Blueberry lemon crumble tart is an easy dessert recipe that just works ~ and it keeps on giving season after season with different fruits and fillings.
This blueberry-lemon crumble tart is a forever recipe ~ one that’s followed me from kitchen to kitchen, and from season to season, adapting to different ingredients and flavors. Always reliable and always a joy to bake.
If you frequent this site you know I have a mini obsession with shortbread, shortbread cookies, and shortbread crumbles of all sorts.
This particular tart has a lemon infused shortbread crust and a sweet-tart fresh blueberry lemon filling. It’s hard to beat it for an easy but elegant bake that works at home or on the road. Try it and see what I mean.
This dessert is made with everyday ingredients you no doubt already have. And if you don’t have blueberries you can sub in another fruit or jam.
Blueberries: for this I use fresh berries. If you need to use frozen, consider cooking the filling until it comes to a boil in a saucepan.
Lemon sugar: it’s where I process lemon peel with sugar and it provides a nice lemon flavor throughout the crust.
Shortbread crust and crumble: it’s the same dough, making this quick and easy ~ no extra bowl to mix up a separate crumble. A handful of rolled oats gives it extra texture.
a shortbread crumble tart process you can use over and over
- Make lemon sugar.
- Mix up shortbread dough.
- Divide dough and press 2/3 into your pan.
- Top with fresh fruit filling.
- Crumble remaining dough over the berries.
- Bake until golden and bubbling.
variations on blueberry lemon crumble tart
Soft or crunchy?
- This tart is delicious either way, and it comes down to baking time. A little less time in the oven will yield a soft tart to eat with a fork. A little more baking and you’ll have a crunchier hand-holdable bar.
More berries
- All kinds of berries work, especially raspberries and blackberries. Sliced strawberries too. Why not make a mixed berry tart?
No fresh fruit?
- Use your favorite jar of jam, marmalade, or lemon curd.
Play with flour
- You can use part whole wheat, white whole wheat (for a more tender result,) part oat flour, or part buckwheat flour. Make a gluten free blueberry lemon crumble tart with a 1:1 gf baking mix.
Add nuts
- I use rolled oats in the topping, but you can sub chopped nuts like walnuts, almonds, or pecans (or sunflower seeds for a nut free topping.)
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Blueberry Lemon Crumble Tart
Equipment
- 9 inch tart pan or springform pan
Ingredients
filling*
- 2 cups blueberries, heaped
- 2 Tbsp granulated sugar
- 2 Tbsp lemon juice
- 1 Tbsp cornstarch
crust and crumble topping
- peeled zest of 1 lemon
- 2/3 cup granulated sugar
- 1 cup unsalted butter, at room temperature
- 1 tsp vanilla paste or extract
- 1/4 tsp salt
- 2 cups all purpose flour
- 2 Tbsp rolled oats, for the crumble topping
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350F. Butter and flour your 9 inch tart pan with a removable bottom.
- Toss the 2 cups blueberries with the 2 Tbsp granulated sugar, 2 Tbsp lemon juice and 1 Tbsp cornstarch. Mix well, and set aside.
- In a food processor process the peeled zest of 1 lemon and 2/3 cup granulated sugar until the zest is competley incorporated and you have a fragrant pale yellow sugar.
- In a stand mixer or with electric beaters cream the 1 cup unsalted butter with the lemon sugar you just made until light and fluffy, about 2-3 minutes, scraping down the sides of the bowl as necessary. Beat in the 1 tsp vanilla paste or extract and 1/4 tsp salt. Note: it's important that your butter be at room temperature. I like to leave it out overnight when I know I'll be baking.
- With the mixer on low, slowly add the 2 cups all purpose flour and mix just until there is no dry flour left. Don't over beat but do make sure all the butter is incorporated.
- Take 2/3 of the dough and pat it into the bottom of your tart pan. I like to scatter the dough in crumbles across the bottom, and then start to pat it down. It helps to flour your fingers, or use the bottom of a metal measuring cup to tamp it down. Take the time to get the dough evenly distributed. Note: you're not looking to go up the sides of the pan with the dough, just to make an even flat layer. Refrigerate for 10 minutes.
- Mix the remaining dough with the 2 Tbsp rolled oats, breaking it apart with your fingers to make coarse crumbles.
- Arrange the blueberries on top of the bottom crust. Top evenly with the crumbled dough. Allow some of the berries to show through.
- Set the tart pan on a baking sheet, and bake in the preheated oven for about 35 minutes, or until the top is just starting to turn pale golden.
- Let the tart cool for 15 minutes on a rack before releasing the bottom from the sides. Finish cooling on the rack.
- When cool slice the tart into 8 or 10 slices. Serve as is, or with some lightly sweetened whipped cream.
Notes
- I like my fruit and fruit fillings on the tart side, hence the lemon juice. If your berries are tart to begin with, or you just prefer things a bit sweeter, you can reduce or omit the lemon juice.
Would
It be ok to make it a day in advance?
Yes, I would store it at room temperature, loosely covered with foil, not air tight. Fruit can release moisture as a cake or tart sits.
This was an excellent recipe, just the right balance of tart and sweet. Plus it’s easy to make—no crust to roll out and the dough recipe doubles as the crumble, so it comes together quickly. I added the zest of a tangelo as well as a Meyer lemon to the dough and used more oats. Everyone asked for the recipe. As Sue says, it’s an adaptable recipe. For some fruit like apples you’d probably have to bake longer. Definitely going into my dessert favorites board on Pinterest!
One important tip: if you use a tart pan with removable bottom, be sure to put it on a baking sheet, preferably on a piece of parchment. I used a cookie sheet with silicone mat. The blueberry juices leaked and it would have been a huge mess otherwise! Next time I might press the dough up the sides of my tart pan, which is shallow (even tho9ugh Sue says not to!)
Delicious!! My husband loved it. Very easy to make.
Sue, I only use frozen wild blueberries. I do not care for the size lately of the fresh. Blueberries, they are just too large.
I noticed your recommendations stated to cook the blueberries if they were frozen. May I ask why so I understand the recipe completely before I would make it?
Thanking you in advance for your help.
I made this for my mom’s birthday and it was a huge success! I served it with homemade whipped cream and it was absolutely delicious. Thank you. I will definitely make this dessert again.
Can I use almond flour/gluten free flour? This looks amazing!
I would use a good quality gf baking mix that works in a 1:1 ratio with flour. Almond flour will make this too delicate.
I forgot to rate the recipe earlier!
I appreciate it 🙂
Hello Sue,
Thanks for this delicious recipe. I made it today and the only change I made was to increase the blueberries to 3 cups- you did say a heaping two cups. I also used frozen blueberries and precooked as per your recommendations. It turned out to be one of the best fruit desserts I have ever tried. I am looking forward to trying it with other fruits. Thanks for posting.
I’m grinning as I read your comment, thanks Cath.
Do you have a recommendation on a tart pan? Straight sides, fluted sides, material?
I use fluted sides, removable bottom, like this one.
for the oats in the tpping, I saute them in butter until lightly browned
Nice, I’ve never tried that!