Peach puff pastry tarts recipe
Sweet summer peaches tossed with vanilla are nestled into cardamom-scented cream cheese to make these simple, yet delicious peach puff pastry tarts. Made with store-bought puff pastry, these easy tarts are ready in under 30 minutes.
I’ll give you variations and substitutions where I can, plus helpful tips and tricks for success. Read on for this info as well as the recipe. If you’d like to skip straight to the recipe, use the jump to recipe button at the top of the post.
You may also be interested in my fig puff pastry tart recipe as well. For ease of browsing, you can find all of my dessert recipes in one place.
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Peach puff pastry tarts
Store-bought puff pastry means making these peach tarts is a breeze. This is the perfect summer dessert or treat when you want something flaky, buttery and delicious, but you don’t want to spend loads of time in the kitchen.
You can make as many, or as few, of these tarts as needed. I get 6 good-sized tarts out of one sheet of pastry pastry. You can easily get 9 slightly smaller tarts out of one sheet, which is a great option if you want a 3 or 4 bite dessert.
What you need to know
This recipe for peach puff pastry tarts is unbelievable easy, but there are a few helpful tips and tricks that you need to know before we start.
Probably the most important tip is to keep the puff pastry as cold as you can. When puff pastry gets too warm, it becomes harder to work with. It will feel a bit “slack”, it will get sticky, and not as easy to cut and score. Keep it refrigerated until you are ready to use it.
For the peaches, you’re looking for fruit that is ripe, but not too soft. As the peaches ripen more and more, they get softer, which makes it difficult to get clean slices. So, ripe, but still a little firm is what we’re going for.
Lastly, tossing the peach slices with a bit of lemon juice will keep the color nice and bright. It will stop them from turning brown, and it also adds a nice bit of flavor.
Ingredients
Common pantry ingredients are all you need to make these easy puff pastry tarts.
- Puff pastry – I used Pepperidge Farm brand because it is the most widely available.
- Substitutions: My preferred brand is DuFour Pastry Kitchen puff pastry. It’s what we use in restaurant kitchens and it is very good. The notable difference between the two is Pepperidge Farm has oil in the dough and DuFour is 100% butter.
- Peaches – Ripe, but firm peaches are sliced, then tossed with lemon and vanilla bean paste.
- Cream cheese – Softened cream cheese is sweetened with a bit of powdered sugar, then I’ve added a teaspoon of cardamom for a hint of spice.
- Sliced almonds – For a little crunch of top, a sprinkling of sliced almonds pairs really well with the peaches.
How to make peach puff pastry tarts
Here’s a quick summary of how to make peach puff pastry tarts. Please see the card at the bottom of this post for the full recipe.
Before you pull the puff pastry out of the fridge, make the sweetened cream cheese for the base of the tart, then slice the peaches and toss with lemon juice and vanilla.
This won’t take long to do, but you don’t want the puff pastry sitting out and getting warm while you’re doing this. The pastry needs to stay cold, so it’s best to do this first.
- Prep – Preheat oven to 400°F // 200°C. Remove the puff pastry from the fridge and unfold it. Use a rolling pin to gently roll over the pastry. We’re not trying to make it thinner, we want to even out the creases in the dough and make it more level. Then, cut the piece of puff pastry into 6 even pieces. Use a sharp paring knife to score a border along the edges. Finally, use a fork to dock the middle of the puff pastry.
- Add the sweetened cream cheese to the base of the pastry, staying within the border you made. I like about 1/8″ thick layer.
- Shingle the peach slices on top of the cream cheese, gently pressing them into place. Brush the edges with an egg wash.
- Bake until the edges are golden and puffed, 16 – 18 minutes.
You can buy a peach danish at the bakery, but when it’s this easy to make them at home, this is clearly the better option. Just look at those beauties!
Puff pastry tart recipe FAQ’s
They are best on the day they are made. They will be fine the next day, but by day 3, they won’t be quite as good.
Because these tarts have cream cheese, it is best to store them in the refrigerator, wrapped tightly, for up to 3 days.
Variations and substitutions
- Peach blueberry – Add a small handful of blueberries to the top of the tarts. I like to tuck them into the empty spaces on the edge of the peaches.
- Homemade dough – If you’d like to make your pastry from scratch, try this puff pastry recipe.
- Almonds – Add a sprinkling of sliced almonds to the tops of the peach puff pastry tarts for a little crunch.
Helpful tools and equipment
- Heavy duty sheet pans that hold up to high temps without warping.
- Parchment paper sheets are MUCH easier to use than tearing pieces off of a roll.
- Small offset spatula – I find this tool makes it easier to spread the cream cheese, plus I use this all the time for spreading icing on cookies, cupcakes, cakes, etc.
- Pastry brush – it’s perfect for brushing on egg wash, melted butter, cream glazes, etc.
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Peach puff pastry tarts
Equipment
Ingredients
- 1 sheet store-bought puff pastry chilled
- 6 ounces cream cheese softened to room temperature
- ¼ cup powdered sugar
- 1 tsp. ground cardamom
- 3 – 4 medium peaches ripe, but firm
- 1 tsp. vanilla bean paste *Substitute with vanilla extract if you don't have paste
- 2 tbsp. fresh lemon juice
- ¼ cup sliced almonds optional
- 1 egg whisked with 1 tbsp. of water to make egg wash
Glaze
- ⅓ cup powdered sugar
- 2 tsp. milk
Instructions
Make the peach puff pastry tarts
- Preheat oven to 400°F/200°C.Make egg wash by whisking egg with 1 tablespoon of water, then set aside.
- Combine room temperature cream cheese with ¼ cup powdered sugar and cardamom in a small mixing bowl. Whisk to thoroughly combine until it is smooth and uniform. Set aside.
- Slice peaches into ¼ inch slices and place in a medium bowl with vanilla bean paste (or vanilla extract) and lemon juice. Toss to combine, then set aside.
- Remove puff pastry from fridge. It will be folded in thirds. Gently open it up, like a brochure, on a clean kitchen towel or lightly floured surface. Using a rolling pin, lightly roll over the dough, just to even it out and level the creases a bit.
- Using a sharp Chefs knife or a pizza cutter, cut the sheet of dough into 6 equal pieces. Place them on a parchment-lined baking sheet.Then score a border along the edges with a paring knife. Use the tip of the paring knife, or a fork, to dock the middle of the puff pastry.
- Spread about 2 tablespoons of the cream cheese mixture in the middle of each piece of puff pastry. (I use an offset spatula for this.)
- Then shingle 6 – 8 slices of peaches on top of the cream cheese mixture and lightly press them down to secure in place.Brush edges of puff pastry with egg wash. *Sprinkle with sliced almonds, if desired.
- Bake for 16 – 18 minutes, or until puffed and golden. Let them cool on the sheet pan.
- While tarts are cooling, whisk together the powdered sugar and milk for the glaze. When tarts have cooled, drizzle glaze over the tarts and serve.Store leftover tarts in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 3 days.
Notes
Nutrition
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