Tarts look fancy, but they all start with the same thing: a good, sweet shortcrust pastry shell. This easy shortcrust tart dough, also known as pâte sucrée, bakes into a buttery, shortbread-style crust that holds everything from chocolate ganache to lemon curd and fresh fruit. You can mix it in a stand mixer, by hand, or in a food processor, then chill, blind bake, and you’re ready for your favorite fruit tarts, custard tart or cream pie filling.
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You’ve seen those beautiful tarts in the pastry cases at bakeries, well, I am here to tell you that you can make your own quick, buttery, tender shortcrust pastry dough at home; it’s easier than you think.
Recipe Highlights
Why this sweet shortcrust tart dough works
- Buttery, tender shortbread texture that cuts cleanly and does not shatter like some crumbly crusts
- Sweet shortcrust pastry with powdered sugar and egg yolk for a sturdy tart shell that holds rich cream and chocolate fillings
- Works for blind-baked tart shells and baked tarts, so you can use it for fruit, chocolate tarts and more
- Make by hand, in a stand mixer, or in a food processor, whatever is easiest for you
What Is Sweet Shortcrust (Pâte Sucrée)?
Shortcrust means the gluten strands in this type of dough have been shortened, which creates a tender crust that is also crumbly, as opposed to the elongated strands of gluten in bread dough that create the airy, chewy texture.
For pastry dough, the term “short” refers to a crumbly, flaky pastry with a higher fat-to-flour ratio, with a crust that is crisper and less chewy. A shortcrust is also known as short pastry.
Our favorite Chocolate Ganache Tart is made with this homemade pastry dough and holds up beautifully under the heavy ganache filling. It is the perfect tart crust for this dessert.
Types Of Shortcrust Pastry: Pâte Brisée, Pâte Sucrée, Pâte Sablée
There are three basic shortcrust pastry doughs with fancy French names that are fun to say, but they are all pastry doughs that are easy to make.
Pâte brisée – (brisée means broken, which refers to the pieces of butter). This is similar to American pie dough with flour, fat, salt, and water, but pâte brisée contains a small amount of sugar and more butter than regular pie dough, which bakes into a golden crust that has a finer crumb than pie crust. This is a delicious dough to use for sweet and savory tarts and quiches.
Pâte Sucrée -(this means sweetened dough). This sweet pastry dough contains flour, butter, sugar, cream, and egg, making it a bit crumbly. Pâte sucrée is a great dough for sweet tarts and is the pastry dough we are making today.
Pâte Sablée -(means sandy), this is a very crumbly, rich dough made with egg, more butter, and sugar than pâte sucrée. This dough can be difficult to work with but worth making for the wonderful taste and texture.
Chocolate Shortcrust Tart Crust – This chocolate Pâte Sablée has a deep chocolate flavor and a crispy crust, a perfect pastry dough for fruit and creamy fillings.
If you want to make an old-fashioned homemade pie dough, make sure to read the One Hot Oven post on How to Make A Flaky Pie Crust. This is the recipe I use for all my pies, and it is easy and tasty.
If you’re making a no-bake or cream-style pie instead of a tart, my Easy Graham Cracker Pie Crust is another simple option that works beautifully for chilled fillings.
Ingredients For A 9 1/2-Inch Sweet Tart Shell
Dough ingredients
- Flour – for this recipe, you need plain all-purpose flour.
- Egg yolk – using an egg yolk enriches the dough and helps bind the flour and butter.
- Powdered sugar – I prefer it for a sweet pastry dough over granulated sugar, since it gives the dough a more tender texture. Using granulated sugar makes the dough more crumbly.
- Cold butter – Cold, cold, butter is always necessary when making pastry dough. On warm days, pop the butter cubes into the freezer for a few minutes before incorporating them into the flour. The butter will also coat the flour, inhibiting gluten formation.
- Vanilla – I am a vanilla lover, what can I say! It adds just a hint of distinctive flavor to this sweet dough. You can leave this out, but why?
Once your ingredients are measured and chilled, you are ready to mix the sweet shortcrust pastry dough.
Shortcrust Pastry Mixing Methods (Mixer, Food Processor, By Hand)
Making pastry dough can be intimidating, but basic tart pastry dough is quick to mix with just a few ingredients and a tart pan. Sweet shortcrust is not a super-flaky pie crusts; it bakes into a shortbread-style tart shell that is crumbly and rich from the sugar and egg yolk.
Tarts come in all shapes and sizes but when you want to serve a large dessert tart in a 9 1/2″ tart pan, this recipe will give you the best results. A tart pan with a removable bottom makes it easy to life out the tart so you can cut clean sides.
You can mix this dough in a stand mixer, by hand, or in a food processor. Before you start, whisk the flour, powdered sugar, and salt together in a bowl. In a separate small bowl, whisk the egg yolk, cream, water, and vanilla and set aside.
Stand Mixer Method
Add the dry ingredients to the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the flat paddle. Add small cubes of cold butter and mix on medium low speed until the mixture looks like coarse crumbs and the butter pieces are no larger than small peas. Pour in the egg mixture and beat on medium speed just until the dough comes together and starts to pull away from the sides of the bowl. Turn the dough out onto a lightly floured surface and gently press it into a disk.
At this point, you can roll the dough and fit it into the tart pan, or wrap the disk in plastic and chill it. If your kitchen is warm, chilling before rolling is a good idea.
Mixing Dough By Hand
Add the dry ingredients to a large mixing bowl. Cut in the cold butter with a pastry cutter or two knives until the butter is broken down and the mixture looks like small peas. Pour in the egg mixture and use a fork or your hands to mix just until the dough starts to clump together. Turn the dough out onto a lightly floured surface and press it into a smooth disk.
Food Processor Method
Add the dry ingredients to the bowl of a food processor. Add the cold butter cubes and pulse until the flour coated butter is the size of large peas, about 6 to 8 pulses. With the machine off, pour in the egg mixture a tablespoon at a time, pulsing once or twice after each addition, until the dough holds together when you squeeze a small handful in your palm. Tip the mixture out onto a lightly floured surface and press it into a disk before rolling or chilling.
Once your dough is mixed and pressed into a disk, it is ready to roll out and fit into the tart pan.
How To Roll And Line A Tart Pan With Shortcrust Dough
If you have chilled the dough, let it sit for 10 minutes before rolling.
Step 1. On a lightly floured work surface, roll the dough into a large round, about 12″. Place the tart pan on top of the rolled dough to make sure it is large enough to fit up the fluted sides of the pan.
Step 2. Place the floured rolling pin on one edge of the dough and gently roll the dough around the pin, then transfer it to the edge of the tart pan and unroll it.
Step 3. Press the dough into the tart pan and up the sides. You may need to slightly lift the edge of the dough and let it fall back in the pan to make it fit.
Step 4. Once the dough is in the pan, take the rolling pin and roll over the top of the pan to remove the excess dough.
Step 5. With a fork, press the tines into the bottom of the butter pastry dough to allow venting during baking. This process is also called docking the pastry.
Chill the dough
Once your pastry dough is fitted in the tart pan, let it chill for at least 30 minutes in the refrigerator or 5 minutes in the freezer. This is really important: it helps the gluten relax in the dough so the dough will not shrink, and it chills the butter. This means a great-looking tart dough.
How To Blind Bake A Shortcrust Tart Shell
It would be lovely if you could slide the tart dough into the oven and forget about it, but I guarantee a pastry disaster will happen. As the tart bakes, the steam puffs up the dough, the sides slump, and you end up with a bubbly, uneven crust instead of a neat tart shell.
That is why you blind bake the crust first. Blind baking means baking the tart shell without any filling, so it sets firm and does not get soggy once you add custards, creams, or juicy fruit.
For this sweet shortcrust pastry, dock the bottom of the tart shell with a fork, line it with parchment, and fill it with sugar or beans to weigh it down and keep the sides from slumping. Bake at 350°F until the edges are golden and the center looks dry and set, then cool before filling. For step-by-step photos and more tips on using parchment and weights, see my full guide to blind baking a pie shell.
Shortcrust Mixing Tips
One of the best ways to make a tender, flaky, or crumbly pastry dough is to keep the ingredients cold. A good pastry rule is to keep the butter, cream, and egg in the refrigerator until you need them. Using warm ingredients can cause the butter to melt into the flour, and cold water isn’t absorbed into the flour as fast as warm water.
Watch how much liquid you add, as too much will make the dough tough.
Make-Ahead Freezing And Storage
Wrapped dough disk (unbaked):
- Tightly wrapped in plastic (and ideally in a zip-top bag), it keeps well for up to 3 days in the refrigerator.
- After that, the butter can start to oxidize and turn color, the dough can dry out and crack when you try to roll it.
Dough already in the tart pan, unbaked:
- You can keep it in the fridge up to 24 hours before baking. any longer and you risk the surface drying out and the edges getting a bit tough.
If you want to hold it longer than 3 days, freeze it instead (dough disk or lined tart shell), then thaw in the fridge before rolling or baking.
Equipment to make a tart dough
- The 9 1/2-inch tart pan with removable bottom has sturdy sides and an easy-to-lift-out base for neat tart shells.
- A stand mixer or food processor makes quick work of the dough, but you can mix by hand, too.
- A French rolling pin gives you more control when rolling shortcrust pastry, since you press directly on the pin rather than the handles.
- Cloth Rolling Mats are great for keeping the dough from sticking and make rolling and cleanup easier.
Tart FAQ’s
Yes, a shortcrust is considered a type of pie dough, but this recipe does have a firmer texture than a regular pie crust recipe.
For any type of liquid type filling, like a custard or a fruit filling, you should pre-bake the pastry to keep the crust from turning soggy.
For a sweet shortcrust pastry, add a cream filling or fruit filling. Unsweetened shortcrusts are perfect for quiches and other savory fillings.
Shortcrust pastry is usually sweetened and contains egg, which helps bind the dough and makes the baked crust more crumbly and cookie-like. Most pie crust recipes do not include egg or sugar, and they bake into a flakier, more layered crust.
You can use pie weights, but you need a lot of them to keep the sides from slumping. I prefer to use sugar, dried beans, or lentils to weigh down the parchment since they fill the tart shell more easily and are cheaper.
Keep the ingredients cold, avoid overworking the dough, and always chill the lined tart shell before baking. Dock the bottom with a fork, and use parchment and weights when you blind-bake so the sides stay in place.
Tried it? Rate ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ & comment below—your feedback keeps the oven mitts flying here at One Hot Oven.
Recipe
How to Make a Shortcrust Pastry Dough
Ingredients
- 1 ¼ cups AP flour
- ¼ cup Powdered sugar
- ¼ teaspoon Salt
- 8 tablespoons butter cold
- 1 egg yolk
- 1 tablespoon ice water
- 1 tablespoon cream optional, can use water
- 1 teaspoon vanilla
Instructions
How to mix the dough with a stand mixer
- Using a stand mixer with the paddle attachment put the flour, sugar, and salt in the bowl and mix at low speed to incorporate.1 ¼ cups AP flour, ¼ cup Powdered sugar, ¼ teaspoon Salt
- Cut the butter in cubes and then add to the bowl and beat on medium-low speed just until the texture resembles small peas. Do not overbeat. It is helpful to chill the butter cubes before mixing if it is a warm day.8 tablespoons butter
- In a small mixing bowl add the egg yolk, water, cream, and vanilla. Mix together then add to the mixing bowl and mix on low until the dough pulls away from the sides.1 egg yolk, 1 tablespoon cream, 1 teaspoon vanilla, 1 tablespoon ice water
- Place the dough on a lightly floured surface and roll into a 12" circle to fit the tart pan.
- Roll the dough around the rolling pin and place it over the tart pan then unroll the dough and fit the pastry into the pan. Press the corners and edges of the dough to fit the pan, lifting the pastry as needed to fit into the pan.
- Once the dough is in the tart pan there will be excess dough hanging over the sides of the pan. Take the rolling pin and roll it over the top of the tart pan to cut away the excess dough.
- With the tines of a fork, press the tines into the dough to allow for venting.
- Place the tart pan with the dough into the refrigerator and chill for 15 -30 minutes.
Blind Baking the Shortcrust Tart Dough
- Heat the oven to 350° F.
- Weigh down the tart dough before baking to keep it from puffing up and losing its shape. Remove the tart dough from the refrigerator and cut a piece of parchment paper in a 12" circle and press on top of the tart dough. Fill the tart dough pan with sugar to almost the top and spread into a flat layer making sure to get to the edges.
- Place the tart pan in the oven and bake for 30 minutes until you can see the top of the tart dough has turned light golden brown.
- To remove the sugar, scoop out the sugar until it is easy enough to pick up the parchment paper from the tart without spilling sugar. The sugar is still good and can be reused. It may appear a bit golden in color but it is usable.
- You now have a baked tart ready for filling.
Notes
- Keep all the ingredients cold
- Instead of the cream, you can use all water
- If you are making a savory recipe, omit the vanilla
- Make sure not to overmix which makes the dough tough
- Chill the dough before baking.
- Make sure to weigh the dough down before blind baking so the dough will keep its shape.
- If it is warm in your kitchen chilling the dough before rolling is a good idea, then rechill again before baking.
- You can make this dough and wrap it in plastic wrap then foil and freeze it for a month. Let thaw in the refrigerator before rolling.
Mixing dough by hand
No food processor or mixer is required. In a large bowl add the flour, sugar, and salt. The next step is to cut the butter into the flour with a pastry cutter or two knives until the butter is broken down and the texture resembles small peas. Mix the egg yolk, cream, water, and vanilla together and mix into the flour and butter with a fork just until the dough pulls together. Continue to blind-bake the tart shell.Mixing dough with a food processor
Add the dry ingredients to the food processor. Add small cubes of cold butter and pulse until the flour-coated butter is the size of large peas, approximately 6-8 pulses. Mix the egg yolk, cream, water, and vanilla together then add the egg mixture one tablespoon at a time, pulsing one time after each tablespoon until dough holds together when squeezed. Continue to blind-bake the tart shell.As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases.
Nutrition
First published: July 12, 2019, Last updated: November 20, 2025, for better readability.
Don’t forget to Pin for later when you need a great tart dough recipe.
About Jere’
From learning to cook on a farm in Indiana to culinary school in California, my passion for food is never-ending. Turning on my oven to bake something for friends and family is my happy place, and I am glad to be here at One Hot Oven sharing both sweet and savory family-friendly recipes for your cooking and baking inspiration.
I have used lard, crisco shortening and butter flavored crisco with wonderful flaky results. Needless to say, I have been buying and using store bought crust, only because, heres the kicker, my pie pans keep disappearing, leaving me with no way to mAke pie Ceramic deep dish, gone , glass, gone,metal gone gone. U started buying from store n saving pans, then, people cut pie through aluminum pan and I have to throw away. Anybody know of a place wwhere I can buy pans with guard dogs attached or alarms that go off at door like stored have? I really don’t think anyone takes them I think they, get broke n nobody tells me and the metal ones maybe a snack for fido and gets list in yard.
I love a good shortcrust, so this looks right up my alley! I love that this can be made ahead of time. Pinned to make later.
The crust is so important for a tart and really so easy to make.
Thank you for this recipe. I really love this detailed post guide on how to make the tart dough. Thank you
Glad you liked it. Making this tart crust is super easy.
I really appreciate that you’ve laid out really nice steps for this recipe, with images. I think my next batch of shortcrust dough is about to level up after reading your tips!
Glad you like the tutorial. This shortcrust is so easy to make.
I use shortcrust pastry all the time! I love a quiche or a pear tart! Can’t wait to try this one out, thanks for sharing.
Mmm, a pear tart sounds delicious. I have pears sitting in my fruit bowl, I might just make another tart.
That crust looks absolutely perfect! Pinned this for later use 🙂 I am excited to try it!
This post is really helpful. Also really interesting to read about the different types of pie crusts. I’m saving this recipe for next time I’m baking a pie, thank you so much!