This French fig tart, or tarte aux figures, is the best summer dessert with a rich pâte sucrée (shortcrust pastry), delicious praline cream, and seasonal figs. Sweet, nutty, and figgy, fresh fig tart requires only 40 minutes of hands-on time.
Fresh fig tart recipe
A fresh fig tart is a summer dessert made with shortcrust pastry, almond or frangipane cream, and fresh figs. It is also known as French fig tart due to the buttery pâte sucrée and creamy crème frangipane used to make it. Yes, it is a true Parisian fig tart to enjoy away from France.
The recipe uses the easiest way to make a tart crust: no need to chill the shortcrust pastry or roll dough with a rolling pin and cut dough strips. There is no excess dough as a result.
Once the peak fig season arrives, I prepare to make other fig recipes, such as fig and almond cake, fig tiramisu, and fig and cinnamon Pavlova.
Ingredients
For ingredients and detailed instructions, refer to the recipe card below.
- All-purpose flour
- Unsalted butter: top-quality butter softened at room temperature.
- Granulated sugar
- Whole milk
- Hazelnut praline paste: Use homemade or store-bought hazelnut praline. To make the praline paste at home, you can easily mix nuts: 50% hazelnuts and 50% slivered almonds.
- Extra large whole egg at room temperature.
- Corn starch
- Heavy cream or heavy whipping cream with at least 30% fat content or double cream with a higher fat content.
- Flaked almonds: To toast nuts, bring them into the preheated oven at 300°F (150°C) and toast for 10-15 minutes
- Fresh seasonal figs: Choose firm-ripe figs, so they hold their shape while baking. Opt for Black Mission figs with an inky purple skin and rust-colored flesh. You can use other varieties of figs, from Adriatic figs with green skin and pale pink to red-violet sweet flesh to Kadota figs with light green skin and sweet white flesh and Brown Turkey with reddish-purple color and a pretty flavor.
Pro tip: If you live in the United States, the first crop arrives around June, but it is far from developing the honey sweetness associated with a delicious fig. I would recommend waiting for the second crop around August - late September when figs fully develop their peak flavor.
How to make French fig tart step-by-step
Step 1. Preheat the oven to 350°F (175°C). Butter a 9-inch (23 cm) round fluted tart pan (with removable bottom) and set aside.
Step 2. To make the shortcrust pastry, place the plain flour, granulated sugar, and a pinch of salt in the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment.
Step 3. Add the softened butter and process in short pulses until the mixture crumbles. Pour the milk and mix in short pulses. The mixture should have the consistency of wet sand (photo 1).
Step 4. Transfer the coarse crumbs to the prepared pan. Firmly press dough into the tart tin, pressing evenly on the bottom and sides of a 9-inch pan with the heels of your hands and your fingers (photo 2).
PHOTO 1
PHOTO 2
Step 5. Bake the pastry crust for 15 to 20 minutes until lightly golden brown. Cool completely before filling (photo 3).
Step 6. To make the praline cream, whisk the softened butter and praline in a large bowl with a hand mixer.
Step 7. Add egg and cornflour, then add heavy cream and whisk again (photo 4).
PHOTO 3
PHOTO 4
Step 8. To assemble the tart, cut figs into quarters. Garnish the tart crust with the praline cream and spread it into an even layer with an offset or rubber spatula (photo 5).
Step 9. Arrange quarters of figs on top of the cream mixture in concentric circles (photo 6).
PHOTO 5
PHOTO 6
Step 10. Decrease the oven temperature to 330°F (165°C) and bake for 60 to 65 minutes.
Step 11. Once the tart is baked (photo 7), sprinkle it with flaked almonds (photo 8) and cool it on a wire rack.
PHOTO 7
PHOTO 8
To serve, slice the tart and accompany it with a dollop of almond or vanilla ice cream. Or simply dust the tart with icing sugar if desired.
Expert Tips
- Make the pâte sucrée (shortcrust pastry) with your hands by rubbing the softened butter into dry ingredients, or use a wire pastry blender if you do not have a stand mixer.
- While baking the pastry base, place a baking sheet on a lower oven rack in case of spillage. If the edges of the tart brown quickly, cover them with a pie shield or aluminum foil.
- Try to avoid preparing fig slices in advance to prevent any oxidization and release of fig juices ahead of time.
- Arrange figs in a circular pattern or in a way you desire.
- Sprinkle the tart with flaked almonds while it is hot after baking, or sprinkle the top with chopped almonds before baking and bake.
- Make-ahead option: Make the tart dough in advance (up to 1-2 weeks), press it down into the tart pan, wrap it well with plastic film, and freeze it unbaked. Bake the sweet tart crust from frozen by adding a few more minutes to the baking time.
Recipe variations
- Tart shell: Replace shortcrust pastry with puff pastry or make a flaky pastry using ice water and chilled butter.
- Filling: Experiment with praline filling by replacing part of hazelnuts with almonds while making homemade praline paste. Or replace praline cream with a classic frangipane filling, French pastry cream, cream cheese, or mascarpone cheese filling.
- Fruits: Use stone fruits to create fresh fruit tarts. For example, replace fresh figs with fresh plums, apricots, or peaches.
- Tart pan: Use a large tart tin, a rectangular tart pan, or small fluted tins to make a sharing dessert or individual easy fig tarts. To re-calculate ingredients, use this simple pan sizes calculator.
Storing and freezing
Store fig tart in the fridge, covered in plastic wrap, for up to 2 days.
To freeze, cover the cooled fig tart with plastic wrap and freeze it for up to one month. To thaw, bring the tart to room temperature for a few hours before serving.
Recipe FAQ
It does not need to be refrigerated. You do not need to roll the dough out with a rolling pin. Instead, press the dough into the tart pan with your hands.
This tart shell must be partially baked before adding the filling, but it is baked without pie weights over the greaseproof paper. Pricking the pastry with a fork is also optional.
Serve fig tart warm or at room temperature. Accompany it with almond ice cream or serve it with a sweet Muscat wine, for example, Jaboulet Beaumes de Venise Muscat.
Love tart recipes? Try these next!
- Plum frangipane tart
- Peach panna cotta tart
- Chocolate ganache tart
- French strawberry tart
- Or browse all the tart recipes.
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PrintRecipe card
French Fig Tart (Tarte aux Figues)
French fig tart is the ultimate summer dessert made with a buttery pâte sucrée (shortcrust pastry), delicious praline cream, and seasonal fresh figs. Sweet, nutty, and figgy, tarte aux figues requires only 40 minutes of hands-on time.
- Total Time: 1 hour, 45 minutes
- Yield: 8 1x
- Category: Tarts
- Method: Baking
- Cuisine: French
Ingredients
For the shortcrust pastry:
- 1 cup + 3 tablespoons (150 g) all-purpose flour
- 2.6 oz (75 g) softened unsalted butter
- â…“ cup (75 g) granulated sugar
- 1 tablespoon milk, room temperature
- 1 pinch of salt
For the praline cream:
- 1.4 oz. (40 g) softened unsalted butter
- 2.8 oz. (80 g) hazelnut praline paste
- ½ extra-large egg (30 g)
- ½ tablespoon (5 g) cornstarch
- 3 tablespoons (45 g) heavy cream, 30% fat
To assemble the tart:
- 17.6 oz. (500 g) fresh figs
- 1 oz. (30 g) flaked toasted almonds
*Don't you have the correct baking pan on hand right now? Try this simple Cake Pan Converter!
** If needed, please refer to Baking Conversion Charts.
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350°F (175°C). Butter a 9-inch round fluted tart pan (with a removable bottom) and set it aside.
- To make the shortcrust pastry, place flour, granulated sugar, and salt in the bowl of a stand mixer. Add the softened butter and process in short pulses until the mixture crumbles.
- Pour the milk and mix in short pulses. The mixture should have the consistency of wet sand.
- Transfer the mixture to the buttered tart pan. Firmly press the crust mixture into the pan, pressing evenly on the bottom and up the sides of the pan with the heels of your hands and your fingers.
- Bake for 15 to 20 minutes, until lightly golden. Cool completely before filling.
- To make the praline cream, beat the softened butter and praline. Add egg and cornstarch, then add heavy cream and whisk again.
- To assemble the tart, garnish the tart crust with the praline cream and arrange quarters of figs on top in concentric circles.
- Decrease the oven temperature to 330°F (165°C) and bake for 60 to 65 minutes.
- Once the tart is baked, sprinkle with flaked almonds and let it cool on a wire rack.
Notes
- Make the shortcrust pastry with your hands by rubbing the softened butter into dry ingredients, or use a wire pastry blender if you do not have a stand mixer.
- Make hazelnut praline paste yourself or use a store-bought hazelnut praline.
- While baking the tart, place a baking sheet on a lower oven rack in case of spillage. If the edges of the tart brown quickly, cover its edges with a pie shield or an aluminum foil.
- Avoid preparing fig slices in advance to prevent any oxidization and release of their juice ahead of time.
- Arrange figs in a circular pattern or in a way you desire.
- Sprinkle the tart with flaked almonds while it is hot after baking, or sprinkle the top of the tart with chopped almonds before baking and bake.
- Accompany fig tart with the almond ice cream or serve with the wine Jaboulet Beaumes de Venise Muscat.
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 1 slice
- Calories: 445
- Sugar: 43.6 g
- Sodium: 117 mg
- Fat: 18.6 g
- Saturated Fat: 9.1 g
- Carbohydrates: 69 g
- Fiber: 7.3 g
- Protein: 6.2 g
- Cholesterol: 51 mg
The nutritional information has been calculated using an online recipe nutrition calculator such as Verywellfit.com and is intended for informational purposes only. These figures should be used as a general guideline and not be construed as a guarantee.
The recipe was adapted from https://www.mercotte.fr/. It was originally published on September 09, 2018. The recipe has been re-tested and revised to include improved content and photos.
Veena Azmanov says
This Tart looks yum. Flavorful and healthy too. I can grab it for my snack box option too.v
Irina | Baking Like a Chef says
Thank you so much Veena! Enjoy the tart with seasonal figs!
Brian Jones says
This was delicious, mine was not quite as beautiful as yours but it tasted heavenly, superb recipe.
Irina | Baking Like a Chef says
I am glad to hear that you loved the tart. Well, the tart crust's beauty comes up with some practice. Enjoy!
Natalie says
Such a beautiful tart! Looks amazing, I love the flavors combination!
Irina | Baking Like a Chef says
Thank you so much Natalie! To tell the truth, this Fig tart is one of my favorite desserts.
Tisha says
This tart is beautifully put together! Love fig, it's so delicious!
Irina | Baking Like a Chef says
Tisha, yes, this seasonal beauty is on the table! Thanks!
Cindy @ A Uniquely Edible Magic says
Yum! I have a phobia of rolling out pie dough and transferring it to the pan, and I was so glad that this recipe didn't need it. Love the combination of fig and hazelnut too.
Irina | Baking Like a Chef says
Cindy, I am glad to hear that this recipe would work for you. It is a great idea to create tart recipes with no rolling involved! Thanks!!!
Sapana says
Yum!!! I love how beautiful and delicious this tart is -- perfect for fig season!
Irina | Baking Like a Chef says
Sapana, thank you. I am obsessed with figs this year. I cannot count how many fig desserts I have already made this summer!:)
Tonje says
This looks so yummy, we have been loving figs lately. Can't wait to try your recipe!
Irina | Baking Like a Chef says
Tonje, I hope that you will enjoy this Fig tart! Happy baking!
Veena Azmanov says
This looks so Nutty and delicious. Surely yummy and crunchy. Awesome presentation.
Irina | Baking Like a Chef says
Thank you Veena! Your review means a lot for me!:)
Sylvie says
Fig and Hazelnut is such a great combo! I love making praline at home so I cannot wait to try to make a cream out of it to fill a tart - it's a genius idea!
Irina | Baking Like a Chef says
Sylvie, you will love this praline cream more once you try to customize the tart with other fruit.