Tart Crust

Hello friends! This buttery and tender Tart Crust is the perfect base for fruit tarts, cream fillings, or custards. It’s lightly sweetened, easy to roll out, and bakes up with crisp edges and a soft, melt-in-your-mouth texture. Made with just a few simple ingredients, this crust comes together beautifully and can be prepared ahead of time, making it a reliable go-to for your favorite tart recipes.

The Best Tart Crust Recipe

This tart crust recipe stands out for its delicate flavor and texture—it’s buttery without being greasy, and sturdy enough to hold a variety of fillings without getting soggy. Powdered sugar adds a subtle sweetness and ultra-tender crumb, while chilling the dough ensures clean edges and minimal shrinkage during baking.

Full step-by-step instructions, total time estimates, and ingredient amounts can be found at the bottom of this post!

Making the Tart Dough

Start by beating the softened butter on medium speed for about 30 seconds until creamy. Add the powdered sugar (confectioners’ sugar ) and beat for another minute, scraping down the sides of the bowl as needed.

Mix in the egg and beat until fully combined. Add 1⅓ cups of flour and the quarter teaspoon salt to the mixture, and mix on low speed until the dough begins to come together. Only add the remaining flour if the dough feels too sticky—avoid overmixing, but make sure no dry flour remains.

Once the dough forms, gather it into a ball and flatten into a disc. Wrap it in plastic wrap and chill in the fridge for at least 1 hour, or up to 2 days. You can also freeze the dough for up to 2 months.

Rolling Out the Dough

Let the chilled dough sit at room temperature for about 10 minutes. Lightly flour your work surface and roll the dough into a ¼-inch thick circle, about 11 inches in diameter. You can roll it out on a baking sheet if you want.

Carefully transfer the dough to a 9-inch tart pan with a removable bottom (or a pie pan). Press gently to fit the dough into the bottom and sides of the pan—don’t stretch it. Trim any excess dough from the top, and use a fork to prick the bottom all over.

Refrigerate the crust again for 15 minutes while the oven preheats to 375ºF (350ºF for convection ovens).

Blind Baking

Line the tart shell with parchment paper or foil and fill it with pie weights or dried beans. Blind bake for 15 to 20 minutes, until the edges are golden.

Carefully remove the weights and liner, then bake for an additional 5 to 10 minutes until the crust is fully baked and lightly golden all over.

Let the crust cool completely before adding your filling.

Serving & Storage

Make-ahead: The sweet tart crust can be made in advance and kept in the fridge for up to 2 days, or frozen for 2 months.

Baked crust: Store at room temperature in an airtight container for up to 2 days before filling.

Freezer-friendly: You can freeze the unbaked crust in the tart pan—just wrap tightly and bake from frozen, adding a few extra minutes to the baking time.

Recipe Notes & Tips

• Don’t skip chilling: This helps the dough relax and prevents shrinkage in the oven.
• Check your bake: The bottom of the crust should be dry to the touch and lightly golden before removing from the oven.
• No pie weights? Use uncooked rice or dried beans as an alternative for blind baking.

What to fill Tart Crust With:

Fresh Berry Tart: Fill the cooled crust with vanilla pastry cream from this Boston Cream Recipe and top with a mix of strawberries, blueberries, raspberries, and blackberries.

Lemon Curd Tart: Bright and zesty lemon curd makes a perfect match for the buttery crust—top with torched meringue or whipped cream.

Salted Caramel & Apple: Fill the crust with sautéed apples and a swirl of salted caramel—serve warm or chilled.

If You Love This Recipe, Try These Next!

🍋Lemon Tart
🥧Passionfruit Tart
🍫Chocolate Tart Dough
🍋Lemon Pie with Condensed Milk

This versatile Tart Crust is a bakery-style base perfect for all your favorite fillings—from fruity to creamy. Once you’ve made it from scratch, you’ll never go back to store-bought! Let me know what you fill yours with—tag me on Instagram so I can see your creations!

Tart Crust

Camila Hurst

This buttery tart crust is tender, lightly sweetened, and perfect for a variety of fillings—from fresh fruit and custard to chocolate ganache or lemon curd. Easy to make and freezer-friendly

Print Recipe Pin Recipe

Prep Time 20 minutes mins

Cook Time 30 minutes mins

Chill Time 1 hour hr 15 minutes mins

Total Time 2 hours hrs 5 minutes mins

Course Dessert

Cuisine American

Servings 10 servings

Calories 220 kcal

Ingredients

  

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• 6 tbsp unsalted butter room temperature 85g
• ⅓ cup powdered sugar 41g
• 1 large egg
• 1⅓ to 1 ½ cup all-purpose flour 167 to 191g
• ¼ tsp salt

Instructions

 

• Beat the butter with a mixer on medium speed for 30 seconds. You can use a stand mixer with the paddle attachment, or you can use a hand mixer.
• Add the powdered sugar and beat for one minute.
• Scrape the bowl as needed.
• Add the egg and beat to combine, for about one minute.
• Add 1⅓ cup of flour and the salt, and mix on low. The dough will start to come together. Only add the remaining flour if needed, if the dough is too sticky.
• Use a spatula to finish mixing, or finish mixing by hand.
• Don’t over mix the dough once you add the flour in, but make sure there aren’t any dry bits of flour in the dough. It shouldn’t be too sticky, but also shouldn’t be dry.
• Gather the dough into a ball and wrap in a piece of plastic wrap. Flatten it into a disc.
• Place the dough in the fridge for at least 1 hour, or up to 2 days. You can also freeze the dough for up to 2 months, in an airtight container, or freezer ziplock bag. To thaw, remove the dough to the fridge the night before you plan to use it.
• Remove the dough from the fridge and let it sit at room temperature for 10 minutes.
• Unwrap it, and place it on a lightly floured counter.
• Use a rolling pin to roll out the dough until it’s about 1/4” thick, and its diameter measures about 11 inches.
• Fold the dough in half and lift it from the counter. Place on top of a 9-inch tart pan with a removable bottom, or a 9” pie pan.
• Then unfold the dough to cover the entire surface of the tart pan.
• Adjust the pastry to fit into the pan, don’t stretch it too much. Press the dough gently on the bottom and up against the sides of the tart dish.
• Use a knife or scissors to trim off the excess dough off the top. You can also use your fingers to crease the sides of the dough along the edges of the pan.
• Prick all over the bottom of the tart with a fork.
• Place the dough in the fridge for 15 minutes.
• Meanwhile pre-heat the oven to 375ºF for conventional, or 350ºF for convection oven.

Blind Bake

• Remove the dough from the fridge and line the bottom of the dough with parchment paper or foil. Fill it up with baking beads or dry beans.
• Bake the crust for 15 to 20 minutes in the pre-heated oven, until golden on the edges. Remove the beads by pulling the parchment paper up, or if you’re using a pan like mine, remove the silicone edge, and return the pan to the oven for another 5 to 10 minutes, until the bottom and sides are fully baked, and lightly golden brown.
• Remove from the oven and let the pie crust cool down before filling.

Nutrition

Serving: 1 servingCalories: 220kcal

Keyword tart crust

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