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Create a beautiful French tart crust just like you see in the French pastry shop windows with this easy sweet tart dough. It’s a bit more tender than American pie crust and comes together easily with just a few ingredients. This pâte sucrée has a touch of almonds for a lovely nutty profile that pairs perfectly with fruit and chocolate tarts.
Pâte Sucrée, aka sweet tart crust can be made either by hand or in a mixer. Once the dough comes together it will need to rest and chill for at least 1 hour before rolling out. I like to use with a simple 9-inch or 22 cm pastry ring for making tarts. But, you can certainly use a removable bottom 9-inch fluted tart pan.
Key Ingredients & Test Notes
- All Purpose Flour: I’m using an all purpose flour with 11% protein. A touch more protein than pastry flour at 9-10% and less gluten than some all purpose flours. I find this to be the sweet spot for a great tart crust without the dough being too fragile to work with.
- Almond Meal: I swapped a portion of the flour for almond meal, which is unblanched almond flour with flecks of the brown skin. This gives the dough a light nuttiness and gorgeous texture contrast.
- Test Note: The almond meal can be evenly swapped for blanched almond flour.
- For a nut free tart dough, simply replace the almond meal with equal parts all purpose or pastry flour.
- Butter: It’s not French pastry without French butter. Rich cultured european style butter with 82% butterfat brings tenderness to the dough. It’s also easier to work with even while cold, making rolling out and lining the dough so much less work.
- Powdered Sugar: Just like in shortbread cookie dough, powdered sugar creates a lovely smooth tart dough texture.
- Eggs: To bind everything together, we’ll need fresh eggs. The best way to measure egg quantity is with a scale.
- Test Note: Most standard large eggs weigh 50 grams without the shell. But just in case, I find it easier to crack eggs into a small cup, beat with a fork and then re-measure the amount needed for the recipe.
Stand Mixer
I prefer using a stand mixer to make pâte sucrée because it speeds up the process and makes mixing the dough almost effortless. If you don’t have one, you can use a bowl and are power. It may just need a few extra minutes when creaming the butter and sugar together with a hand whisk. Use softened butter and a hand whisk, followed by mixing with a spatula and your hands in the recipe method below.
How to Roll Out Tart Dough
After making my pâte sucrée dough, I shape it into a disk, wrap it in plastic wrap, and chill it for at least an hour. This resting period allows the gluten in the flour to relax and gives the starches time to absorb moisture, helping the dough hold its shape. It’s an important step for creating a tart dough that’s easy to roll out and sturdy enough for baking.
- The first is to simply let the dough sit at room temperature for a 10 minutes. As the butter softens, the dough becomes more pliable and easier to work with.
- To prevent the pastry from drying out, I prefer to roll the dough between two sheets of parchment paper instead of using a floured work surface. I gently roll the softened dough to the thickness and size needed for the recipe, then chill it so it can firm up slightly before lining my tart ring or pan.
Hot to Roll Pâte Sucrée Video:
How to Line a Tart Ring
- Place the cold tart dough disc between two sheets of parchment paper. Roll the tart crust out to a rough circle larger than your pastry ring. The dough should be 1/8-1/4 inch (3-6mm) thick.
- Place the tart ring on top of the dough. Cut a circle that’s about two fingers wide around the ring. (1.5 inches)
- Set the pastry ring on parchment paper or a silicone mat. Carefully lower the dough into the buttered tart ring. Let it sink down into the corners and against the inside of the ring.
- Gently press the dough into the ring to create a vertical sided crust. Use the bristles of a pastry brush or a flat finger to press the dough into the ring without squishing down the dough’s thickness. Once the ring is evenly lined, trim away the overhang with a sharp knife.
- Ever so gently press the dough into the cornes with the side bristles of a pastry brush. Use your fingertips to smooth the rough edges where the excess dough was trimmed away for a nice finish.
- Depending on the tart recipe, I like to prick the dough with the tines of a fork. This helps to prevent shrinkage while blind-baking. Chill or freeze the dough lined pastry ring until ready to use.
Jenn’s Tart Crust Tips
- This dough can be made either in a stand mixer or by hand. Be careful not to beat the dough too much with the stand mixer.
- Use a perforated baking mat and perforated pan if lining a tart ring. For tart pans with a removable bottom place the pan on a baking sheet.
- Always work with cold dough. If the dough becomes too soft while you’re lining the pastry ring or tart pan, just pop it back in the fridge. Wait about 10-15 minutes minutes and then go back to lining your pan.
- Don’t worry if you accidentally tear your dough. Just patch it back together with a spare piece or press it together with your finger tips.
- Freeze the crust for at least 30 minutes after lining the pan before baking.
- After baking I like to create a smooth professional looking edge on my crust. Simply take a microplane and file away any rough or uneven spots.
- I’ve started baking my fruit tarts on perforated silicone mats and a perforated baking pan. I love the even bake it gives the crust. Not too mention this lovely texture design on the bottom. Even if you don’t necessarily see the bottom of a crust as often as the top, it’s nice to have a little extra pizazz.
★★★★★ Please leave a star rating and review below if you make this recipe! THANK YOU!!
Sweet Tart Crust (French Pâte Sucrée)
Sweet tart dough known as Pâte Sucrée is a French pastry crust made with a mixture of all purpose flour and almond flour to create tart shells.
Click Here for Help with Ingredients in this Recipe
Equipment
- electric stand mixer or by hand
Recipe Video
Ingredients
- 250 grams all purpose flour, 11% protein, sifted (can swap evenly for pastry flour 9-10% protein)
- 30 grams almond meal, unblanched almond flour
- 122 grams powdered sugar
- 122 grams unsalted European style butter (82% butterfat), softened
- 1 tsp fine sea salt
- 50 grams (1 large) egg, room temperature, beaten with a fork
Instructions
Using a Stand Mixer
- In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, cream the butter and sugar together until smooth.122 grams unsalted European style butter (82% butterfat), 122 grams powdered sugar
- Using a mixing bowl, whisk together the almond meal, flour, and salt.250 grams all purpose flour, 30 grams almond meal, 1 tsp fine sea salt
- On low speed mix in 1/2 of the beaten egg and 1/2 of the flour mixture. Mix until combined. Scrape the bottom and sides of the bowl with a spatula. Repeat with the remaining ingredients to form a soft shaggy dough.50 grams egg
- Scoop any crumbs stuck to the bottom of the bowl and pack the dough together by hand.
Mixing by Hand
- Place softened butter in a mixing bowl and whisk by hand until creamy.122 grams unsalted European style butter (82% butterfat)
- Add the powdered sugar to the butter and whisk until you have a smooth texture. Use a little elbow grease here.122 grams powdered sugar
- Add in the egg and salt and mix well again.50 grams egg, 1 tsp fine sea salt
- Finally mix in the flour and almond meal until roughly combined.250 grams all purpose flour, 30 grams almond meal
- Turn the dough out onto a clean work surface. Begin working the dough with the palm of your hand to combine the ingredients into a smooth dough. Use a bench scraper to scrape the dough off the work surface if needed.
Shape, Rest & Use
- Pack the dough into a flat disc with your hands. Wrap in plastic film and rest in the fridge for a minimum of 1 hour.
- Roll out between two layers of parchment paper for the desired thickness of your recipe. For tarts I use a thickness of 1/8-1/4 inch (3-6mm) to line tart rings and tart pans. Always freeze the crust after lining the pan for at least 30 minutes before baking.
Notes
- Storage: Wrap tart dough in plastic film and refrigerate for up to 3 days before using. Place on the counter for about 30 minutes before rolling out.
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