This Sweet Potato Tart is the ultimate show-stopping holiday dessert. Each bite is perfectly balanced between sweet and savory thanks to the sweet potato filling and buttery shortbread tart dough. It’ll give the pumpkin pie a run for its money!
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Pies or tarts for the holidays?
One of the hardest decisions you face during the holiday season is choosing between creamy tarts and pumpkin pie for dessert. Sure, you can always choose both, but why not make a dessert that has the best of both worlds?
Landing somewhere between sweet and savory, this Sweet Potato Tart recipe captures the flavors of fall and magic of the holiday season all in one delicious tart shell! The deeply flavored roasted sweet potato filling is incredibly smooth and filled with warm pumpkin pie spices. Surrounded by a sweet homemade tart dough and finished with a dash of powdered sugar, cacao nibs, and walnuts on top, this is a truly special holiday dessert!
Holiday sweet potato tart ingredients
- Sweet tart shell - Learn how to make your own tart shell at home! This sweet shortbread cookie-like tart shell is easy to tackle once you learn all of the tips and tricks.
- Sweet potato - Roast the sweet potatoes for even deeper flavors.
- Sweetened condensed milk - To add sweetness to this almost-savory sweet potato dessert.
- Eggs - A few eggs in the tart filling will emulsify the mixture and help it hold its shape.
- Warm spices - A little pumpkin pie spice (or cinnamon, nutmeg, allspice, and ginger) goes a long way.
How to make and form the tart shell
Mix the sugar, butter, vanilla paste, salt, almond flour, and all-purpose flour together in the bowl of a stand mixer. Scrape down the sides before mixing in one egg at a time. To finish, slowly add in the bread flour until it’s just combined.
Wrap the ball of tart dough in plastic wrap and let it chill in the fridge for at least an hour.
Roll out the dough on a lightly floured surface and press it gently into your tart pan. Use a fork to poke holes in the bottom of the dough. Place it in the freezer.
Add a layer of parchment paper on top of the dough in the pan, place the pie weights on top, and blind bake for 20 minutes.
How to make the sweet potato filling
Simply add all of the sweet potato filling ingredients to a blender or food processor and blend until smooth.
Bringing it all together
Pour the filling into the par-baked tart shell and smooth out the top with a spatula. Bake the tart until the filling begins to brown (you can prevent the tart crust from browning by covering the edges with foil).
Let the finished tart cool completely before garnishing it with your favorite toppings!
The garnish
While the sweet potato tart is already bursting with beautiful fall colors and flavors, you can really take it up a notch with a festive garnish. Any of these suggestions would be delicious:
- Powdered sugar
- Whipped cream
- Chopped walnuts
- Pecans
- Cacao nibs
- Chocolate ribbons
- Almonds
- Caramel drizzle
- Honey
- Maple syrup
- Hazelnuts
Looking to create delicious and homemade garnishes to elevate your creations? Try adding Sugared Flowers, Candied Rose Petals, Dried Orange Slices or Sugared berries!
Tips to make the best sweet potato tart
Pie weight alternatives
If you don’t own traditional pie weights, dried beans and uncooked rice are some of the best alternatives. You can’t eat the beans or rice after they’ve been used as pie weights, but you can save them to continue using as weights!
Don’t overmix the dough
Overmixing or overkneading the tart dough could lead to a shell that shrinks in the oven. Only mix in the ingredients until each one is just combined. If you notice the dough becoming hard to work with or tough, let it rest (more on that below).
Is the dough hard to roll?
If the dough is springing back into a ball or is generally fighting as you roll it out, one of the best things you can do is leave it alone. Let the dough rest for 10 to 30 minutes to help relax all of the gluten that has formed. It’ll be a lot easier to roll afterward!
Freeze the dough
Freezing the dough for 20 to 30 minutes after it’s layered into your tart shell is essential! If you skip this part, the dough could shrink and you won’t achieve that perfect level edge around the tart pan.
Use my step-by-step tart making guide to for more tips and tricks on making homemade tarts!
Recipe FAQs
Of course! Both the filling and tart dough can be prepared the same as the larger tart. Just replace the large pan with small circular tart pans. The mini tarts shouldn’t need as much time in the oven so be sure to watch them carefully.
To make the tart dough made ahead of time, simply wrap the ball of dough or pastry-filled tart pan in plastic wrap and keep it in your fridge for up to 1 week. It’s also really easy to freeze (see instructions below)!
The baked and cooled sweet potato tart (without the garnish) can be made 2 days ahead of time. Just keep it covered in the fridge until it’s time to eat.
Absolutely! Just wrap the unbaked dough or baked shells in plastic wrap and freeze up to 2 months.
More Thanksgiving Desserts
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Sweet Potato Tart
Equipment
- Tart Pan
Ingredients
Tart Dough
- ¾ Cup + 2 Tbsp (200 g) Unsalted Butter, room temperature
- 1 teaspoon Vanilla Paste , or vanilla extract
- ½ teaspoon Salt
- 1 ¼ Cup (150 g) Powdered Sugar
- ½ Cup (50 g) Almond Flour
- ¾ Cup (100 g) All-Purpose Flour
- 2 Eggs, room temperature
- 2 ¼ Cups (291 g) Bread Flour
Sweet Potato Filling
- 1 ½ cup (300 g) Roasted Sweet Potato , Cooked
- 1 cup (306 g) Sweetened Condensed Milk
- 2 Eggs
- 1 teaspoon Cinnamon
- 1 teaspoon Ginger
- ¼ teaspoon Allspice
- ¼ teaspoon Nutmeg
Garnish
- Cacao Nibs
- Walnuts
- Powdered Sugar
Instructions
Tart Dough
- In a stand mixer using a paddle attachment, start by mixing sugar, butter, vanilla paste, salt, almond, and all-purpose flour mixing until combined. Take a moment to scrape the mixing bowl¾ Cup + 2 tablespoon Unsalted Butter, 1 teaspoon Vanilla Paste, ½ teaspoon Salt, 1 ¼ Cup Powdered Sugar, ½ Cup Almond Flour, ¾ Cup All-Purpose Flour
- Add room temperature eggs one at a time, mixing between additions2 Eggs
- Add bread flour, making sure to not overmix2 ¼ Cups Bread Flour
- Wrap dough tightly in plastic wrap – then place in the fridge to chill before using for at least one hour.
- I tend to make my tart dough ahead of time so I throw it in the fridge until the next day. If using this method, remove your dough from the fridge 30 minutes before you plan to roll it out – you’ll find that it will be MUCH easier to work with!
- Once your dough is rolled to the desired thickness, press gently into the bottom of your buttered tart pan, poking the bottom of the tart LIBERALLY with a fork, and place in the freezer to chill for 20-30 minutes. This is essential – your tart shells are less likely to shrink while baking if you take the time to freeze your shells.
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit
- Line the shell with parchment paper and baking rice/beans/pie weights to further prevent the dough from puffing up.
- Bake for 20 minutes before removing from the oven and cooling slightly.
Sweet Potato Filling
- Add all ingredients into a blender and pulse until evenly mixed1 ½ cup Roasted Sweet Potato, 1 cup Sweetened Condensed Milk, 2 Eggs, 1 teaspoon Cinnamon, 1 teaspoon Ginger, ¼ teaspoon Allspice, ¼ teaspoon Nutmeg
- Pour evenly into the tart shell and smooth filing with an offset spatula
- Add filling into par-baked tart crust and bake for 15 minutes. If you start to see browning occur on the tart shell, cover the tart shell edges with foil to prevent further color. If you see browning happen on top of the filling, it's time to take it out of the oven!
- Allow the tart to cool, then garnish with toasted chopped walnuts, cacao nibs, and powdered sugar before serving.Cacao Nibs, Walnuts, Powdered Sugar
Notes
- Can you use this recipe to make mini sweet potato tarts? Of course! Both the filling and tart dough can be prepared the same as the larger tart. Just replace the large pan with small circular tart pans. The mini tarts shouldn’t need as much time in the oven so be sure to watch them carefully.
- Can you make it ahead of time? To make the tart dough made ahead of time, simply wrap the ball of dough or pastry-filled tart pan in plastic wrap and keep it in your fridge for up to 1 week. It’s also really easy to freeze (see instructions below)!
- The baked and cooled sweet potato tart (without the garnish) can be made 2 days ahead of time. Just keep it covered in the fridge until it’s time to eat.
- Can you freeze tart dough? Absolutely! Just wrap the unbaked dough or baked shells in plastic wrap and freeze up to 2 months.
Maricela Fernandez
Hello, just made rhis sweet potatoe tart and it was delicious! Great alternative to pumpkin pie. Quick question, the recipe calls for filling two tart shells but the tart dough recipe is only for one. Is that correct?
Emily
So glad to hear that you enjoyed Maricela! You are correct, this is a single tart recipe. Thanks for taking the time to share your thoughts!