18 minutes for a large tart shell or 8-10 minutes for mini tart shells.
- Remove browned shortbread tart shell from oven and allow to cool while you prepare the cream tart filling.
- In a large bowl whip room temperature cream cheese, confectioners’ sugar and cinnamon until smooth.
- In a separate bowl whip cold heavy cream until light and fluffy.
- Gently fold whipped cream into cream cheese mixture until combined being careful not to overmix.
- Cover easy cream tart filling and refrigerate until tart shell is completely cooled.
- Once shell is cool fill with easy pastry cream.
- Thinly slice apples and arrange on top of cream filling in desired pattern.
- Serve immediately for best flavor and texture. Or store refrigerated for up to 6 hours before serving.
- Enjoy!
To make ahead
This apple tart recipe can be made in advance, but it cannot be frozen.
To make this easy apple tart recipe ahead of time simply fill the tart shell with the cream filling and refrigerate tightly wrapped in plastic wrap. But do not add apples until ready to serve.
Or, like in this easy puff pastry fruit tart recipe, you can also warm apricot jam and carefully brush over apple slices to prevent browning. Or toss apple slices in lemon juice and honey mixture and drain thoroughly before topping.
How to top
Arrange the apple slices on this easy apple tart however you choose!
To make a rosette design start in the middle of the tart with a small curled up apple slice. Place additional slices around the center in a spiral pattern. And continue until you reach the edge.
Or top easy apple tarts with apple slices in straight lines or curved patterns. Make designs using different colors of apples. Get creative and have fun! There’s no wrong way to top these fruit cream tarts!
📖 Recipe
Ingredients
- 1 cup all-purpose flour
- 1 cup powdered sugar divided into two ½ cup portions
- ½ cup unsalted butter room temperature
- ¾ cup heavy cream or heavy whipping cream, cold
- 1 cup cream cheese (1 block or 8 ounces) room temperature
- 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- ¾ teaspoon salt divided into ½ teaspoon and ¼ teaspoon portions
- 4-6 medium apples thinly sliced
Instructions
- Whisk flour, ½ cup powdered sugar and ½ teaspoon salt together in a medium bowl.1 cup all-purpose flour, 1 cup powdered sugar, ¾ teaspoon salt
- Then cut room temperature butter into small pieces and work into the flour mixture using your fingers or a pastry cutter until combined.½ cup unsalted butter
- Using either a large tart pan with removable bottom or multiple smaller tart pans place dough into pan and press evenly into bottom and up edges. Wipe edges smooth and prick bottom of the tart shell with a fork to prevent air bubbles from forming during baking.
- Chill tart shell in the refrigerator and preheat oven to 375 degrees.
- Place chilled tart shell on a baking sheet to prevent oven spills. And bake in preheated oven until golden brown, 15-18 minutes for a large tart shell or 8-10 minutes for mini tart shells.
- Remove browned shortbread tart shell from oven and allow to cool while you prepare the cream tart filling.
- In a large bowl whip room temperature cream cheese, remaining ½ cup confectioners’ sugar, cinnamon and remaining ¼ teaspoon salt until smooth.1 cup cream cheese, 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- In a separate bowl whip cold heavy cream until light and fluffy.¾ cup heavy cream
- Gently fold whipped cream into cream cheese mixture until combined being careful not to overmix.
- Cover easy cream tart filling refrigerated until tart shell is completely cooled.
- Once shell is cool fill with easy pastry cream.
- Thinly slice apples and arrange on top of cream filling in desired pattern.4-6 medium apples
- Serve immediately for best flavor and texture.
- Or store refrigerated for up to 6 hours before serving.
Nutrition
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