White Chocolate Fruit Tarts

HeatherFeather's Note:

This is a beautiful dessert that I serve when hosting a bridal or wedding shower for friends or for ladies' luncheons. Full of fresh fruits and a light creamy white chocolate filling, these are always a big hit and I get plenty of "oohs and ahhs" when I bring them out. If you prefer, you can use the store-bought spongy yellow tart shells from the grocery store, but I usually make my own if I have the time. The type of tart pans you need will make a very flat spongy cake layer with an indentation for spreading filling (I use the flan pans from Pampered Chef).Prep time also includes cooling and chilling times as is a very rough guess. Cook time accounts for the baking of the tart shells and also some time for melting the white chocolate and heating the glaze. I prefer a thinner layer of the white chocolate filling, but I have sometimes doubled the amount upon request.

• Total Time: 4 hrs 45 mins
• Prep Time: 4 hrs
• Cook Time: 45 mins

Ingredients:

Yield: 2 large r ...

• 1 (18 ounce) boxyellow cake mix (OR 5 cups American-style yellow cake mix batter from your favorite recipe) or 1 (18 ounce) box white cake mix , plus ingredients to prepare batter according to package directions (OR 5 cups American-style yellow cake mix batter from your favorite recipe)

Filling

• 1 (12 ounce) package white chocolate chips , melted & cooled slightly
• 8 ounces cream cheese or 8 ounces light cream cheese , at room temperature
• ¼ cup Cool Whip, thawed or ¼ cup sweetened whipped cream

Fruit topping

• 8 ounces fresh strawberries , hulled and sliced
• 1 cup fresh pineapple chunk (or use canned, drained)
• 1 can mandarin orange , drained well
• 4 kiwi fruits , peeled & sliced

Glaze

• ½ cup pineapple juice
• ½ teaspoon lemon juice
• 2 teaspoons cornstarch
• 3 tablespoons granulated sugar

Directions:

1. You may choose to purchase 2 large flat round yellow spongy tart shells from your grocery store instead of making your own (often sold near fresh fruit).
2. IF MAKING TART SHELLS:If you do want to make your own tart shells, you will need 2 round tart pans (such as the flan pans from Pampered Chef) as well as 2 circles of parchment paper (or wax paper), cut to fit inside the pans.
3. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.
4. Spray the tart pans with nonstick spray or grease lightly and set the parchment circles in the base of each.
5. Either use you favorite yellow cake batter recipe or a box mix and prepare the batter according to the package directions or your recipe.
6. Pour only 2 1/2 cups of the batter into each pan- there will be some extra batter if you have used a mix (Save the extra batter for another use or discard).
7. Bake both tarts together on the same oven rack for 25-30 minutes or until golden brown.
8. Let cool 10 minutes upright before removing from pans (loosen edges with a knife first, then flip over onto a wire rack),but don't pull off the parchment until the tart shells have cooled completely.
9. IF USING PURCHASED TART SHELLS START HERE: Prepare the glaze by combining the pineapple juice,lemon juice,cornstarch,and sugar in a small saucepan.
10. Bring to a gentle boil, stirring constantly, over medium heat.
11. Boil 2 minutes or until thickened.
12. Let cool completely- can be made ahead and chilled, but make sure this is at room temperature before attempting to spread on fruit.
13. For the Filling: If you haven't already done so, melt the white chocolate chips according to the package directions (I highly recommend using a double boiler and avoiding the microwave for this) and let cool slightly.
14. Combine melted& slightly cooled white chocolate with the room temperature cream cheese and the Cool Whip or sweetened whipped cream.
15. If you prefer a thicker layer of filling, you can double the recipe.
16. Spread evenly into the base of the cooled tart shells using a cake spatula.
17. Have your fruit all ready to go and make sure it is not dripping wet.
18. Layer fruit in rings on top of the creamy filling, starting from the outermost edge, alternating pieces of fruit decoratively as desired to create colorful spirals of fruit, filling each tart shell completely.
19. You may have extra fruit left over or you may need more of a particular type of fruit, depending upon you preferences.
20. Brush glaze over fruit using a pastry brush.
21. Store the completed tarts, covered with plastic wrap, in the refrigerator.
22. Each tart serves about 10-12 people.

Reviews

[Mimi Bobeck]

This IS one of those as "beautiful to look at as it is to eat" foods. Makes a very fancy desert centerpiece for a fancy party or formal occassion.