Fig season begins in late summer and ends in early autumn. It's a brief season, but fig trees are prolific producers and you're likely to find an abundance of them at the farmer's market or in your local grocery store. And, once you've eaten your fill of fresh figs, take the time to make yourself a fig tart. It's worth it.
While you can roast figs or bake them in a tart, I like them fresh - nestled on top of a honey-sweet yogurt filling and a shortbread cookie crust that's flavored with orange zest and rosemary. And while it looks daunting, it's actually a pretty simple recipe to prepare.
What's in the tart?
There are three components to this Fig Tart: the shortbread crust, the yogurt filling, and the fresh fig topping. And, together, they make a simple, nourishing, and flavor-forward summer dessert.
This fig tart starts with a thick, crumbly shortbread cookie crust. You can make it from einkorn flour, an ancient variety of wheat, which has a soft texture and rich flavor that works really well for pastries and cookies. A touch of orange zest and finely chopped rosemary works well here, but you can skip it, too, and the crust won't suffer for its loss.
You'll fill the tart with mascarpone cheese and yogurt that you've sweetened with just a little bit of honey. The key is to whip it to an ethereal lightness which you can do by hand, or in a stand mixer. And a touch of gelatin will help set the filling so it stands on its own and is easy to slice and serve.
Finally, top it with fresh figs and slivered almonds. You can slice the figs in rounds and lay them on top of the tart, but I prefer to quarter them.
Tips for Making This Fig Tart
- Allow plenty of time for your filling to set. That means at least 4 hours in the fridge, although overnight is better.
- Press the tart dough into the pan instead of rolling it out. It's a sticky dough that gives you a wonderful crust similar to shortbread, but rolling it out is a chore.
- Line the pan with parchment paper. It'll make it easier to unmold the tart, with less breakage and cracking.
- Wait for the crust to cool completely before you fill the tart. A hot crust will melt your filling into a pool of liquid.
- Toss it in the freezer if you're pressed for time. It'll set in about 2 hours in the freezer.
- You can use Greek yogurt, raw milk yogurt, or just about any (plain!) yogurt you like. And your tart will come out fine.
- Mission figs, Calimyrna figs, Turkey figs, and any other variety work well. Use whatever is ripest and looks the best.
Recipe Variations
If anything, this tart is versatile. Accordingly, you can switch and swap just about any ingredient (or maybe even a few) and find that your results taste just fine.
So if you're dairy-free and need to drop the yogurt and mascarpone, there's an option for you. If you're gluten-free, there's an option for you. If you're not keen on honey, you can use another sweetener, and if you don't have a bottle of orange flower water or sprigs of rosemary in your kitchen, you can always swap it for something you like even better.
Skip the orange zest, rosemary, and orange flower water, and flavor the custard with vanilla extract instead.
Try flavoring the crust with a little powdered ginger, and topping the fig tart with candied ginger, too.
You can use coconut yogurt and coconut cream in place of yogurt and mascarpone cream.
Try using maple syrup or maple sugar instead of honey, because maple pairs beautifully with figs. You can even swirl a spoonful of bourbon into the custard, too.
You can roast the figs in the oven for a richer, more complex flavor. But make sure to cool them completely before topping the tart, or your filling will melt.
If you can't find figs, you can always top the tart with other fruit like clementines in winter or fresh berries during spring and summer.
Barry says
I made this for a dinner party last night. It was gorgeous and everyone loved it. A show-stopper. But I recommend you add some additional substitutions: most people can't access einkorn. I used 1-1/2 C whole wheat and 1/2 C rye flour, but I think it made the crust too heavy, so perhaps I'd try pastry flour next time? I also left the crust in the fridge overnight and baked it in the morning. I feel like it got too cold -- maybe I should have let it come back to room temp before baking? Also, the recipe doesn't say how LONG to bake it for... I kept taking it out and checking, but it didn't get a nice toasty brown for almost 30 min.
The glory of this tart is the mascarpone / yogurt layer. Whipped in a standing mixer it is feathery light but still very creamy. Excellent technique!
The fruit wasn't quite right, though. I sliced the fresh figs and arranged them on top. They looked spectacular, but not easy to slice through them with the soft filling beneath, and then the thick dense crust below. So in the future I think I'll try more of a fruit puree on top, like a smooth, loose jam or preserves.
thanks for this great idea -- Barry
barsagumba Price says
this looks really tasty. I would love to try this once.
Leanne says
What size tart pan?
Jenny says
8-inch
Carly says
I'm new to pastries and crusts of any kind, and don't have a standing mixer. Is there an alternative way to mix the crust that will provide the ideal consistency? Thank you! 🙂
Salvegging @ salvegging.blogspot.com says
Hey Jenny! I was wondering what the shelf life of the crust is once it's been mixed. Can it be stored in the fridge or freezer raw until needed? Does it have the same rule as typical flour tart dough in that way? Thanks for any input!
Kathy L. says
Orange flower water . . . . where does this come from???
Randa says
I know that you can buy "Orange Blossom Water" at Middle Eastern Grocery stores (here in my not-extremely-diverse town, there is at least one such Middle Eastern Grocery store). Another option is online: http://www.amazon.com/dp/B000LQJ6DK/ref=cm_sw_r_fa_dp_A9ITqb18CWEM4
Sue says
This looks good and I do love figs! I live in an area where if I asked for "orange flower water" I would get laughed out of town. Do you have a substitution? This is all based on the assumption that I may actually be able to purchase figs here.
Beth Parks says
I'd like to print the recipe, but it won't let me copy and paste it to a document and there's no "print" option (or I'm missing it). Help! I want to make this, please! 🙂
jenny says
See the little button that says "print" right beneath the title and above photo - just click that and it'll let you print.
Beth says
Yes! Thanks. I was looking on the recipe itself.
jenny says
I should make it more apparent - it's kinda tucked away. I had to disable right-click / copy/paste because a lot of the content here gets stolen. 🙁
Rachel says
This looks amazing! Bookmarking to use in the future - I love that I can find locally grown figs here in Phoenix!
Karista @Karista's Kitchen says
Love this tart recipe! So simple, so fresh and looks absolutely delicious. I am so passionate about real food! And so excited to find your site via Heidi from Jovial Foods. What a great resource for all things healthy and delicious!
Jenny says
That reminds me! I need to put in another order at Jovial! We've been making a TON of einkorn bread.
~Misty says
Any particular reason you use the egg white and not the whole egg in this tart shell? Looks beautiful, I have used this same recipe for making pumpkin pie and many others and its delicious!
Jenny says
Eggwhites have binding capacity that is negated by the yolk. If you use the whole egg or just the yolk, it won't hold together.