Passion Fruit Lemon Mousse Tart

ByJeff Chudakoff
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As seen on Next Level Baker! This was the bake that ultimately got me to the top kitchen, and I’ll never forget the wow-ed gasps from Gordon Ramsay, Carla Hall, and Candace Nelson when they lifted a slice out, showing it had set in less than an hour! Not only is this recipe designed to set quickly (goodbye overnight chilling in the fridge), it delivers punchy citrus flavor with contrasting textures. A pillowy soft mousse meets a crisp tart shell, with creamy vanilla whipped cream on top and pops of passion fruit seeds. A flavor and textural dream.

How do you get a curd to set in an hour? My answer: Turn it into a citrus mousse. You may not be as tight on time as I was on Next Level Baker, but this is a great solution for people like me that are also a bit impatient in their everyday life. Folding in some Swiss meringue and whipped cream both lightens the texture, but it also provides the filling more structure, quickly. (Fun fact: Curd typically takes hours to set not only because it needs to get cold, but also because the proteins from the egg need time to coagulate!)

It’s surprisingly easy to make, but it’s guaranteed to impress your friends and family. Better yet, since this is served cold, you can make this ahead of time and keep it in the fridge until you’re ready to eat! The citrus notes lend well to both cold and warm seasons, but I prefer the tropical vibes of this dessert in warmer weather.

Why You’ll LOVE This Tart

  • Punchy citrus flavor. Passion fruit and lemon are a match made in heaven.
  • Light texture. Folding in the meringue and whipped cream creates a mousse with creamy, light-as-air texture.
  • Surprisingly simple: Blind bake a tart shell, and fill it with the mousse. Done!
  • Visually appealing: Garnishing with a simple vanilla whipped cream and passion fruit seeds is all you need for a stunning finish.

Here’s what you’ll need:

  • Kitchen staples – All-purpose flour, butter, sugar, eggs, heavy whipping cream
  • Passion fruit + lemons – Fresh as you can find
  • Fluted tart pan – I use a 9″ fluted tart pan that measures 1″ tall, but any tart pan of comparable size will work well. If using a different sized tart pan, simply scale the mousse recipe accordingly (the shortcrust pastry recipe should be enough for most any pan)

Passion Fruit Lemon Mousse Tart Tips

Blind baking keys. First, be sure to roll out the tart dough thin enough, which will be ~1/8″. This will ensure that you are able to get a crisp finish without it being difficult to cut into. For the blind bake, you’re looking for deeply golden brown color around the top and just a slight color on the inside-bottom as your visual cue that it’s done. If at any point you get a crack in the dough, simply press a bit of scrap dough into the area and continue baking as usual.

Whip meringue soft and whipped cream stiff. In this case, the goal is to add structure while keeping the texture silky smooth. Over-whipping the meringue will mean a clumpy texture, and under-whipping the whipped cream will mean less structure. We want the in-between. So, the meringue will have peaks that hold their shape on the whisk but ‘fall down’ at the top, while the whipped cream will form a peak that stands tall on the whisk.

Keep all components cool/cold before assembly. Cold whipped cream or meringue added to warm curd will wilt. And, cold mousse dolloped on top of a warm tart shell will melt and turn into lukewarm citrus soup. Make sure to fully cool the curd before folding in the whipped cream and meringue, and fully cool the tart shell before assembly. The assembled tart should also be kept in the fridge until ready to serve!

How to make this passion fruit lemon mousse tart:

  1. Make the tart shell: Create dough in a food processor and roll out between parchment paper before chilling in the fridge. When the dough is firm, cut out dough for tart pan and line the pan. Chill again until firm. In the meantime, preheat oven to 375°F. Dock the dough, fill with pie weights, and blind bake. Set aside to cool fully
  2. Make the passion fruit lemon mousse: Combine ingredients over hot water bath and heat until 165°F, whisking constantly. Remove from heat, strain, and cover with plastic before chilling. Create Swiss meringue and whipped cream and fold into chilled curd. Keep refrigerated until ready to assemble.
  3. Assembly: Fill tart shell with mousse and spread evenly. Chill until set, at least 1 hour. Make vanilla whipped cream, fill a piping bag, and pipe on set mousse. Garnish with passion fruit seeds and lemon zest.

FAQ

Many traditional mousse recipes use raw egg whites in this way, and the salmonella risk is small, but not zero. I personally prefer the Swiss meringue in this recipe, both for the texture it delivers but also for the peace of mind that the eggs are safe to eat!

‘Folding’ is simply a method to gently incorporate these ingredients without deflating them. Using a rubber spatula, you will repeatedly pick up/flip the mixture onto itself until uniform in appearance.

Yes! The tart shell can be made up to 3 days in advance if left unfilled and wrapped airtight at room temperature. I’d recommend making the mousse filling the day of, or at earliest the day before since we don’t use any gelatin or stabilizers in this recipe. Whichever day you make the mousse, assemble the tart and then keep in the fridge until ready to serve. Just before serving, garnish with the vanilla whipped cream and passion fruit seeds.

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Passion Fruit Lemon Mousse Tart

As seen on Next Level Baker! The bake that Gordon Ramsay called "delicious" and that got me to the top kitchen. This passion fruit lemon mousse tart delivers punchy citrus flavor with the contrasting textures of a pillowy soft filling in a crisp tart shell.
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Prep Time:20 minutes
Cook Time:40 minutes
Total Time:1 hour
Servings: 12

Equipment

  • 9" fluted tart pan (~1-1.5" tall)

Ingredients

Shortcrust Pastry (Pâte Sucrée)

  • 150 grams unsalted butter, room temperature
  • 95 grams powdered sugar
  • Pinch of salt
  • 1 tsp vanilla bean paste
  • 50 grams whole egg (approx. 1 large egg)
  • 280 grams all-purpose flour
  • Egg wash

Passion Fruit Lemon Mousse

  • 56 grams unsalted butter
  • 100 grams lemon juice
  • 30 grams passion fruit juice
  • 100 grams whole egg (approx. 2 large eggs)
  • 30 grams egg yolk (approx. 2 egg yolks)
  • 66 grams granulated sugar
  • Zest of 1 lemon
  • Pinch of salt
  • 120 grams heavy whipping cream (~1/2 cup)
  • 70 grams egg white (approx. 2 egg whites)
  • 2 tbsp granulated sugar

Vanilla Whipped Cream

  • 120 grams heavy whipping cream (~1/2 cup)
  • 1 tsp vanilla bean paste
  • 1 tbsp powdered sugar

Instructions

Shortcrust Pastry (Pâte Sucrée)

  1. Add unsalted butter, powdered sugar, salt, and vanilla bean paste to a food processor and process until smooth. Add egg and process until smooth again. Add all-purpose flour and pulse until dough comes together. Be sure to scrape the bottom of the food processor to avoid unmixed butter.
  2. Roll dough between two pieces of parchment until ~1/8" thick, and then transfer dough to a half sheet pan and chill in the fridge for ~15 minutes, until firm.
  3. Once dough is firm, remove parchment and cut a circle of dough ~1" wider than your pan (you will have excess dough, which you can save for a future use). Line the tart pan, pressing dough gently into the curves of the pan. Use a sharp knife to trim excess from the top. Return lined tart pan to the fridge for 15 minutes.
  4. While lined pan is chilling, preheat oven to 375°F. To blind bake the crust, remove dough from the fridge and dock the dough with the tines of a fork. Line tart shell with parchment and fill with pie weights. Bake for ~20 minutes with pie weights and then another 10 minutes without pie weights, until the bottom just begins to brown.
  5. Remove from the oven, egg wash the inside of the tart shell, and return to bake for an additional 3 minutes. Remove and set aside to cool fully.

Passion Fruit Lemon Mousse

  1. Combine all ingredients except heavy whipping cream, egg whites, and 2 tbsp of granulated sugar in a medium heat-proof bowl over a hot water bath. Heat mixture while whisking constantly until it reaches 165°F on an instant-read thermometer.
  2. Remove and strain through a fine mesh sieve. Cover with plastic wrap, pressing directly onto the surface. Allow to chill fully, ~45 minutes.
  3. While curd is chilling, whip heavy whipping cream to stiff peaks in a medium bowl. Place bowl in the fridge to keep cold.
  4. Combine egg whites and remaining granulated sugar in a separate heat-proof bowl over the hot water bath, whisking constantly until it reaches 160°F. Pour mixture into the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with a whisk attachment and whisk on high speed until soft peaks form. Put meringue into fridge to chill.
  5. To the chilled curd, gently fold in whipped egg white. Once fully incorporated, gently fold in chilled whipped cream.

Vanilla Whipped Cream

  1. Combine heavy whipping cream, vanilla bean paste, and powdered sugar into a medium bowl and whip until stiff peaks. Set aside in the fridge to chill.

Assembly

  1. Pour filling into cooled tart shell and use an offset spatula to spread evenly. Put into fridge until fully set, which can be as short as 1 hour (but allow for more time to be safe!).
  2. Top with vanilla whipped cream and garnish with passion fruit seeds.

Notes

* If the tart dough tears while lining the pan, simply use some of the excess dough to ‘patch’ the tear and continue as written.

Did you make this recipe?

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