Maids of Honour Tarts

Nov 3, 2026 · By VanillaGoods

Baking Pies tarts Medium

Maids of honour are small puff pastry tarts filled with a lemony almond and curd-style custard over a dab of jam. We use ricotta as an easy stand-in for the traditional milk curd. Makes 12 tarts in about 1 hr 25 min.

Prep 30 min

Cook 25 min

Cooling 30 min

Total 1 hr 25 min

Servings 12

Ingredients

Adjust yield

servings

11 ½ oz (320 g)puff pastry, chilled, store-bought
2 tbsp (40 g)raspberry jam, seedless
¼ cup (60 g)unsalted butter, softened
⅓ cup (60 g)granulated sugar
1 (50 g)eggs
1 (18 g)egg yolks
⅔ cup (60 g)ground almonds
3 ½ oz (100 g)ricotta, well drained
2 tsp (4 g)lemon zest
2 tsp (10 ml)lemon juice
1 ½ tbsp (10 g)powdered sugar, for dusting

Fresh ingredient guides

Baking tools for this recipe

Convert to grams Scale it Change the pan

Instructions

Roll the puff pastry about 1/8 inch (3 mm) thick and cut twelve 3 1/2 inch (9 cm) rounds. Press each into a 12-cup muffin tin or shallow tart tin. Chill 30 minutes.
Heat the oven to 400 F (200 C) with a rack in the center.
Beat the butter and sugar until pale. Beat in the egg and yolk, one at a time.
Stir in the ground almonds, ricotta, lemon zest and lemon juice until smooth.
Spread about 1/2 teaspoon of jam in the base of each pastry case.
Spoon the filling in until about three-quarters full; it puffs as it bakes.
Bake 10 minutes, then reduce the heat to 350 F (175 C) and bake 12 to 15 minutes more, until risen, golden and the filling is set (160 F / 71 C in the center).
Cool 10 minutes in the tin, move to a rack and dust with powdered sugar. Serve warm or cool.

Tips

Keep the pastry cold until it goes into the oven for the best lift.
Drain the ricotta in a sieve for 20 minutes so the filling stays thick.
Do not overfill; the filling domes and can spill.
Bake until the filling reaches 160 F (71 C) in the center because it contains eggs and dairy.

Made this?

Log it to keep your bakes, ratings and notes together in My Kitchen.

Be the first to share one.

Recipe FAQ

How long does it take to make maids of honour tarts?

Plan on 30 minutes of prep and 25 minutes of cooking, plus 30 minutes to chill. The recipe makes 12 tarts (12 servings).

How should I store maids of honour tarts?

Refrigerate in an airtight container for up to 3 days. Re-crisp in a 325 F (160 C) oven for 5 minutes.

Can I make maids of honour tarts ahead?

It is at its best the day it is made; prepare it a few hours before serving.

Serve it with black tea.

Estimated · per serving

Nutrition

Per serving = 1 of 12 servings this recipe makes.

268 Calories / serving

18.6g Fat

21.1g Carbs

4.8g Protein

7.2g Sugar

Whole recipe (12 servings): ~3216 cal · 223g fat · 253g carbs · 58g protein · 86g sugar

Estimated values per serving, calculated from standard ingredient data. Not verified Nutrition Facts; actual values vary with brands, measurements, and preparation.