These delicious cheesecake creamy tarts, with sweet short pastry on the bottom, will brighten up your Easter table. Individual portions will make it easy to serve, and little Hershey’s eggies will add up little chocolate crunch.
Why you’ll adore making these mini Easter tarts
I am always looking forward to the Easter celebration! It is a sign of Spring and new beginnings. All the baking is full of vibrant colours and I can’t wait to show you how beautifully these Easter tarts comes together.
These Easter tarts are made from sweet short pastry dough and filled with creamy coloured cheesecake filling. Extra fluffy filling with addition of whipped cream. All this topped with your favourite Easter chocolates. I used Hershey’s chocolate eggies, but feel free to use your favourite chocolate on top.
It is fairly easy to put this recipe togeher. To save some time, you can prepare the short pastry dough in advance and fill it with the cream cheese filling once your guests have arrived.
Ingredients
Pastry flour – Sift the flour before using it for the sweet short pastry dough.
Unsalted butter – I always recommend unsalted butter, to control the saltiness of the dough. For a dairy-free option, use vegan butter.
Egg yolk – Is a biding agent, it will hold the dough together.
Sugar – To sweeten the dough.
Whole milk – Is used for the moisture of the dough. For a dairy-free version, use almond or oat milk.
Cream cheese – Is used for the filling. If you wish to make a dairy-free version, use vegan cream cheese.
Lemon juice – Is used for the flavour.
Heavy cream – Will fluff up the cream cheese, so it’s not that dense and heavy.
Vanilla extract- Will add the flavour to the cream cheese filling.
Gel food colouring – Use any kind of pastel gel food colouring. Best are Wilton brand or Anne Clark.
What is short pastry?
You will need a lot of butter, flour, egg yolk, milk, sugar and salt. This is not a classic pâte brisée, because it is made with milk and eggs instead of water, so the resulting dough is very crispy with a melting texture.
Lightness of hands and speed are very important, and the whole process should not take longer than 4–5 minutes, or the pastry will be tough. I recommend using a food processor instead of kneading it in your hands, it is a faster and more convenient way to prepare short pastry.
How to store short pastry dough
This amount of pastry is enough to make four 9 1/2″ tarts, six 8″ tarts, or sixteen 4″ tarts. The pastry can be used once it has rested, or it can be stored for up to two days in the refrigeration. It can also be frozen tightly wrapped in portions: thaw slowly in the refrigerator before using.
Do not knead the dough again! If you do, the pastry will lose its melting texture. For this recipe you will need approximately half of the short pastry dough, depending on how thick you will roll out the dough, so it’s better to make the whole recipe below and then the leftover you can freeze up to 3 months in an airtight container.
How to make Mini Easter Tarts
(This amount of pastry is enough to make two 9 1/2 inch tarts, four 8 inch tarts, or twelve 4 inch tarts, you can freeze the leftover of dough covered well in food wrap for up to 3 months)
Step 1- Make Pâte brisée (short pastry)
Hand instructions
- In a large kitchen bowl, add softened butter, salt and egg yolk. Beat the butter with a wooden spatula until all ingredients are combined.
- In a medium cup, add sugar and milk, stir well. Pour this onto the softened butter in a thin stream, stirring constantly, the butter.
- In another bowl, sift the flour and gradually ad the flour into the butter mixture. Continue beating the mixture with a wooden spoon until the ingredients comes together.
- Place mixture onto a floured surface and, using the palm of your hand, kneed the dough for few minutes to form a soft dough. Shape the dough into a ball, flatten slightly, and wrap in plastic wrap. Let rest in refrigerator for 2 hours.
Food processor instructions
Using a food processor is an ideal way to make pâte brisée, because it is very fast. It is important to stop the machine at the right moment. When the dough gathers into a ball, you stop.
- Fit the metal blade into the food processor. Put the butter, salt, egg yolk, sugar and milk into the processor bowl and process until you have a smooth cream. Sift the flour, then add to the food processor.
- Sift the flour, then add to the food processor. Process, using the pulse button, until the mixture just starts to come together. Stop as soon a ball of dough has formed. Wrap in plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least 2 hours.
Step 2 – Bake the tart crusts
- Preheat the oven to 350 F / 180 C & butter small 4″ tart pans.
- Take a pre-measured parchment paper to fit each tart pan and place it on top of the dough. Add baking beans or rice on top of the parchment paper to weigh the dough down.
- Place the tarts on a baking sheet and bake in a preheated oven for 30 minutes. After baking, let cool the tarts on a wire rack.
Step 2 – Cream cheese filling
- In a medium bowl, beat the cream cheese, lemon juice and the sugar, until smooth and creamy. Set aside.
- In a separate medium bowl, whip up the heavy cream and vanilla extract to soft peaks. Gently fold the whipped cream into the cream cheese mixture.
- Separate the cream cheese filling in two bowls and add gel food colouring of your choice into each bowl. Combine the colours well with the cram cheese.
- Transfer coloured cream cheese filling into cooled tart crusts. Refrigerate for a minimum of 2 hours.
- Decorate with Easter chocolate eggs and edible flowers.
More recipes
- SWEET MINI TART SHELLS
- KEY LIME CHEESECAKE TART RECIPE
- FRENCH STYLE LEMON TART
- APRICOT TART WITH ALMOND FILLING
- PUMPKIN SPICE CHEESECAKE TART
MINI EASTER TARTS WITH CHEESECAKE FILLING
Ingredients
Short pastry
- 4 cups (500g) pastry flour extra for dusting
- 1 & ⅔ cups (375g) unsalted butter room temperature
- 1 teaspoon (5 ml) salt
- 1 large egg yolk
- 2 teaspoons (10 ml) sugar
- 7 tablespoons (105 ml) whole milk room temperature
Cream cheese filling
- 12 oz (340 g) cream cheese softened at room temperature
- 4 teaspoons (20 ml) lemon juice
- ½ cup (50 g) powdered sugar
- ½ cup heavy cream
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1 drop gel food colouring of your choice
Instructions
- Fit the metal blade into the food processor. Put the butter, salt, egg yolk, sugar and milk into the processor bowl and process until you have a smooth cream. Sift the flour, then add to the food processor.
- Sift the flour, then add to the food processor. Process, using the pulse button, until the mixture just starts to come together. Stop as soon a ball of dough has formed. Wrap in plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least 2 hours.
- Preheat the oven to 350 F / 180 C & butter small 4" tart pans.
- In between two parchment papers, roll out evenly the dough to 1/4 inch of thickness. With a cookie cutter 6" large, cut out a circle and place it inside the tart pan. Press lightly on the dough with your fingers, so it fills the inside with the tart pan.
- Remove excess of dough by pressing your finger on the rim of the tart pan, or cut off the excess dough with a butter knife. Repeat with the remaining 3 tart pans.
- Take a pre-measured parchment paper to fit each tart pan and place it on top of the dough. Add baking beans or rice on top of the parchment paper to weigh the dough down.
- Place the tarts on a baking sheet and bake in a preheated oven for 30 minutes. After baking, let cool the tarts on a wire rack.
For the cream cheese filling
- In a medium bowl, beat the cream cheese, lemon juice and the sugar, until smooth and creamy. Set aside.
- In a separate medium bowl, whip up the heavy cream and vanilla extract to soft peaks. Gently fold the whipped cream into the cream cheese mixture.
- Separate the cream cheese filling in two bowls and add gel food colouring of your choice into each bowl. Combine the colours well with the cram cheese.
- Transfer coloured cream cheese filling into cooled tart crusts. Refrigerate for a minimum of 2 hours.
- Decorate with Easter chocolate eggs and edible flowers.
mistimaan
Its really yummy Julia 🙂
juliarecipes
Thank you so much Priyo😍
Blogtastic Food
Beautifully done Julia! They look wonderful (:
juliarecipes
Thank you Nick 😍
CHANDA
There is no amount listed for quantity of sugar in cheesecake filling?
Julia
Hi Chanda, sorry little glitch in the recipe card, it’s been corrected and should be 1/2 cup of powdered sugar.
misteaksandcakes
Beautiful recipe 🤗
juliarecipes
Thank you sweetheart 🙂
Christine
These look wonderful Julia. Love the vibrancy ❤️😍
juliarecipes
Thank you so much Christine, yes the vibrant colors brings so much joy 🙂