Easy Fruit Tart!
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Delicious, sweet and fruity no-bake tart that will be perfect at dinner time or just for a treat… I love this easy fruit tart!
Cheesecake vs tart
Sometimes I love to make a dessert that isn’t a cheesecake. Would you believe it? I know… shocking. I do adore a cheesecake, but every now and then I want something that feels lighter, fresher, and a little bit different and this is exactly that. Yes, this tart does contain mascarpone, but I still don’t class it as a cheesecake. The texture is completely different, it’s softer, silkier, and more mousse-like rather than dense and rich. It feels more like a classic fruit tart with a modern twist than anything else.
I wouldn’t recommend using Philadelphia in this recipe as it simply wouldn’t give the same result. Mascarpone is smoother, creamier, and far less tangy, which works perfectly with the sweetness of the fruit. The filling is actually the same as I used in my Cookie Cream Pie, paired with the biscuit crust from my no-bake Terry’s Chocolate Orange tart, two favourites combined into one fresh, summery dessert.
Tart biscuit base
I’ve had quite a few people ask for a fruit tart recipe over the years, and I decided to keep things simple with a biscuit base. It’s quick, reliable, and doesn’t require any baking skills beyond melting butter and pressing crumbs into a tin, which is always a win.
Of course, if you prefer a traditional pastry case, you can absolutely swap it out. Just use the pastry recipe from my Salted Caramel Chocolate Tart and bake it blind before filling. This recipe is flexible, which is exactly what I love about it.
As for the fruit, you can really use whatever you like. I went for strawberries, raspberries, blackberries, blueberries and kiwi because they’re some of my favourites and were beautifully in season. There’s something about a pile of colourful summer fruit that just makes a dessert feel extra special.
Modern twists
I’ll be honest, I always feel slightly nervous posting something traditional like this. It’s not over-the-top, it’s not covered in chocolate, and it doesn’t involve ten layers but that’s kind of the point. Recipes like this are understated but incredibly effective. They look impressive, taste amazing, and are surprisingly simple to put together. Sometimes the classics really are the best.
You can easily jazz this up if you fancy experimenting. Swap the digestives for shortbread biscuits, add a splash of rum or limoncello to the filling, or even top it with crystallised fruit for a bit of sparkle. Once you know the basics, you can make it your own and that’s when baking becomes really fun.
Fruit toppings
I arranged my fruit in a slightly patterned way to make it look pretty, but that part is entirely up to you. You can go neat and symmetrical, rustic and piled high, or somewhere in between. Mine never ends up quite as symmetrical as I imagine in my head but a dusting of icing sugar hides a multitude of sins.
I tend to use whatever fruit I have left over from my weekly food shop, which makes this dessert incredibly practical. It’s a great way to use up berries before they go past their best, and it means the topping changes slightly each time I make it.
The combination of fresh, juicy fruit with the sweet mascarpone filling and crunchy biscuit base is just perfection. It’s light but indulgent, simple but impressive and honestly, I could eat the whole thing.
Tips & tricks
- You can easily double up the recipe to make a bigger & deeper delicious dessert – add another half of the base recipe (I.e. use 450g digestives, and 150g unsalted butter) and double the filling recipe!
- Use a 25cmx5cm deep tart tin
- This dessert will last in the fridge for 2-3days, covered.
- I used this tin.
Easy Fruit Tart
Ingredients
Biscuit Crust
- 100 g unsalted butter (melted)
- 300 g digestive biscuits
Filling
- 200 ml double cream
- 250 g marscapone
- 100 g icing sugar
- 1/2 tsp vanilla bean extract
Topping
- 100 g strawberries
- 100 g raspberries
- 100 g blackberries
- 100 g blueberries
- 100 g kiwi
Instructions
Biscuit Crust
- Blitz all of the digestive biscuits to a fine crumb, and mix in the melted unsalted butter (I used a food processor).
- Press this into the sides and base of a 23cm pie/flan tin (mine was 3cm deep). It might be easier to use your hands and fingers for this! Make sure that the side parts are thick enough to hold the filling once removed.
- Refrigerate for now.
Filling
- Loosen the mascarpone slightly with a spoon and add to a bowl.
- Whisk together the double cream, mascarpone, icing sugar, and vanilla bean extract for 2-3 minutes until thickened considerably and mousse-like. It's not essential for it to hold itself like a meringue, just to be thick!
- Refrigerate the dessert for now.
- Prepare your fruit by washing it all well, and cutting up what is necessary! (I removed the tops of my strawberries and skinned the kiwis, then sliced them up. The others I just simply washed!)
- Arrange the fruit on in a pile on top (or arrange in a patern).
- Serve with some extra fruit, ice cream, or a dash of cream.
Notes
- You can easily double up the recipe to make a bigger & deeper delicious dessert – add another half of the base recipe (I.e. use 450g digestives, and 150g unsalted butter) and double the filling recipe!
- Use a 25cmx5cm deep tart tin!
- This dessert will last in the fridge for 2-3days, covered.
- I used this tin.
Easy, delicious and looks amazing. I’ve used lots of your recipes over the years and none ever disappoint, thank you! 😊
Can you use something else instead of marscapone as I don’t like cheese.
Can you use single cream instead of double ?
Hi Jane,
I’m making this for a BBQ tomorrow. Would you wait to add the fresh fruit until the morning or do you think it will be ok?
Thanks!
Hiya! It should be absolutely fine stored in the fridge overnight. Hope this helps! x
I have frozen fruit, could I use them instead of fresh fruits?
Hiya! As you would have to thaw the fruit, they may become slightly mushy, but it’s up to you! Hope this helps! x
Hi Jane, double cream is not easily available in Malaysia. Could I use 200 ml of whipping cream (sweetened) instead of double cream and icing sugar? x
Can i replace the Mascarpone with cream cheese?
Yes for sure!
Can I ask what butter you used for this recipe please? Salted or unsalted?
Hello, unsalted!xx
Just made it, it works, all your recipes work perfectly Jane, thank you for sharing them! glad to have this recipe as my Hubby loves these types of tarts. Spot on again!
“…will last in the fridge for 2-3 days, covered.” I had to laugh … there is no way this will last that long in my house! Thanks for the gorgeous recipe; can’t wait to try it!
Hahaha I have to say it, but it never lasts that long for me either ?
I’m doing a Caribbean evening and thought this would make a simple perfect pud….how much rum would you put in the filling…. Or would it work better with rum double cream as a side? Thanku!!
I’m afraid I wouldn’t know as I have never tried it, but I wouldn’t use any more then a few tablespoons as it might split the mixture 🙂
I made this the other day as I’d got friends over for a BBQ. Super quick, super easy and super tasty!
Ahh amazing!! I’m so glad it was a success!
[…] photos. Je suis tombée en arrêt devant la recette d’une tarte aux fruits très alléchante (par ici pour la recette) avec une crème au mascarpone (que j’ai modifié dans ma recette ) qui me faisait de […]
This pie looks delicious ! I love the mascarpone cream !
Thank you so much! 🙂