Strawberry mascarpone tart is a deliciously creamy low carb and keto dessert. The velvety whipped mascarpone filling is set off perfectly by the crisp coconut flour tart crust.
Friends, this recipe has been a long time coming. I am a huge fan of strawberries and have been buying punnets of these little red happiness-inducers ever since the British strawberry season kicked off in June.
It's been strawberry mascarpone tart time over here for WEEKS!
Before this particular strawberry mascarpone tart graced our table (not for very long as it was wolfed down at terrifying speed), there have been at least four previous incarnations, using different pie/tart crusts.
I first made it with the base from my low carb chocolate tart, which is a combination of almond flour and shredded coconut. It is so simple to put together - and all you need to do is press the dough directly into the baking tin you're using.
After that, I experimented with a dough made of almond flour only, which also ended up crispy/flaky in the most pleasing way. The recipe for the almond base is actually an adaptation of my Paleo almond crackers, which I tweaked from savoury to sweet by swapping out the salt and cheese and adding vanilla and a touch of sweetener.
This time round I decided to make a coconut flour tart base - I'm having a bit of a coconut phase at the moment! I've been making coconut flour porridge (so satisfying with cinnamon and cardamom). I drink my coffee with a spoonful of coconut oil (a cup of that and you don't feel hungry until lunch). And I've been opening tins of coconut cream for curries, chia puddings and my favourite speedy dessert, strawberry coconut mousse, at an alarming rate.
The secret to this coconut flour crust is to roll it out really thinly between two sheets of baking paper. The thinner, the crispier!
You might find that you want to add a little more coconut flour to make your dough easier to handle (coconut flours can differ). Another option to make the dough easier to roll is to cool it down in the fridge before. This might be a good idea if it's a hot day and you live in a country where houses aren't air-conditioned.
I used a greased regular pie pan with a drop-out bottom to bake this crust and was amazed how easily I could lift out the baked result.
While the tart crust is in the oven, you can get going with the filling. Instead of choosing a cream-based filling, I opted for the traditional Italian option: mascarpone, a delicious cream cheese commonly used in Tiramisu, mixed with egg yolks and beaten egg whites for dreamy-light fluffiness.
Tips For Stiff Egg Whites
- ALWAYS use a metal or a porcelain bowl.
- Your bowl has to be clean, dry and grease-free.
- Separate the eggs properly. ONLY egg whites belong in your bowl!
- Use fresh and cold eggs. They will give the smallest, strongest and most stable and uniform bubbles.
- Don't try using a stick blender. Don't try using a food processor. Egg whites do not like ANYTHING plastic.
- Either beat your eggs with a hand-held mixer with removable chrome beaters or use an old-fashioned whisk (which is what I used). For the latter option, you'll need some elbow grease and 2 minutes of patience. You'll eventually get there. Promise!
After that it's plain sailing. You fill your coconut crust with the mascarpone cream and let it cool in the fridge. Just before serving, decorate with strawberries to your liking.
There is some serious cake decorating talent in the food blogger scene. This obviously puts my thrown-on sliced berry style to shame. Have you got it in you? There is scope to make this strawberry mascarpone tart so beautiful you'd be sad to cut it into pieces.
In the end though, there is little difference between perfection or artful disarray. Because it's all about the taste, right?
Tried this recipe? Give it a star rating below!
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Recipe
Strawberry Mascarpone Tart
from Sugar Free LondonerNote: The servings slider only changes the first amount in each line and not any subsequent amounts. Please make your own calculations where necessary.
Ingredients
For the coconut base:
- 120 g / ½ cup coconut oil
- 100 g / ¾ cup plus 2 tbsp coconut flour
- 2 eggs
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1 teaspoon powdered sweetener
For the mascarpone cream:
- 250 g / 8.8 ounce/1 very generous cup mascarpone
- 2 eggs separated
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1-2 tablespoon powdered sweetener
- 200 g / 1 cup strawberries
Instructions
- Preheat your oven to 180 Celsius/356 Fahrenheit.
- Blend your eggs with the coconut oil, vanilla and powdered sweetener of choice, if using. I used my food processor, bit this can be done with a stick blender.
- Sift in the coconut flour and combine.
- Your dough should be soft, but not too sticky. If needed, add a little more coconut flour to get the right consistency. You can also stick the dough in the fridge for 10 minutes to cool it down - this will make it easier to roll out.
- You now have 2 options: Either roll out the dough between 2 sheets of baking paper. Or press it directly into a pie form that you have lined with parchment paper or greased well with coconut oil.
- Bake for around 10 minutes or until lightly browned at the edges.
- Now make your filling: Separate the eggs and beat the egg whites in a clean!! and dry!! porcelain or metal bowl with a hand-held or electric metal whisk. As you can see in the picture, I used an old school whisk and around 2 minutes of muscle power. You can do it too! Don't even think about stopping until stiff peaks form 🙂
- Combine the mascarpone and the egg yolks, then add the vanilla and sweetener.
- Gently fold in the stiff egg whites.
- Once the tart base has cooled down, add the mascarpone mix.
- Cool in the fridge until serving (at least ½ hour).
- Just before serving, add the strawberries - sliced, halved or whole, however you prefer.
Notes
Nutrition
Karen K EBERLE
Just went to make this recipe because It sounds delicious, when I noticed that the mascarpone cream filling has raw eggs in it with NO cooking involved. When, where, and how is this filling cooked before cooling to fill the crust???
Katrin Nürnberger
This filling is not cooked. This is the traditional way of making mascarpone filling, which is, for example, used in tiramisu.
Joana
Just made this but worried about raw egg yolk so Im baking it and hope it doesn’t ruin the recipe by doing so.
Cat
Looks delicious! Am going to make it, but like another reviewer, I'd like to use almond flour. What would the difference in the nutrition be? I love all your recipes and they have really contributed to my 24 pound weight loss!
Katrin Nürnberger
I would use this almond flour tart base recipe:
2 cups / 200g almond flour
1⁄4 tsp salt
1 egg, beaten
2 tbsp butter, room temperature
1 tbsp powdered sweetener
Mix in a food processor until a ball forms.
Gigi
Turned out really well. The crust is amazing. I used liquid stevia instead as I was too lazy to powder my sugar alternative.
The cream is yummy with all the fruit mixed in. I do wish the yolkiness of pastry cream. Can a couple yolks be added or would that be too heavy? Would gelatin or arrowroot help with the structure if adding more yolks?
Thanks much!
Katrin Nürnberger
Yes, I think using gelatine would make this nice and firm
Julie
The crust is absolutely delicious, I could eat that on its own. I didn’t have to add any more almond flour, and when I rolled it out to place in the pan it ended up cracking so I just had to press it, which was fine. I did have issue with the filling; although it tastes AMAZING, I had to put it in the freezer as there was no chance of it setting. Reading the other comments, I had firm mascarpone and my whites seemed stiff enough, so I don’t know. I’m definitely going to make it again, next time I’ll use a hand mixer for the whites and I also want to put a layer of the blueberry jam (recipe on this website) on the baked crust before pouring in the filling, and top it with fresh blueberries like I did this time. I think that could be delicious!
Julie
Edit: meant to say coconut flour. No almond flour was harmed in the making of this tart.
Katrin
I think using an electric mixer will definitely make the egg whites stiff enough. Adding the blueberry jam sounds like an amazing idea!
Suzie
Thank you, Katrin for the Speedy reply. I am making it right as we speak! So we talked about making it ahead of time like you suggested can the crust sit out at room temperature until tomorrow when I fill the tart?
Katrin
Yes, I'd store it in a cake tin at room temperature. Sorry for the late answer, we don't seem to be in the same time zone 🙂
Suzie
Would it work make the crust and the filling the day before? I would wait to put the food on at just before serving. I'm wondering if the mascarpone and egg white mixture will hold up overnight?
Suzie
I would wait to put the fruit on it......correction to previous comment
Katrin
Hi Suzie, the mascarpone mixture holds up well and can be made in advance. It's been a while since I made the recipe, but I"m pretty sure it took us a couple of days to eat it. If you want the crust to be super crispy, you could assemble the whole tart on the day you want to serve it, but make both crust and filling ahead. Keep the filling in the fridge and the mascarpone filling in the fridge. And definitely decorate just before serving, like you say!
Cheryl
Pardon my ignorance... I really wanna make this tart but m worried abt the raw eggs. Can i use gelatin instead? Or can I bake it if i use the egg whites?
Katrin
Here in the UK there is no issue with salmonella any more. If you are worried, you could either use egg whites from a carton, this is pasteurised and safe. If you don't want to use eggs at all, you could use a mix of mascarpone and whipped cream (to make the filling a bit lighter and fluffier), and set this with a bit of gelatine. You can also make a cheesecake filling - like I did for this lemon cheesecake (I'd use a bit less lemon for this recipe, but a squeeze of lemon might complement the strawberries!)
Valentina D'Azzeo
To be sure that your eggs withes are firm and glossy, you can add 3 drops of lemon and a pinch of salt before beating them... just a chef tip
Katrin
Thank you Valentina!!!!!!