Lemon Mousse Tart is a delightfully bright, no bake dessert! Lemon mousse filling nestled in a pretzel crust, topped with fresh berries. The perfect balance of sweet, salty, creamy, and crunchy. Thank you United Dairy Industry of Michigan for sponsoring this post. All thoughts are my own.
We’re a little crazy about our summer berries around here. Normally we take our time visiting our favorite farmers and picking the fruits of their labors.
Fruits of the farmers’ labors. See what I did there?
We pick until our buckets are brimming with fresh berries, and then promptly come home and eat way more berries than anyone has a right to consume in a twenty four hour period. The next day, we start the process of freezing berries for the long haul, and making ridiculous quantities of jam.
When we’re (read: I am) sick of processing the berries–usually in the wee hours of the morning–I toss the remainders into a huge bowl and do my best Scarlet O’Hara impression, “I can’t think about that right now. If I do, I’ll go crazy. I’ll think about that tomorrow.”
For I know that after a few hours of sleep, I’ll awaken with new inspiration as to what else with which to incorporate the bounty of berries.
Spoiler Alert: sweetened dairy products are usually a factor.
No Bake Lemon Mousse Tart is one of my favorite uses for fresh summer berries.
The lemony, cream cheese mousse filling cradled in a salty pretzel crust is the perfect canvas for all the berry goodness. It’s a terrific balance of salty, sweet, creamy, and crunchy. The fact that it’s show-stoppingly gorgeous is an added bonus! It’s almost too pretty to eat. Almost!
Another benefit to making a No Bake Lemon Mousse Tart is that there’s no need to heat up with house when it’s already steamy outside. The tart is best either chilled or frozen, and topped with any combination of ripe, juicy berries! I just love having delicious options, don’t you?
♥♥♥
Kirsten Kubert
Yields 16
A delightfully bright, lemony filling, nestled in pretzel crust and topped with fresh berries for the perfect balance of sweet, salty, creamy, and crunchy.
3 hr, 45 Prep Time
3 hr, 45 Total Time
Save RecipeIngredients
- 1 ½ C. pretzel twist crumbs (About 3 cups of tiny twist pretzels.)
- 3 Tbs. granulated sugar
- 8 Tbs. unsalted butter, melted
- 1/3 C. freshly squeezed lemon juice
- 2 ¼ tsp. (about ¼ oz.) lemon flavored gelatin
- 2 tsp. fresh lemon zest, finely minced
- 2 C. heavy whipping cream, divided
- 8 oz. white baking chocolate bars, chopped
- 20 oz. (2 ½ lbs.) softened cream cheese
- 1 C. granulated sugar
- 2-3 pints fresh, ripe berries, rinsed and air dried (A mix of strawberries, blueberries, red raspberries, and blackberries is nice.)
Instructions
- Crush several cups of tiny pretzel twists into coarse crumbs by pulsing them in a food processor, or by placing them in a large zippered container and rolling them well with a rolling pin. Transfer the crumbs to a large bowl and whisk in the sugar. Stir the melted butter into the crumbs until the mixture begins to clump together and resemble wet sand.
- Press the moist crumb mixture into an even layer to cover the bottom and up 1-inch of the sides of a 10-inch tart pan with a removable bottom. (If a tart pan is not available, an 8 x 11” rectangular pan may be used instead.) Place the tart pan in the freezer to set the crust while preparing the filling.
- Sprinkle the lemon flavored gelatin over the lemon juice to soften. Freshly squeezed lemon juice is highly recommended, as bottled juice tends to be on the bitter side.
- Make a white chocolate ganache by placing the chopped white chocolate in a medium-sized, microwave safe bowl. Pour ½ cup of the heavy whipping cream over the white chocolate chunks. Heat it in 30 second bursts in a microwave set on full power, stirring well in between, until the mixture is completely blended and smooth. Stir the softened lemon gelatin mixture and lemon zest into the ganache; set aside to cool.
- Whip the remaining cream to soft peaks and set it aside. Cream the sugar and cream cheese together well, until it becomes glossy. Slowly incorporate the cooled white chocolate mixture into the cream cheese mixture until combined. Gently fold in the whipped cream.
- Spoon the filling into the frozen crust, smoothing the top to level it. Freeze the tart for 3 hours, or until very firm. (The process up to this point can be done up to 2 days ahead.)
- When ready to serve, remove the tart from the freezer, and lift the bottom through the outer ring of the tart pan. Carefully transfer the tart to a completely level serving plate. Some of the crust will begin to crumble and shed away from the tart—this is normal. Arrange the berries on top of the tart filling. For a frozen treat, dip a sharp knife in hot water before slicing the tart to serve. For a creamier treat, allow the tart to stand at room temperature for 30 minutes before slicing.
- Any leftover Lemon Mousse Tart may be tightly wrapped with plastic wrap and refrigerated for up to two days.
Notes
Prep time: 45 minutes, plus 3 hours chilling time.
Comments