Homemade Hokkaido cheese tarts - shortcrust pastry shells filled with an incredible cheese filling.
What are Hokkaido Tarts?
The Hokkaido cheese tarts are mini shortcrust tart shells filled with a delicious, fluffy, sweet, yet slightly savory cheese filling.
They originate in a bakery in Sapporo, the capital of the Hokkaido region in the North of Japan. The region is well-known for its milk and dairy farms, producing over 50% of Japan's milk and about 90% of its natural cheeses.
The first Hokkaido Baked Cheese Tarts stores were opened in Malaysia not a long time ago, only in 2016. The mini-pies quickly became hugely popular, and now, stores sell them all over the world.
And if you would like more Japanese food, you could try Bacon Okonomiyaki, Ground Turkey Teriyaki, or Tonkatsu Sandwiches.
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Recipe ingredients
Pastry: All-purpose flour, icing sugar, salt, butter, one egg yolk, and cold water - typical pastry ingredients.
Filling: Mascarpone, cream cheese, yogurt, milk, unsalted butter, salt and vanilla extract, icing sugar, cornstarch, and one egg - nothing fancy either. Check out this Tiramisu Torte with mascarpone, too.
Egg brush: Egg yolk and a little milk.
See the recipe card for full information on ingredients and quantities.
How to make Hokkaido cheese tarts?
Make the pastry
- Step #1: Place flour, icing sugar, and salt in a food processor and pulse to combine. Add cold butter and pulse a few times. Add egg yolk and cold water, pulsing until just combined with small butter pieces visible for a flaky texture.
- Step #2: Wrap in plastic and refrigerate for one hour. You can also make the pastry up to 3 days in advance and keep it refrigerated. The pastry also freezes well.
- To learn more about making tart shells, check out How to Make Tart Shells.
Make the cheese filling
- Step #1: To make a bain-marie, place the bowl with ingredients over a pot of water, ensuring the water doesn't touch the bottom of the bowl. Place mascarpone, cream cheese, yogurt, milk, and salt in the bain-marie bowl.
- Step #2: Heat gently, stirring constantly until combined.
- Step #3: Sift in icing sugar and cornstarch, add vanilla extract and egg, and whisk until thickened. The mixture is thick enough when whisk traces remain.
- Step #4: Remove from heat and transfer to a large bowl.
- Step #5: Cover with plastic wrap directly on top to prevent skin from forming.
- Step #6: Let cool completely.
Roll and bake
- Step #1: Divide the dough into 12 pieces and form little balls. Roll each ball on a lightly floured surface into circles that are slightly larger than the tart pan you are using.
- Step #2: Press the circles down into the tart pans so that they line their bottom and sides, then cut out the excess. Poke the bottom with a fork.
- Step #3: Place the tart forms on a baking tray. Bake for about 10 minutes or until the pastry is lightly golden. Leave to cool slightly in the pans.
- Step #4: Increase the oven temperature. Fill each pastry shell with the filling. Whisk the egg yolk and the milk in a small bowl and brush the filling with the mixture.
- Step #5: Place the tray with the tarts in the hot oven and bake for another 5-8 minutes until the filling turns very golden with a few darker spots here and there.
If the darker spots don't appear in the oven, you can turn on the grill shortly. Keep an eye on them all the time; they should not burn. The spots are not mandatory; perfectly golden pies are great as well.
What baking pans should I use?
The pastry makes enough for 12 mini-tart pans (4 inches/ 10cm). I use pans with removable bottoms, which are great. I only have a set of six, so I plan to get more.
I made six pies of the mentioned size, eight Hokkaido cheese tarts in 3-inch/ 7 cm silicone muffin molds, and one larger tart in a 4.7-inch/ 12 cm silicone pie mold.
The different sizes looked lovely on the platter. You can also bake the tarts in a regular muffin pan; just be sure to grease it well before adding the pastry.
How to serve and store?
You can serve the Hokkaido cheese tarts either warm or at room temperature. Once completely cool, store them in the refrigerator in an airtight container.
Hokkaido Cheese Tarts
Equipment
- Food processor or mixer with dough hooks
- Pot for bain-marie
- Heatproof bowl
- 12 Mini-tart pans of about 4 inches/ 10 cm (Note 1)
Ingredients
Pastry (Note 2):
- 2 cups all-purpose flour
- ¾ cup powdered sugar
- 1 pinch of salt
- ½ cup unsalted butter cold
- 1 egg yolk
- 1 tablespoon cold water
Filling:
- ¾ cup mascarpone
- ¾ cup cream cheese
- ¾ cup yogurt
- ⅔ cup full-fat milk
- 2 tablespoons unsalted butter
- 1 pinch of salt
- ⅓ cup icing sugar
- 1 tablespoon cornstarch
- 1 egg
- ½ teaspoon vanilla extract
To brush:
- 1 egg yolk
- 1 tablespoon milk
Instructions
Pastry:
- Combine: Place flour, icing sugar, and salt in the bowl of a food processor. Pulse shortly to combine. Add the very cold, cubed butter and pulse a couple of times to combine. Add egg yolk and cold water and pulse a few times more to combine. Don't overmix; you should still be able to see tiny pieces of butter in the pastry.2 cups all-purpose flour/ 240 g + ¾ cup powdered sugar/ 85 g + 1 pinch of salt + ½ cup unsalted butter/ 130 g + 1 egg yolk + 1 tablespoon cold water
- Refrigerate pastry: Wrap in plastic and refrigerate for one hour or longer.
Cheese filling:
- Stir filling ingredients: Place the mascarpone, cream cheese, yogurt, milk, butter, and salt in a bowl. Slowly heat the mixture on bain-marie, stirring almost constantly until everything is combined (Note 3).¾ cup mascarpone/ 175 g + ¾ cup cream cheese/ 175 g + ¾ cup yogurt/ 175 g + ⅔ cup full-fat milk/ 150 g + 2 tablespoons unsalted butter + 1 pinch of salt
- Thicken filling: Sift the powdered sugar and cornstarch over the mixture, add the vanilla extract and egg, and whisk continuously until the mixture thickens and becomes smooth. It's thick enough when the whisk leaves traces in the mixture.⅓ cup icing sugar/ 40 g + 1 tablespoon cornstarch + ½ teaspoon vanilla extract + 1 egg
- Cool: Remove from the heat and pour the filling into a large bowl. Place a piece of plastic wrap directly on top of the mixture and let cool.
Shells:
- Preheat the oven to 350°F/ 180°C.
- Roll pastry: Divide the dough into 12 pieces and form little balls. Roll each ball on a lightly floured surface into circles slightly larger than the tart pans.
- Line the tins: Carefully press each dough circle down into the tart pan to line its bottom and sides, then cut out the excess. Poke the bottom with a fork. Place the tart forms on a baking tray.
- Bake the shells for about 10 minutes or until the pastry is lightly golden. Leave to cool slightly in the pans.
Fill the shells:
- Increase the oven temperature to 445°F/ 230°C.
- Fill each pastry shell with the filling. Whisk the egg yolk and the milk in a small bowl and brush each Hokkaido cheese tart with the mixture.1 egg yolk + 1 tablespoon milk
- Bake cheese tarts: Place the tray with the tarts in the hot oven and bake for another 5-8 minutes until the filling turns very golden with a few darker spots here and there.
- Cool the tarts: Remove the tray from the oven and allow the cheese tarts to cool slightly before serving.
Notes
- Tart forms: Use some with removable bottom if available; they are easier to work with.
- Measurements: Always use a digital kitchen scale in baking; it ensures the best results (the Amazon affiliate link opens in a new tab).
- To make the bain-marie, I place the bowl with the ingredients in a pot with water. The water should not touch the bottom of the bowl.
mjskitchen says
A cheese tart? Well, I'm in heaven. These look so light and with such a great looking crust.