Get ready to fall in love with Hokkaido Baked Cheese Tarts, a sweet and savoury dessert which features a creamy, melt-in-your-mouth filling made from a blend of cheeses in a crisp golden crust. Originating from Hokkaido, Japan, these tarts are known for their rich flavour and velvety texture. Bake a batch today and enjoy a little taste of Japan right from your own kitchen!

Tip #1

Cold Ingredients for Dough: Keep the butter cold until ready to use to ensure the dough remains flaky.

Tip #2

Uniform Shells: I recommend using a weighing scale to measure the dough balls for each pastry shell to make sure the tart shells are all similar in size.

Tip #3

Venting: Prick the base of the tart shells thoroughly to prevent puffing up and ensure even cooking.

Follow Lilac Diaries

Hokkaido Baked Cheese Tarts

Preparation time: 45 minutes | Chilling time: 2 hours | Baking time: 25 minutes

Serves: 17 mini cheese tarts

Ingredients

Tart Shells:

250g all-purpose flour
60g caster sugar
150g unsalted butter, cold and cubed
1 egg
3-5 tbsp cold water

Filling:

75g cream cheese
75g mascarpone cheese
25g Parmesan cheese, grated
60ml milk
25g unsalted butter
25g white sugar
1/2 tablespoon cornstarch, sifted
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 egg
1 egg yolk, for brushing

Preparation

Tart Shells:

In a bowl, combine the flour and caster sugar.
Add the cubed butter and mix using your hands or a pastry cutter until the mixture is crumbly with pea-sized chunks of butter.
Mix in the egg and start with 3 tbsp of water. Add more water one tablespoon at a time just until the dough comes together when pressed.
Shape the dough into a disk, wrap in cling film, and refrigerate for 1 hour.

Filling:

In a saucepan over low heat, melt together the cream cheese, mascarpone cheese, Parmesan cheese, milk, and butter.
Stir in the sugar and cornstarch until smooth, then remove from heat.
Mix in the vanilla extract and egg until the mixture thickens slightly. Transfer to a bowl, cover directly with plastic wrap, and chill in the fridge for 30 minutes.

Assembly:

After chilling the dough, pinch 30g of dough and form it into a small ball. Press it evenly inside a 6cm tart mould. (Make sure to leave some excess dough at the top because the dough will shrink while baking.) Prick the bottom with a fork.
Freeze the tart shells for 15 minutes.
Preheat the oven to 340°F (170°C). Bake the tart shells on the lowest rack for 15 minutes. Let them cool and gently remove from the moulds.
Fill each shell with the chilled cheese filling. Freeze filled tarts for 30 minutes, then brush the surface with beaten egg yolk. Bake at 428°F (220°C) for 10 minutes or until the tops are golden with burnt spots.