This Mango Tart is classic and classy, the perfect way to celebrate the transition from summer to fall. With a buttery pastry crust, light and sweet vanilla cream, and fresh tropical mango, this tart is incredibly easy to eat–you might just find yourself going back for another bite once you’ve already polished off a slice.
I’ve stayed away from fruit tarts until now because they’ve always seemed a bit intimidating. All I ever imagined was a window of a pastry case at a French pastry shop (not that I’ve ever been to one) with an intricate and perfectly placed fruit design on top, glazed to shine and stand out. I wanted to make a Mango Tart though, and while this isn’t as colorful as a fruit tart may typically be, forming the mango slices into a flower wasn’t as difficult as I anticipated. Not to mention, if you don’t want to get fancy with it, you can pile a bunch of mango chunks on top and glaze them, the shine will still be impressive. Guess what–it tastes the same no matter what it looks like!
Bursting with mango sweetness and a wonderfully light vanilla filling, this starts with a classic tart base–sweet pastry enriched with an egg–that is blind baked and brushed with an egg white wash to help keep the moisture of the cream from seeping into the crust. What you get is a buttery, crispy base that brings texture to the cream and mango filling.
Then there’s the pastry cream filling. Yes, this requires about 10-15 minutes of constant stirring to make sure the cream doesn’t stick and the eggs don’t cook. This is definitely one of those components where you want to make sure you have everything set up and ready to go before you start–make sure your egg yolks are already separated that way you won’t have to stop halfway through to crack them all. You’ll have a bunch of egg whites left too. Don’t throw these away! You can always use them to make a meringue or some macarons, perhaps add them to an omelette–there’s no reason to waste them. Note, you may also have a bit of extra pastry cream. Enjoy with some fruit and crumbled shortbread for an extra treat!
I’ve seen some blogs start arranging their mango from the middle and just couldn’t figure out how to make that neatly happen. In trying to arrange slices into a flower design, I found it easier to work from the outer edge, following the crust, and overlap the slices until I made my way to the middle. There was a small hole in the center and all I had to do was roll up a single slice of mango and pop it in. Job done. Brush with the warmed up preserves, slice, and serve.
This Mango Tart is best served the day of assembly. Even with the egg white wash, after time the cream will begin to soak into the crust and the juice from the mango will begin to seep into the cream. You can easily prep all components, chill the filling overnight, and put it all together the next day.
| Prep Time | 30-35 minutes |
| Cook Time | 35-40 minutes |
| Servings |
slices
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- 113 grams unsalted butter cold
- 45 grams granulated sugar
- 1/4 tsp salt
- 1/2 tsp vanilla extract
- 180 grams all purpose flour
- 1 egg large, beaten
- 1 egg white + 1 Tbsp water
- 165 grams granulated sugar
- 45 grams all purpose flour
- 1/4 tsp salt
- 355 mL whole milk
- 6 egg yolks large
- 1 Tbsp vanilla extract
- 250 mL heavy whipping cream *
- 2-3 mangos ripe
- 2 Tbsp apricot preserves
- 1 Tbsp water
Ingredients
Pate Sucrée
Vanilla Pasty Cream
Mango Topping
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- In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, beat together the butter and sugar for 2-3 minutes on medium high until light and fluffy. Add in the salt and vanilla and mix until combined. Add in 1/2 of the flour and beat until just incorporated. Add in the egg and mix until combined, then add the remaining half of the flour and mix until the dough comes together.**
- Form the dough into a ball and place on a piece of plastic wrap. Flatten the ball into a disc and wrap tightly. Allow the dough to chill in the refrigerator for 30 minutes to an hour.
- Lightly grease a 9 inch tart pan with a removable base. Press the chilled dough evenly into the pan. You should have about 1 cm of dough across the bottom and up the sides of the pan. Using a knife, trim any excess. Take a fork and dock the bottom of the tart. Place the prepared crust in the freezer and allow to chill for 10-15 minutes until the dough is cold and firm.
- Preheat the oven to 350°F. When the tart crust is chilled, place the tart pan on a baking sheet. Line with a piece of parchment paper and weigh the crust down with baking beans, dried beans, or rice to keep the crust from puffing or falling in the oven. Place the tart pan and the baking sheet on the center rack of the oven and bake for 25 minutes. After 25 minutes, remove the parchment paper and the weights. Whisk together 1 egg white with 1 Tbsp of water and brush over the base of the tart. Return the crust to the oven for an additional 10-15 minutes until the crust is fully baked through. Allow to cool completely on a wire rack.
- In a medium or large saucepan over medium heat, combine the sugar, flour, salt, and milk. Stir constantly until the mixture thickens, about 10 minutes, and begins to boil. Allow to boil for 1 minute. Remove the pan from the heat.
- In a medium bowl, whisk together the egg yolks. Add a couple of spoonfuls of the milk/flour/sugar mixture to the bowl with the eggs and stir to temper the eggs. Slowly pour the egg mixture back into the milk, stirring constantly. Cook over medium heat until the mixture thickens and coats a spoon or spatula well (about 8 minutes) and just a few small bubbles form. Do NOT boil. Remove from heat and stir in the vanilla extract. If you're worried about clumps of flour or any cooked bits of egg, pass the cream through a sieve to ensure smoothness.
- Transfer the cream to a small bowl and cover with plastic wrap. The plastic wrap should touch the cream so that it doesn't form a skin while chilling. Allow to chill for about 4 hours.
- Using a stand mixer fitted with a whisk attachment, or a hand mixer, whip the heavy cream until it forms stiff peaks. Using a rubber spatula, gently fold half of the whipped cream into the pasty cream. Once combined, fold in the second half of the whipped cream and chill until ready.
- Peel 2-3 mangos. Thinly slice or dice into small chunks. If using thin slices to create a flower, make sure the slices are firm enough to push into the pastry cream but still pliable enough to curve.
- Dollop the pasty cream into the cooled tart shell and spread evenly. Cover over the top of the pastry cream with the mango slices or chunks. To create a flower, start around the outer edge of the tart. Overlap the mango slices just a little bit, continuing until you reach the center. Roll one slice of mango and gently place in the middle. Save any extra mango for snacking.
- In a small saucepan over medium heat, stir together the apricot preserves and water. Heat until the preserves melt and begin to simmer. Remove from the heat and brush over the top of the mango.
- Serve immediately or chill and serve within 1-2 hours of assembly. This is best eaten the same day.
* If you want your pastry cream filling to be a bit thicker, leave out the whipped cream in the second to final step of the pastry cream instructions.
** If you don't have a stand mixer or a hand mixer and want to make the pasty by hand: whisk together the dry ingredients and rub the butter in with your fingertips until you're left with pea-sized bits of butter covered in flour; mix in the egg and gently knead until combined.
** The pasty cream only uses egg yolks. Use one of the egg whites for the egg white wash on the crust and save the rest for a meringue or to bulk up an omelette (or anything else you want to use an egg white for!).