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This No Fuss Lemon Tart is that go-to dessert…super easy, yet delicious and pretty too. The filling is made with four base ingredients, heavy cream, honey, lemon, and vanilla extract. The crust is a mix of sweet graham crackers, salty pretzels, and just a touch of butter. When combined with the creamy lemon filling it makes for a mouthwatering tart that’s sweet, luscious, super creamy, and a touch salty. Top with an assortment of fresh berries for a tart that’s perfect for both spring and summer.
Happy Friday! What a fun week it’s been here in LA. I have to say, I’m so excited about everything we have been working on. I’m also pretty glad I escaped all the snow in Colorado this week and swapped it for the California sunshine. It’s been a bit cooler than I might like, but I really shouldn’t complain! We’ve been running around the city all week filming some fun new videos. It’s been such a great change of scenery for me!
With Friday here I am beyond happy to be sharing this no fuss lemon tart. It’s a recipe I’ve been really excited to share since the day I made it, and for a few reasons.
First and foremost, this tart is delicious. It’s lightly sweetened, tangy, creamy and finished with sweet berries. The crust has a little (pretzel) twist and is lightly salted, providing a nice balance to the tang and sweetness.
Second, not only is this tart beyond simple to make (just 4 base ingredients in the filling), but it’s almost no bake. I say almost because the crust does need to bake, but trust me, the toasty flavor is so worth it!
And finally, this tart is so pretty, which some of you may not be that concerned with. But you all know me, I love anything that tastes just as pretty as it looks.
Traditionally lemon tarts are made with a ton of eggs, cream, and butter, but this tart is very different. It uses only cream, zero eggs, and is pretty low in the sugar content…no actual sugar, just honey.
Let me back up a bit though, and tell you about the crust. Most tarts call for an all graham cracker crust, but I wanted to do something different and add a little saltiness to the already sweet graham crackers. Instead of using all graham crackers I went for a mix of graham crackers and pretzels. It’s not what you might typically put together, but trust me when I say, this crust is a game changer. It’s sweet and just a touch salty too. The best combo.
While the crust is baking, work on the filling. It’s the simplest thing and you’re going to be shocked when I tell you the ingredients. All you need is heavy cream, honey, lemon, and vanilla. Yep, just four very simple ingredients, zero eggs, and almost zero effort.
All you need to do is bring the cream to a boil, boil 5 minutes, remove from the stove, add the lemon and vanilla…and that’s it! Be sure to use a large pot, bigger than you think you will need. Heavy cream really likes to boil over, so use the largest pot you have to be safe.
When testing this recipe I was concerned that the cream was not going to set up. But shockingly it set up within the first 30 minutes of chilling. Boiling the cream thickens it, and allows for it to set up just like it would if using eggs.
My favorite part though? I find this to be creamier than the usual lemon tart which is so much fancier and use eggs. It’s crazy to me, but I promise, this is one of the best lemon tarts. And the major bonus is that it’s so simple!!
If you happen to be someone who prefers dairy free, I tested this with both heavy cream and coconut cream (no water, just the cream). Both worked really well! If you are using coconut cream, make sure it is high quality and boil the coconut cream for a total of 10 minutes. Personally, I love the flavor of the coconut. But it does change the tart slightly, giving a little more of a tropical flavor. So use what you love most here!
Finally, finish the tart off with a handful of your favorite fresh berries. You’ll have the prettiest dessert that takes almost no effort at all. In the words of Ina Garten, “This looks fantastic. How easy was that?”.
PS. If you’re in need of more than one tart this Memorial Day weekend, try this no bake fruit tart filled with strawberries. It will be a nice compliment to this lemon tart.
If you make this no fuss lemon tart, be sure to leave a comment and/or give this recipe a rating! Above all, I love to hear from you guys and always do my best to respond to each and every comment. And of course, if you do make this recipe, don’t forget to tag me on Instagram! Looking through the photos of recipes you all have made is my favorite!
Watch the How To Video:
No Fuss Lemon Tart.
Servings: 8
Calories Per Serving: 1847 kcal
Nutritional information is only an estimate. The accuracy of the nutritional information for any recipe on this site is not guaranteed.
Watch the How-To Reel
Ingredients
- 8 full size graham cracker sheets (about 1 cup once crushed into crumbs)
- 1 cup salted pretzel twists
- 6 tablespoons salted butter, melted
- 2 tablespoons + 1/3 cup honey
- 3 1/2 cups heavy cream
- 2 tablespoons lemon zest + 1/3 cup lemon juice
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 2 cups mixed fresh berries
Instructions
- 1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. 2. To make the crust. In a food processor, pulse the graham crackers and pretzels into semi-fine crumbs. Add the butter and 2 tablespoons honey and pulse until the mixture holds together when pinched and starts to look like dough. Press the dough into an 8 or 9 inch tart pan with a removable bottom to form a flat, even crust. Transfer to the oven and bake until toasted, about 8 minutes. 3. Meanwhile, combine the heavy cream, remaining 1/3 cup honey, and lemon zest in a large pot, bigger than you think you'll need. Set over high heat and bring to a boil. Once boiling, boil 5 minutes and then remove from the heat and whisk in the lemon juice, vanilla, and a pinch of salt. Let cool 10 minutes. 4. Carefully pour the lemon cream into the baked crust. Cover and chill 1 hour or until set. Before serving, remove the tart from the pan and top with fresh berries.
This post was originally published on May 24, 2019
Love your recipes! Unfortunately mine didn’t set using coconut milk. Any thoughts?
Hi Alicia,
So sorry about this! Unfortunately it is key to use either heavy cream or coconut cream. The coconut milk does not react the same way. Please let me know if you have any other questions! xTieghan
Fantastic dessert! Easy to make yet looks impressive for family dinner. The honey graham cracker and pretzel crust is perfection!
Thank you so much Kate! xTieghan
This Lemon Tart is delicious! I do have a question about the crust. The bottom part of the crust was soggy; hard to get off of the bottom of the tart pan. Is it suppose to be that way? Other than that, it was pretty and delicious!
Hi Jill,
Thanks so much for trying the recipe! Sorry you had issues with the crust. It should not be soggy, I would recommend baking a bit longer and then making sure your pan is greased well. Please let me know if you have any other questions! xTieghan
Do you think it would be ok to make this a day before?
Hi Cassandra,
Yes that it totally fine to do! I hope you love the recipe, please let me know if you have any other questions! xTieghan
Hi!
I have been a long time follower of you and think you are brilliant. Your recipes are so different, seem easy to make and look absolutely delicious. So I tried one recipe for the first time today….the No Fuss Lemon Tart. I consider myself a pretty advanced baker and had two issues:
1. I used a 9-inch removable bottom tart pan and I had way too much cream left over
2. When I went to carry to refrigerator, it leaked all over the place….
Not sure where I went wrong…
BTW – I swore I would never buy another cookbook but I think just may purchase both of yours.
Thank you, Sonia
Hey Sonia!!
Ok. How deep is your pan? Wondering if mine is deeper than yours? Also, did the tart set up for you? It is sounding to me like your cream didn’t thicken up like mine did. How long did you boil for? Any details you can give me will help me to better problem solve.
AND! So glad you are loving the cookbooks. THANK YOU!!! xxTieghan
Not sure if you’ll get this in time. I am determined to make this with the coconut cream for a dinner tomorrow despite reading most people had problems with it setting. I’m confused though because you say you can substitute coconut cream but then you comment about coconut milk. Your link to the Thrive market brand is for coconut milk. I read that coconut cream is much thicker than coconut milk. So I just want to make sure that it’s coconut cream and not coconut milk we should use. Thanks! I have made so many of your recipes and they are all so delicious!
Hi Lea,
Sorry for the confusion, you definitely want to use coconut cream, not coconut milk. I hope you love the recipe, please let me know if you have any other questions! xTieghan
hello! i love this tart- to make this diabetes friendly could you substitute splenda for th honey?
Hi Camila,
So sorry, I have not tested this and rarely work with Splenda so I am not sure what the results would be. I hope you love the recipe, please let me know if you have any other questions! xTieghan
Hi there! would this recipe work if i used 2 x 5-inch tart pans? Thank you!
Hi Andy,
Yes that would work! I hope you love the recipe, please let me know if you have any other questions! xTieghan
This was very simple to make and delicious. My tart took 3-4 hours to set in fridge. The lemon flavor was much more pronounced the second day. Because of this, I would consider making the filling a day in advance and serving this as a deconstructed tart, with the filling as your base, crust Made day-of and crumbled on top with your berries. Would definitely serve this again.
Thank you so much Ginney! I am really glad this turned out so well for you! xTieghan
Tried this today but the cream didn’t set at all! Still tasted great but it was a gooey mess… any idea what I could have done wrong? I am pretty sure I followed the recipe!
Hi Anna,
So sorry you had issues with the recipe. It is important that you use either heavy cream or coconut cream. Also, it is key that the cream come to a high boil and you add the lemon juice after the boiling process. I hope this helps! xTieghan
Hi…I don’t have enough heavy cream—only 2 cups—ok to use half/half for the remaining measure? Everything sold out here….pandemic….
Thank you in advance for your help!
Hi Sandhya,
Sorry you need the all of the heavy cream or you could sub coconut cream, you won’t get the same results with half and half. I hope you love the recipe, please let me know if you have any other questions! xTieghan
Very yummy but I had the same problem as others with the coconut milk. I used 2 cans of Sprouts (a grocery store) brand coconut milk in my 11-in tart pan. I let it boil for 11 min but still it didn’t set!
Hi Sam,
So sorry you had issues with the recipe! It is important to use coconut cream, not coconut milk. This is why the tart did not set. Please let me know if you have any other questions! xTieghan
I totally fall in love with this recipe because it looks so beautiful and there’s nearly no effort – I’ll give it a try this weekend! I just wondered whether it would work with kinda berry sauce on top like a raspberry or strawberry one. What do you think?
Thank you so much for responding and for all your wonderful recipes!
Hi Sarah,
That sounds like a great idea, I would just add that after the tart has set. I hope you love the recipe, please let me know if you have any other questions! xTieghan
I finally made this and its completely amazing!! My picture turned out well also, not as good as yours but good.
Love that! Thank you so much Janet! I am sure your photo looks amazing!! xTieghan
Made this on Sunday, very creamy, honey taste comes through! The berries compliment this easy and tasty dessert!
Thank you so much Sandra! I am so happy to hear that! xTieghan