Tarts Have Some of the Most Delish Dessert Recipes With Special Sweets filled into pastry shells

Tarts range from little tartlets to large dessert cakes, in size, that are eaten slice by slice like most pies and cakes. Each country has their own version of tarts and given Europe is the dessert capital of the world, its hardly surprising most tarts are of European origin and use custards, creams, puddings to fresh fruits in the hollowed crusts of the pastry shells. Here are some of them curated just for you and for you to try once you're in their home country.

1. Tarte aux mirabelles

The original Tarte aux Mirabelles only used a shortcrust pastry and only mirabelle plums. But the modern version is a bit luxurious, that has the addition of pastry cream or custard and then add the juicy plums. Right before it's about to be baked it's sprinkled with powdered sugar (blowtorched like creme Brulee). For more flavour, some places add a little bit of Mirabelle brandy into the tart. This tart is made during autumn when the mirabelle plums are in season.

2. Gizzada

It's a tart from Jamaica that has a crisp pastry shell that takes the shape of a bowl with vertical sides and crimped edges. It's filled with a coconut that is sweetened, spiced and a rich dark umber in colour. The crimped or pinched edges have earned this tart a nickname – pinch-me-round. The tart is said to have either Jewish or Portuguese roots via colonizers and settlers although there is no concrete proof of this.

3. Fyrstekake

A Norwegian tart that is thick and dense, Fyrstekake has a filling of an almond paste that is made more fragrant with cardamom. The tart’s buttery crust is so thick that it is also known as a cake, it is in fact called the Royal Cake or Prince's Cake too. It's usually made during Christmas time in Norway where it's eaten with a cup of tea.

4. Carac

A tart that looks like it would belong in a cartoon show, Carac comes from Switzerland and is popular among the French areas of the country. They come in small sizes with a shortbread pie crust filled with ganache and topped with fondant or icing, that is that brightly hued colour. They can also be made in larger sizes for festivals and local events and eaten like pies and cakes, per slice. “Carac” refers to “caraque” which is a kind of high-quality cocoa referring to the chocolate used in the ganache.

5. Ecclefechan Butter Tart

Hailing from Scotland, this butter tart is from the small Southern town of Ecclefechan and consists of a pastry shell filled with dried fruits and nuts, mostly currants and sultanas that are mixed with white vinegar and brown sugar. It’s called butter tart because of the buttery crust that holds the sweet and nutty fillings that are baked till brown. The tart is mostly made for Scottish festivities and eaten warm with cream, spiked with whiskey and sweetened with honey.

6. Tarte aux brimbelles

Tarte aux brimbelles or wild blueberry tart looks exactly like what one of the warm and inviting characters would bake, from Enid Blyton’s books. It’s a rustic tart and the frills associated with French cuisine are mostly absent. The pastry crust uses flour, butter, sugar, salt, egg yolks, and cold water, while the filling is a mixture of wild blueberries, eggs, sugar, crème fraîche, and crumbled cookies or semolina. The crust is made first and shaped into a shallow dish in which the filling is added and baked. A mixture of crème fraîche, sugar and eggs is made, poured over the tart and baked again.

7. Imotska torta

Coming from Croatia’s Imotska town, it has a pastry shell with a filling of almond filling that bakes into a cake-like dessert. The tart uses spices and also wines like white wine, Prošek or maraschino cherry liquor. The tart has a lattice top that bakes to a golden brown and is studded with almonds making this tart nutty, fragrant and slightly boozy.

8. Manchester tart

An English tart from Manchester, this tart used to be a staple of school dinners until the 1980s, that has a shortcrust base that has a spread of raspberry jam at the bottom, followed by custard. This is topped with a generous amount of desiccated coconut and a Maraschino cherry. This tart is said to be a derivative of the Manchester pudding that is older than the tart, dating back to 1860. The Manchester tart is best consumed chilled because custards taste the best cold.