This 21 Day Fix approved tart is proof that a healthy dessert can still be beautiful and absolutely delicious. No mixes, no artificial anything, just natural, whole food ingredients that you can be proud to serve any day of the year.
Are you guys all gearing up for Thanksgiving? I am!! I'm so super-excited to see my family. Living far from home is the pits sometimes. Of course, it does make the holidays that much sweeter. I even love just the week leading up to a holiday. The preparing, the packing , the making of lists. In fact, because there's so much to be done prior to our road trip, this will likely be my last post until after Thanksgiving. I'd love to post on Tuesday like I normally would, but it's starting to feel like that probably isn't going to happen. Ah well, such is life 🙂
Speaking of living away from home, let me tell you something that I discovered when I went to take these pictures. I don't have a dessert stand. No, wait - I do have a dessert stand, it's just boxed up somewhere with plenty of other things that I could probably be using for blog pictures which at some point I deemed "not absolutely necessary for survival" and packed away. Because, I don't know if I've mentioned this before to you guys, but me and the fam are currently living in a shoebox. A very nice, adorable shoebox, but a shoebox nonetheless. In fact, while we rent here, we're also paying for a storage unit which may very well be where my aforementioned dessert stand lies. Either there, or at my parent's house, it really just depends on which move I packed it away. Anyway, the thought of going through the storage unit didn't even cross my mind, because it's so freaking packed we've been avoiding trying to find one of 6 standing lamps which we could really use for the bedroom. Ugh.
Back to the dessert stand. I improvised. In case you haven't already noticed, that's totally an upside tart pan balanced just so on an upside down vase. Not too shabby, eh? I'm really kind of into it actually, what do you guys think?
Anyway... because I love you, I've been thinking long and hard about a special dessert for the holidays. And I have to admit, I'm pretty proud of this one. It tastes delicious, will look absolutely lovely for Thanksgiving, is surprisingly easy (don't be fooled by the lengthy instructions) and I came up with the crust all on my lonesome. Sure, it took a few tries, but, hey, we got there.
This tart uses the same filling base that I used in my Peanut Butter Cheesecake & Jelly Sauce recipe, but instead of adding a peanut butter swirl, I added some cardamom instead, which goes so beautifully with the fruit! If you're not familiar with cardamom, you should get familiar, because it's THE BOMB. Anyway, I talk about it in more depth here if you want to check it out.
This recipe actually doesn't take very long to put together, I'd say about a half an hour. Then it's just a matter of baking (20 minutes), cooling (1 hour) and refrigerating it (at least 2 hours). It does use a few necessary gadgets, though. A blender, a food processor and an 11" tart pan. Speaking of which, have you ever noticed that many tart recipes call for a 9" tart pan? Seriously, what is the point of a 9" tart pan? Could it possibly be meant for children? I know, it sounds pretty reasonable until you actually have a 9" tart pan staring you in the face and you wonder, "What's everyone else going to have for dessert?" because I'm taking this sucker down all by myself. The good thing is, 11" tart pans are pretty widely available. Wal-Mart usually carries them, but I actually got mine right at the grocery story, which was a Kroger, fyi.
Can you believe that this dessert is COMPLETELY 21 Day Fix approved? I know! And I'm telling you, it's not messing around, no one will even know that it's "healthy." With a slightly nutty, buttery crust and a rich, flavorful, cheesecake-y filling that's all topped off with the brightness of fresh fruit and a drizzle of honey... I mean, come on!! I hope your family likes this one as much as mine does, even the kiddos can't get enough!
Oh, and HAPPY THANKSGIVING!!!!!
Enjoy <3
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If you make this recipe be sure to snap a pic and tag me @thefoodieandthefix on Instagram so I can check it out! It makes me ridiculously happy to see what you guys are making 🙂
📖 Recipe
Apple-Blackberry Cheesecake Tart
Ingredients
Crust:
- 1 ¼ cups whole wheat pastry flour (I haven't tested this with any other flours, fyi)
- ½ cup chopped pecans, finely ground in food processor (measure first, then put in the food processor, once finely ground, the measurement will be different)
- â…› teaspoon salt
- 8 Tbs unsalted grassfed butter, cut into small pieces and put back in the fridge to get cold again
- 1 Tbs honey
- 2 Tbs ice water
Cheesecake Filling:
- 1 cup low-fat cottage cheese
- ¼ cup low-fat Greek yogurt
- 1 large egg
- 2 Tbs raw sugar
- ½ teaspoon pure vanilla extract
- ¼ teaspoon ground cardamom
- 1 ½ Tbs whole wheat pastry flour
Topping:
- 1-2 medium honeycrisp apples (or your favorite!) thinly sliced, you can peel them if you'd like, but I never do
- 19 blackberries - I didn't measure this in cups (though I'd guess about 1 cup) but I only needed one small container
- 3 Tbs honey
Instructions
- To make the crust:
- In a medium to large food processor, add the flour, ground pecans and salt. Pulse a couple of times to combine. Add the butter. Pulse until the butter resembles small peas. With the machine running, pour the honey and ice water into the tube. Then pulse until the mixture starts to form a ball. Remove the ball from the processor, put it into your 11" tart pan and use your hands to press and spread the dough to cover the entire pan as evenly as possible.
- Pop it in your fridge and preheat your oven to 425 degrees (10-15 minutes). Once the oven is at 425, bake your crust for 8-10 minutes or until it starts to brown slightly. Remove and let cool. Turn oven down to 350 degrees.
- Meanwhile, make your cheesecake mixture:
- To a blender, add the cottage cheese, greek yogurt, egg, raw sugar, vanilla and cardamom. Blend until completely smooth. Once smooth, add the flour and blend again until fully combined, you may need to open it up and scrape down once so you get all of the flour into the mixture. Batter will be thin.
- Pour the batter into the prepared crust. Don't worry if the crust hasn't completely cooled, that's fine. Arrange your apple slices on top and then the berries. Bake in the oven for 20 minutes at 350 degrees. Remove from oven, cool on a cooling rack for one hour.
- Refrigerate for at least 2 hours.
- Just prior to serving, warm up the 3 tablespoons of honey that remain for the topping. This takes probably 10 seconds in the microwave. You can either brush it on with a pastry brush or drizzle in on with a spoon. Divide into 12 slices, serve immediately.
Notes
21 Day Fix Container Counts per Serving: 2 Tsp, 1 ½ teaspoon sugar/honey, ½ Yellow, ¼ Purple, ⅓ Blue, ⅙ Red (I wouldn't count unless you're having multiple pieces)
Weight Watchers Freestyle Points: 8
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Nutrition Information:
Yield: 12 Serving Size: 1 sliceAmount Per Serving: Calories: 217Total Fat: 12g
Kristin says
I'm new to the Fix and have been loving all of your recipes! This one looks delicious, but I'm confused. We can use butter and flour on the Fix?
Stephanie says
Hey Kristin! Yes, we can use butter and whole wheat flour on the fix (just like in whole wheat bread) - the flour can be tricky to calculate, but that's why I do the work for you 😉 - If you check out the Questions Answered portion of the Tips and Tricks tab on my menu bar, you'll find a video of Autumn saying that butter was ok and counts as a teaspoon. Glad you're enjoying my recipes and I really hope you try this one, it's so good!
Priya says
I never tried tarts yet.. This recipe is my inspiration for putting my guts in tart making
Stephanie says
Thanks, Priya, I hope you do! This is a great recipe to start out with because the crust is SO easy!
demeter | beaming baker says
Stephanie, this tart is just stunning. How? And when? And why did it take me this long to trade BFF bracelets with you??!?! I'm gonna need, oh say, THREE of these tarts right now. Btw, your homemade dessert stand is FANTASTIC. Wow. When I was looking at the pics, I was admiring how the stand perfectly mimicked, and thus, complemented the ridges of your tart. Now I'm blushing. Just a little. Haha. Meanwhile, do you still live super far from Home? I know about that... sometimes I get homesick too. Sending you lots of love Steph! xoxoxo
Stephanie says
Aww thanks, Demeter, back at you! I'm still far from home (and about to be a lot further when we move to AK!) - I'm in the Louisville area now and our family is in northeastern Ohio. Looking forward to one last trip home before our big move. I love that we have the chance to experience different places, but if I could take everyone with me I would love moving around a lot more 😉
demeter | beaming baker says
Oh, Ohio! My sister went to OSU to study. Go Bucks! 😉 It must've been quite the journey, moving from northeastern Ohio to Louisville and now... future plans to move to AK. How's packing going? Good thing there's the internet, you can keep in touch wherever you move. <3
Stephanie says
Yassss! Thank heavens for the internet! We've been busy setting everyone up with skype so that we can do some video chats when we get there. We're lucky enough that the Coast Guard takes care of the moving and the packing, but believe it or not, there's still a TON to do! I'm so grateful that we found out earlier than usual this time around and have a few months left before we leave!
Elena says
I love cardamom in my morning coffee. A blackberry cheesecake tart is next to my Sunday morning coffee....thanks!
Stephanie says
Thanks, Elena! You just made my day 🙂
neil@neilshealthymeals.com says
You must have known I was a Cheesecake addict Stephanie when you recently commented on my salmon recipe. Ha ha, you've hooked me in now. 😉
THIS IS STUNNING!
Stephanie says
Hahaha, yes! Thanks, Neil!
Abbe @ This is How I Cook says
I like that better than a dessert stand. It looks so pretty and elegant and positively something I would devour! Thanks for sharing!
Stephanie says
Thanks, Abbe!
Meghan says
I love the DIY cake stand you made! Actually, despite the plethora of kitchen stuff that I have I don't have a cake stand either, not even in storage. I keep meaning to buy one but I want to find the perfect one for some reason. Love this beautiful tart! The fruit is so pretty and I am a huge fan of cheesecake anything.
Stephanie says
Thanks, Meghan! I know what you mean, I often find myself doing the same, putting off buying a particular something to try to find just the right one for the blog. Because it has to be the right color and the right style and photograph well, etc.. Ha! Blogger problems 😉 On another note, I feel like it's just about impossible to go wrong with cheesecake.
Amanda @SagelySweet says
K you told me apple blackberry tart. Not CHEESECAKE TART. Liar. But also... YUMMM. I love the creativity of the filling! Cardamom is bomb. Good, no, amazing, call Steph!! This looks amazing. I wish I could eat it through my screen. Leave it to you to create a stupidly delicious guilt free dessert. I hope you have an amazing time with the fam jam! Don't worry about posts, enjoy the holiday! Food bloggers deserve to celebrate holidays, too! I'll miss ya, though 😉
Stephanie says
Thanks, Amanda! Seriously, cardamom makes me so happy. And I swear I left out the cheesecake part by accident 🙂 I'm taking your advice and taking the week (well, most of it anyway) off, because you're absolutely right and I'm ready for some time off. Hope you, Mark and your friends have a great Friendsgiving, low-key holidays are the best! I'm sure I'll talk to ya sometime this week 😉