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This No Fuss Strawberry Cream Pretzel Tart is the go-to summer dessert. Easy, yet delicious, and pretty too. The filling is made with 5 ingredients: heavy cream, honey, lemon, vanilla extract, and strawberry jam. The crust is a mix of sweet gingersnap cookies, salty pretzels, and a touch of butter. When combined with the creamy strawberry filling it makes for a yummy tart that’s sweet, luscious, wildly creamy, and a touch salty. Top with an assortment of fresh berries for a tart that’s perfect for any occasion.
Well, this week just flew by. All week long I kept thinking it was a different day, but I’ll happily welcome the weekend “early” and with the most delicious strawberry tart too!
When I took a look at the next few months ahead, I knew that the days would be busy with work and summer travel. My goal for the summer is simple, no-fuss recipes that still feel fun, fresh, and of course, taste delicious. Like always!
Desserts can sometimes prove to be a little tricky when you want to simplify things, yet still get an outcome that really is ” roll your eyes back good”. But this sweet, creamy strawberry tart is the perfect example!
This is kind of like magic. The ease of it all is really going to shock you, but you’ll love the yumminess even more!
Now onto the details
Step 1: make the crust
This is definitely one of my favorite crusts. It’s salty-sweet with very subtle hints of ginger that are unexpected but always received so well.
Using a food processor or blender, pulse the cookies, pretzels, melted butter, and honey until the cookies and pretzels are finely ground!
Then press the mix into a spring-form pan or a tart pan that has a removable bottom.
Bake, and about 8 minutes later your crust will be complete! It smells really great too.
Step 2: make the cream filling
This is the simplest filling, you’re going to be shocked when I tell you the ingredients. All you need is heavy cream, honey, and vanilla. Then, add your favorite strawberry jam, either homemade or store-bought (I love Bonne Maman Strawberry Preserves). Just 4 very simple ingredients, zero eggs, and almost zero effort.
All you need to do is bring the cream to a boil with the honey. Once boiling, boil for 5 minutes. Then remove from the stove and add the lemon and vanilla. This is important, be sure to use a large pot, bigger than you think you’ll need. Heavy cream really likes to boil over, so use the largest pot you have to be safe.
When I first started to test this recipe (years ago) I remember being concerned that the cream was not going to set up. But to my shock, no matter how many times I make this, the cream shockingly sets up within the first 30 minutes of chilling. Boiling the cream and adding lemon juice thickens it up and allows for it to set up just as it would if using eggs.
It’s honestly magic the way that it works!
Step 3 – swirl in the jam
Now take the lemon cream and pour it into your pre-baked crust. Next, grab the jam and gently swirl the jam into the cream. Make sure you’re using a thick jam that will not make the cream “melty”.
Chill the tart until it’s set, for me this happens in 30 minutes to an hour, but it could take up to 2 hours. You can keep this in the fridge overnight, but beware, depending on how runny your jam is, the tart may crack. The thicker the jam (preserves) the better!
When ready to serve, finish the tart off with a handful of your favorite fresh berries. You’ll have the prettiest dessert that takes almost no effort at all. In the words of Ina Garten, “How easy was that?”.
Lastly, you can use any berry jam you love. Sometimes I love using a mix of strawberry and raspberry jam! But I imagine blackberry and blueberry would be great too!
Looking for other chilled Summer recipes? Here are some favorites:
No Churn Chocolate Peanut Butter Ice Cream
Homemade Strawberry Shortcake Ice Cream Bars
Creamy Vegan Chocolate Fudge Pops
Blackberry Lavender Ice Cream Sandwiches
Lastly, if you make this No Fuss Strawberry Cream Pretzel Tart, be sure to leave a comment and/or give this recipe a rating! Above all, I love to hear from you guys and always do my best to respond to each and every comment. And of course, if you do make this recipe, don’t forget to tag me on Instagram! Looking through the photos of recipes you all have made is my favorite!
No Fuss Strawberry Cream Pretzel Tart
Servings: 8
Calories Per Serving: 493 kcal
Nutritional information is only an estimate. The accuracy of the nutritional information for any recipe on this site is not guaranteed.
Ingredients
- 1 cup mini salted pretzels
- 15 gingersnap cookies
- 6 tablespoons salted butter, melted
- 2 tablespoons, plus 1/3 cup honey
- 3 1/2 cups heavy cream
- 2 tablespoons lemon zest, plus 1/3 cup lemon juice
- 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
- 1 cup strawberry or raspberry jam
- 2 cups mixed fresh berries
Instructions
- 1. Preheat the oven to 350° F.2. To make the crust. In a food processor, pulse the pretzels and gingersnaps into semi-fine crumbs. Add the butter plus 2 tablespoons honey and pulse until the mixture holds together when pinched and starts to look like dough. Press the dough into an 8 or 9-inch tart pan with a removable bottom to form a flat, even crust. Transfer to the oven and bake until toasted, about 8 minutes.3. Meanwhile, combine the heavy cream, the remaining 1/3 cup honey, and lemon zest in a large pot, bigger than you think you'll need. Set over high heat and bring to a boil. Once boiling, boil 5 minutes and then remove from the heat. Whisk in the lemon juice, vanilla, and a pinch of salt. Let cool 10 minutes.4. Carefully pour the lemon cream into the baked crust. Dollop the jam over the cream, then use a knife to very gently swirl the jam through the cream. Cover and chill for 1.5 to 2 hours or until set. Before serving, remove the tart from the pan and top with fresh berries.
Love the tastes in this recipe, but really need your feedback….
I follow your recipe exactly – and it is magical deliciousness the way it sets up. But here’s my problem: both times I have made it, as well as when my friend made it, the crust has stuck to the tart pan, making it very, very difficult to cut. By the time I’ve chiseled under it, the beautiful top has been destroyed. Why is my crust sticking? Am I cooking it too long?
Hi Karen,
Thanks so much for making this recipe, so glad to hear it is always enjoyed! Sorry to hear about the crust….have you ever tried greasing the bottom of your pan? I would try that next time and see if that helps! xx
Didn’t set.
Hey Steve,
So sorry to hear this did not set for you. Was there anything you adjusted in the recipe or anything that I can help with? xx
Are you supposed to make the crust flat or form it around the edges?
Hey Christine,
When you press the crust in the pan, it will slightly rise up the edges. I hope you love this recipe, please let me know if you have any other questions! xT
Well I am clueless apparently. I didn’t bring the crust up around the edges and I didn’t know HOW carefully I was supposed to pour the lemon cream in. I poured it in and the crust started floating and then the cream started oozing out the sides of the pan. Lol. It was expensive so I will be serving as is (can I freeze a but? Didn’t know if chill meant feeeze or refrigerate but I stuck in fridge for now).
I feel like I can hold my own in the kitchen when it comes to cooking but man this was a bit of a disaster w me having never made a tart. Hopefully it will taste good and next time will be a charm. PS—ginger snaps are expensive! Lol
Hi Tanya,
Thanks so much for trying this recipe and your feedback! So sorry to hear it was such a mess. Yes, you can pop it in the freezer, hopefully that helps! I hope it’s delish! xx
Can you use coconut cream for the heavy cream?
Hi Chris,
So sorry, I have not tested this recipe using coconut cream, I would say it should work for you though! Let me know if you give this recipe a try! xx
Would orange juice and zest also work if looking for an orange flavor?
Hi Christy,
Sure, I don’t see why not! I hope you love this recipe! xT
I’m glad I read reviews, so I could use the tips of letting it boil and not stirring too much. Used organic heavy cream from Whole Foods and it definitely set up! Sadly most store bought creams have gellan gum in them, which I imagine is why it might set so well, but my question is – if I used a cleaner ingredient whipping cream with no extra chemicals and just the cream as the ingredient, would this recipe still work? What brand of cream did you use?? Thank you!
Hey Hannah,
Amazing!! I’m so glad to hear this recipe turned out well for you, thanks so much for making it! I used Organic Valley, which I think is pretty clean:) Have a great weekend! xT
Can this be frozen?
Hi Nicola,
Yes, you can freeze this. Please let me know if you give the recipe a try! xT
Love this recipe! So creamy and always delicious. I’ve made multiple times with no issues at all! It always sets up within an hr and a half for me. One thing I do is whisk the cream, honey and lemon zest real good to mix well while it’s coming to boil and then I let it boil and don’t touch it. Just leave it be and don’t stir. Set a timer for 5 min and use real lemon juice! It is such an easy and yummy recipe! It’s always a hit. 🫶🏼
So glad you are enjoying this recipe! Thanks so much! xT
Made this tonight for a party and it was a huge hit! This dessert is delicious. I can’t believe there are no eggs in it!! I made it the night before and It set up perfectly. I used Costco strawberry jam it was the perfect consistency.
Love the recipe! It’s so fresh and creamy. Definitely will be making this again in the future!
Thank you so so much for trying out the recipe! Have an amazing week! 🙂 xT
Unfortunately I have to agree with all the other comments. There is something not optimized with this recipe. Based on the notes I cut the filling measurements in half, boiled for 15 minutes in a huge pot and whisked the lemon juice really good. I then put it into the freezer for 3 hours to firm up and moved it to the fridge and hour before serving. It tasted good but I should not have to modify a recipe that much to get it to turnout. Would suggest either revising or removing this recipe.
Hey Alicia! I’m so sorry this didn’t turn out for you! Thank you for your feedback!
It seems that the previous comments have been deleted. Would love to try this tart this weekend. Have the recipe instructions/ingredient list been updated? Obviously don’t want to waste money. Thank!
I never leave comments. I wish I would have read the comments before making this. I usually question recipes but TG is almost always on point. Didn’t even think about the 3.5 cups of heavy cream, way too much to fill in a tart pan! Can you please adjust. Even if it’s 2 cups it would be fine. I have not tasted it yet. But I do think it really should be 1.5 cups cream to 1/2 cup of strawberry jam. I hope it turns out because I made fresh strawberry jam last night just for this recipe.
Hi Cecilia,
Thanks for sharing your feedback. All of the ingredients and measurements are correct, the boiling step should reduce the cream slightly to fill the tart pan:) Let me know how this turns out for you! xx