How to Make Mini Almond Tarts (Gluten-Free)

• Pinterest
• Instagram
• YouTube
• Facebook
• Mail

This recipe for Mini Almond Tarts has an easy homemade almond paste filling and added fresh blueberries and lemon zest for a special treat! But what really sets it apart is...

it's completely gluten-free!

How to Make Gluten-Free Almond Tarts (with blueberries)

Instead of using a store-bought almond paste or marzipan, the almond filling for these little tarts uses a simple homemade almond paste recipe made from blanched almond flour. Top your tarts with some toasted sliced almonds makes for a beautiful and tasty presentation.

Ingredients

Crust

• 2 cups Cup 4 Cup gluten-free Pie Crust flour
• 1 ½ sticks of unsalted butter, cut into ½-inch pieces
• ½ teaspoon kosher salt
• 2 tablespoons sugar
• ½ tablespoon lemon zest
• 1 egg
• ¼ cup cold water

Filling (homemade almond paste recipe)

• 1 stick unsalted butter, softened
• ½ cup sugar
• 2 cups almond flour or almond meal
• ½ teaspoon kosher salt
• ¼ cup Grand Marnier
• ½ teaspoon lemon extract
• ½ tablespoon lemon zest
• 1 teaspoon almond extract
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 2 eggs
• 1 ½ cups blueberries (optional)
• powdered confectioners sugar, for dusting

Instructions

Crust

1. In a large bowl, stir together the flour, salt, lemon zest, and sugar.  
2. Drop in the chilled butter cubes.  With the whisk, "chop" or "cut" the butter into the flour mixture using an up-and-down motion.  Do this until it looks like coarse sand.
3. In a small bowl, whisk the egg, milk, and cold water until combined.  
4. Mix this into the "wet sand" flour mixture.  Stir (I use my hands) until the mixture comes together and forms a soft smooth ball.  
5. Divide the ball into 6 equal pieces.  Flatten each ball slightly into a thick disk.  
6. Wrap with plastic wrap and refrigerate until filling is done, at least 30 minutes.

Filling

1. In a stand mixer with the paddle attachment, beat the butter on medium until creamy and fluffy.  Add the sugar.  
2. Reduce mixer speed to low and beat in the extracts, Grand Marnier, lemon zest, and salt. Turn off the mixer and scrape the sides.  Mix on medium-low until thoroughly combined. 
3. Turn off the mixer and scrape the side again.  On a very low speed, add the eggs one at a time.  Then slowly add the almond flour.  Beat until everything is fully incorporated.

Assembly

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.
2. When the filling is done, flour a surface and roll the disks out to approximately 6 inches or 15 cm in diameter.  
3. Put them in the tartlet pans.  Gently press the dough into the bottom and up the sides, creating a pretty edge.  
4. Dock the bottom of the dough with a fork.
5. Divide the almond mixture evenly into the tartlet crusts.  
6. Gently press the blueberries into the filling.
7. Bake for 30 minutes or until the crust is golden.  Allow them to cool completely on a wire rack.
8. Remove the tartlets from the pans and dust them with powdered sugar.

Mini Almond Tarts Recipe Pro Tips:

Gluten-free flours are not all created equal: If you are not averse to gluten, use 2 cups of regular all-purpose flour instead of the Cup-4-Cup flour. I have tried several gluten-free flours and this flour created by The French Laundry's owner/chef Thomas Keller is far superior to any other gluten-free flour on the market.

Mini tart pans: I found a quadruple mini tart pan years ago.  It works great, because really when are you ever going to make just one mini tart?  If you can find one, snatch it up!  This recipe also works great if you want to make 1 large tart (9-inch diameter).  

Almond meal vs. almond flour- I prefer almond flour over almond meal primarily because almond flour is finer and a little sweeter.  Almond meal tastes great, but it's coarser and gives the tart filling and crust a grainier texture.  If you use almond flour, your tartlets will have a smoother texture and will also look lighter.

Why You'll Love These Almond Blueberry Tarts

• These mini almond tarts are so light and flakey, you'll never know they're gluten-free.
• The sweet rich almond filling is beautifully balanced with lemon accents and fresh blueberries.
• They're easy to make in only an hour and a half.
• They're filling enough for breakfast or a snack, but elegant enough for a dinner party.

Choosing flavor combos

Almonds and blueberries play very well together and if you bring a little lemon to the party (which this recipe does), you've got yourself something special.  

How do you know what flavors will work well together?  Put your sniffer to work.  Smell them together.  If it's pleasing, you have your first clue that the match might be a good one.

I think the real magic of this recipe is the lemon zest.  It adds a lovely brightness to the darker undertones of the almond base.  If blueberries aren't your thing, switch them out for raspberries!  Either way, these Almond Tarts with blueberries are the bomb!

5 from 2 votes

Print

Almond Blueberry Tarts

Bursting with juicy blueberries surrounded by sweet almond filling, these tarts are perfect for breakfast, dessert or a snack to take on the go.  Making the crust from scratch with the following recipe is a snap too!  So easy and sooooo good!

Course Breakfast, Dessert, Snack

Cuisine American, French

Prep Time 1 hour

Cook Time 30 minutes

Servings 6 mini pies

Calories 453 kcal

Author Madalaine

Ingredients

Crust

• 3 cups Cup 4 Cup gluten-free Pie Crust flour
• 8 ounces stick unsalted butter cut into ½ inch pieces
• 1 teaspoon kosher salt
• 2 tablespoons sugar
• ½ tablespoon lemon zest
• 1 egg
• ½ cup milk cold
• 3 tablespoons water cold

Filling

• 1 stick unsalted butter room temperature
• ½ cup sugar
• 2 cups almond flour or almond meal
• ½ teaspoon kosher salt
• ¼ cup Grand Marnier
• ½ teaspoon lemon extract
• ½ tablespoon lemon zest
• 1 teaspoon almond extract
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 2 eggs
• 1 ½ cups blueberries
• powdered sugar for dusting

Instructions

1. Preheat the oven to 375.  Set aside six (4-inch / 10-12 cm) tartlet pans, un-greased.

Make the crust

1. In a large bowl, stir together the flour, salt, lemon zest, and sugar.  

2. Drop in the chilled butter cubes.  With the whisk, "chop" or "cut" the butter into the flour mixture using an up and down motion.  Do this until it looks like coarse sand.

3. In a small bowl, whisk the egg, milk, and cold water until combined.  

4. Mix this into the "wet sand" flour mixture.  Stir (I use my hands) until the mixture comes together and forms a soft smooth ball.  

5. Divide the ball into 6 equal pieces.  Flatten each ball slightly into a thick disk.  

6. Wrap with plastic wrap and refrigerate until filling is done, at least 30 minutes.

Make the filling

1. In a stand mixer with the paddle attachment, beat the butter on medium until creamy and fluffy.  Add the sugar.  
2. Reduce mixer speed to low and beat in the extracts, Grand Marnier, lemon zest, and salt. Turn off mixer and scrape the sides.  Mix on medium low until thoroughly combined. 
3. Turn off mixer and scrape the side again.  On a very low speed, add the eggs one at a time.  Then slowly add the almond flour.  Beat until everything is fully incorporated.

Bringing it all together

1. When filling is done, flour a surface and roll the disks out to approximately 6 inches or 15 cm in diameter.  Put them in the tartlet pans.  Gently press the dough to the sides, creating a pretty edge.  Dock the bottoms with a fork.
2. Divide the almond mixture evenly into the tartlet crusts.  Divide the blueberries evenly among the tartlets as well, gently press them into the filling.
3. Bake for 30 minutes or until the crust is golden.  Allow them to cool completely.  Remove the tartlets from the pans and dust with powdered sugar.

Recipe Notes

*Mini tart pans: I found a quadruple mini tart pan years ago.  It works great, because really when are you ever going to make just one mini tart?  If you can find one, snatch it up!  This recipe also works great if you want to make 1 large tart (9-inch diameter).  

Almond meal vs. almond flour- I prefer almond flour over almond meal primarily because almond flour is finer and a little sweeter.  Almond meal tastes great, but it's coarser and gives the tart filling and crust a grainier texture.  If you use almond flour, your tartlets will have a smoother texture and will also look lighter.

 

Nutrition Facts

Almond Blueberry Tarts

Amount Per Serving

Calories 453 Calories from Fat 189

% Daily Value*

Fat 21g32%

Saturated Fat 2g13%

Trans Fat 0.02g

Polyunsaturated Fat 1g

Monounsaturated Fat 1g

Cholesterol 83mg28%

Sodium 424mg18%

Potassium 110mg3%

Carbohydrates 56g19%

Fiber 6g25%

Sugar 9g10%

Protein 15g30%

Vitamin A 150IU3%

Vitamin C 5mg6%

Calcium 101mg10%

Iron 4mg22%

* Percent Daily Values are based on a 2000 calorie diet.