The first fruit tart I ever made was from a Paula Deen recipe.

There was plenty of sugar and butter involved, as you well know if you’ve ever seen her cooking shows.

I remember starting with the crust and sampling some of the raw dough, just to make sure it tasted okay.  Wait, did this dough taste just like a sugar cookie?  I had to try some more to be sure.

Then on to the filling and I sampled some of that and it was sugary, cream-cheesy and delicious. I had to dip some strawberries in it to see how the flavors worked together. And then also some blueberries and raspberries dipped in the filling.

I baked it and sampled a slice, and I was sure I had just made the. best. dessert. ever.  Long story short, it was too hard to eat just one slice.  The following morning, it was also hard to fit into my jeans.

It needed to become a once-a-year-on-special-occasions-only type of dessert, in other words.

When I saw some adorable mini tart pans at Bed, Bath, and Beyond last weekend, I knew I really wanted to try to create a healthier fruit tart recipe in honor of Valentine’s Day. Something that tastes delicious but something that you can also feel good about eating.

 

Aren’t these cute?  The bottoms are removable so you end up with perfectly-shaped mini crusts every time.

Here are the ingredients.

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.

Separate the eggs whites and discard the yokes.

Pour the all-purpose flour, whole wheat flour, egg whites, agave nectar and almond butter into a food processor.

Almond butter is a great substitute for butter in this recipe.  It adds the same creamy richness, but without the saturated fat (2 tablespoons of almond butter have only 1 g of saturated fat as compared to 14 g of saturated fat (!) in 2 tablespoons of butter)  And the hint of almond in the crust is the perfect compliment to the creamy filling and the fruit.

If you haven’t tried agave nectar yet, I highly recommend it.  It’s very sweet without any strong flavors (like you’d find with maple syrup or honey) so it’s a perfect substitute for sugar.  But unlike sugar, it’s all-natural and unprocessed.  It’s also sweeter than sugar, so you can use less of it in your recipes, saving you calories.  There are three varieties of agave syrup, and if this is your first time buying it, start with the mildest, most neutral flavored ‘light’ variety.

After you’ve put all the crust ingredients into your food processor, pulse until the ingredients combine and form one large ball of dough.

Quarter all of the dough into 4 evenly-sized balls.  Arrange 4 tart pans on a baking sheet and place a ball of dough into each.

Press the dough along the bottom of each pan until it’s about 1/4-inch thick. Press the dough up and all along the sides of the pan, being sure the dough is pressed into every scalloped edge.  The dough should extend beyond the edges of the pan.

Holding a knife horizontally, trim away all of the excess edges so you’re left with nice, neat crusts that reach perfectly to the tops of the tart pans.

Now put the crusts in the oven to bake for 12-15 minutes.

After they’ve baked, allow the crusts to cool for about 15 minutes.  While they’re cooling, prepare the filling.

Start by straining the yogurt.  Greek yogurt is nice and thick and rich, but it tends to still be a bit watery on top, so I just quickly get rid of any unnecessary liquid.

I love using Greek yogurt in this recipe.  It tastes so delicious sweetened and combined with the fruit in this recipe, but it’s also such a good-for-you choice.  Compare the nutrition facts on a nonfat greek yogurt container and a regular cream cheese container.  1 cup of greek yogurt has 130 calories and 0 g of fat as compared to an unbelievable 700+ calories and 70+ g of fat in 1 cup of regular cream cheese.  In addition, the greek yogurt offers lots of filling protein and healthy calcium.

Combine the greek yogurt, Neufchâtel, powdered sugar, and vanilla extract in a bowl.

 

Blend using a hand mixer until the filling is creamy and well-blended.

Fill tart crusts to the brims with the filling.  They’re looking very tempting already!

Place tarts in the refrigerator for about 30 – 45 minutes to allow them to firm up and set.

In the meantime, prepare the fruit.

 

Slice the ends off of the kiwi and trim off the skin.

Cut the kiwi in half lengthwise.  Then place one half at a time flat-side-down on the cutting board to keep it stable and easy to cut.  Slice 1/4-inch thick half-moon slices.

Next, cut the stems off the strawberries and cut each one in half.

Then cut a triangle-shaped notch from the top of each strawberry to create a cute heart shape.

Arrange the fruit on the tarts using this handy visual.  Be sure to pile some blueberries in the center so that the heart-shaped strawberry can be tucked in and propped up against some of them.

Or do your own personal creative and lovely design.

 

Mini and heart-shaped!  Is this cuteness overload? Probably.  But what else is Valentine’s Day for?

These taste rich, decadent, and so delicious.  For someone you love, what’s better than something sweet that’s also full of fresh, healthy ingredients?

Other Scrumptious Pumpkin dishes you may enjoy:

Roasted Strawberry Fruit Dip with Dark Chocolate

Cinnamon Squash with Almond Butter

Sweet Potato Gnocchi with Cream Sauce, Arugula and Pine Nuts

Here is the complete printable recipe:

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