My beautiful breakfast tart has a gluten free granola crust filled with thick Greek yogurt, and topped with a colorful sunburst of fresh juicy fruit. Yes it looks too beautiful to eat, but dig in anyway ~ it may be beautiful, but it’s still breakfast!
this pretty fruit and yogurt tart takes breakfast to a whole new level!
And it’s so versatile ~ you can use any type of yogurt, dairy or vegan, and any type of fruit. Customize the fruit topping according to the seasons for a special occasion brunch centerpiece any time of year.
this breakfast tart is your excuse to get creative
All my life I’ve loved mosaics and geometric patterns, Remember kaleidoscopes? The Spirograph? Making those little ashtrays with tiny colored tiles? I could make a dozen of these tarts and not get tired of tinkering with the patterns. It’s a great way to use up extra fruit, or an excuse to buy those berries that have been tempting us for weeks now.
how to assemble a breakfast tart
The concept is simple: the crust is actually granola that’s baked right in the pan. The filling is healthy Greek yogurt, and the fruit topping makes it all look like dessert. If you want you can substitute almond or coconut yogurt for the dairy yogurt.
- Press your homemade granola ‘crust’ into a tart pan. Use the bottom of a measuring cup to firmly pack it in and help spread the sticky mixture evenly.
- Bake it until it’s golden and crunchy.
- Fill the crust with the yogurt. You can sweeten it with honey and vanilla or leave it tart. I left mine plain.
- Then, begin on the outside edge of your tart and layer your fruit in any pattern that appeals to you, working your way toward the center.
fruits I used for the top of my breakfast tart
You can copy my photos, or create your own masterpiece!
- strawberries, thinly sliced
- small blackberries
- kiwi fruit, peeled, halved, and sliced into half moons
- kumquats, halved
- blueberries
- sliced banana (sprinkle with lemon juice to prevent browning)
- raspberries (the smaller the better)
There’s no right or wrong way, you can create a geometric pattern, or just arrange your fruit in pretty piles. And you can always refer to photos of other tarts for inspiration. I’ve set up a Pinterest board to give you some ideas here.
tip: ripe seasonal fruit will insure that your tart will taste fantastic
After that, decide whether you want a variety of color and shape like I’ve done, whether you want to go with a more monochromatic scheme, like all strawberries or all kiwi. Or choose a simple two fruit arrangement with a high contrast like, say, mango and blackberry. The fun part is, it all works.
overlap your fruit for prettiest effect
You can see from the closeup that I start with sliced strawberries and place blackberries in between them to fill in the gaps. Then a layer of overlapping half moons of kiwi fruit, followed by a ring of halved kumquats and blueberries Then I thinly sliced a banana and fanned out the slices for the next ring. In the center I just piled raspberries with a few blueberries for contrast.
this is truly dessert for breakfast!
I’m really excited about this fresh healthy take on the classic fruit tart. Now you can enjoy one in all its glory, without having to wait for dessert. It’s perfect for entertaining, but you can do this on a smaller scale to make everyday breakfast a little bit more special.
variation ideas…
Make it non-dairy: for a non dairy version of this tart, made with coconut yogurt, see my Vegan Fruit and Yogurt Breakfast Tart. It will give you an idea about an alternative way to decorate with different fruits. Use any non-dairy yogurt you like.
Make it with labneh: thick labneh can stand in for the yogurt.
Make it with a crumb crust: use a standard graham cracker or gingersnap crumb crust.
Make it without the crust: I love the idea of doing this without the crust. Just spread yogurt into a wide shallow serving bowl (or individual bowls) and top with the fruit.
“My mother-in-law made this for Easter and we LOVED it! She subbed some gluten-free store-bought granola she had and made a slightly smaller version in an 8-inch pie plate. Which was unfortunate because we devoured the whole thing and I’m pretty sure we all wished we had more! So very tasty!”
Kathryn
Beautiful Breakfast Tart
Equipment
- 10" tart pan
Ingredients
- 1 1/2 cup old fashioned rolled oats Note: quick cooking oats will do in a pinch.)
- 1 cup mixed chopped nuts and seeds, I used almonds, pistachios, hazelnuts, walnuts, pumpkin seeds, sesame seeds
- 5 Tbsp butter, melted
- 1/4 cup honey, or sweetener of your choice
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- about 3 cups Greek yogurt Note: you can use any type of yogurt, but you may want to strain a looser yogurt first to thicken it up.)
- assorted sliced or whole fruit for topping
Instructions
- Preheat your oven to 325F.
- First make the granola crust: mix the oats, nuts and seeds, melted butter, honey and vanilla together in a bowl until everything is thoroughly coated.
- Press the mixture into a greased 10″ tart pan with a removable bottom (or a pie plate). Use a measuring cup to help press the granola evenly across the pan and up the sides.
- Bake for about 15 minutes, until lightly golden. Let cool. You can make the crust ahead if you want to and fill it the next morning just before serving.
- Fill the tart with Greek yogurt, and smooth out evenly.
- Arrange the fruit on top.
- Serve immediately. The crust will start to soften after you add the yogurt and fruit, so don't wait to long to serve it.
Notes
- You can make the crust the day before, but once you put the yogurt on top, it’s best to eat it sooner rather than later. The yogurt will eventually make the granola a little soggy if left to sit too long.
- Use sweetened or flavored yogurt if you don’t like it plain, but the thick Greek style works best if you intend to slice your tart.
- I used a 10″ tart pan, keep in mind that if you use something smaller in diameter you will have less space to create a pleasing arrangement of fruit.
- Here’s a secret—you can make this even easier…use ready-made granola and layer it at the bottom of a pie plate or casserole. No need to bake it. Spread out a thick layer of yogurt evenly over the top, and then arrange your fruit. Just spoon it into bowls and drizzle with honey…
Nutrition
This recipe looks amazing I’m going to attempt it but I have a question about the already made granola would I still put the butter and honey or how would I go about that
Sue, I added a layer of Apple sauce between the granola and yogurt. It takes this wonderful dish to another level.
Wow, great idea, I can think of other things that would work too, like lemon curd. Thanks for the inspiration 🙂
We had a Christmas brunch, this tart was a big hit. I loved it!!
Thanks for letting me know, I’m thrilled!
If I make the crust the night before, do I leave it out or wrap it and put it in the refrigerator?
Thanks!
I would leave it out Bria, but you can really do it either way.
What are the orange fruit cut in half on the fruit tray. I have no idea and need to make this tomorrow.. That’s Barb Howell barbiehowell@gmail.com.. Please send me and email to tell me please.
I emailed you Barbara ~ they’re kumquats, which are a winter fruit here in California, but for a similar color you could use canned mandarin orange slices.