Cheddar Cheese Tarts are delicious, perfectly portioned hors d’oeuvres for entertaining! They are exploding with rich cheddar flavor and so easy to make – ideal for brunch or served as a savory appetizer.
This post is sponsored by Cabot.
As a former event planner and caterer and entertaining enthusiast, I love serving easy to eat bites that look as beautiful as they taste. These Cheddar Cheese Tarts are quick, easy and beautiful not to mention amazing.
If there is one food that I cannot live without, it’s cheese. While I love all cheese, classic cheddar is one of my favorites. It’s so versatile and flavorful.
It’s incredible on its own, but pairs beautifully with other flavors. In addition to making classic cheese tarts, I mixed some up with thyme and caramelized onions, and savory tomato and spinach – the options are endless!
That’s why I had so much fun creating these delectable little cheddar cheese tarts! You can make them with premade crust or phyllo shells for the easiest little shortcut. A dash of decadent heavy cream in the cheese mixture really seals the deal!
The end result? A creamy, cheesy tart that truly tastes as good as it looks! They are simple and yet add a touch of elegance for entertaining.
Table of Contents
Why You’ll Love These Tarts
As a long-time entertaining enthusiast, I’ve become a fan of simple, yet beautiful presentations. I like to focus on a few items that I know will give me a little wow moment without taking too much of my time.
Serve them for brunch along with my fresh fruit skewers, a simple spring mix salad, with these pink champagne cupcakes for dessert. Add a fruity champagne cocktail and you’re all set!
Creating a simple, yet special menu is what makes entertaining a breeze. And when I can incorporate ingredients that I feel good about, even better!
That’s why I love Cabot, a co-operative owned by farm families throughout New England and New York and 100% of profits go back to the farmers.
They’re also a certified B Corporation, which means they balance purpose with profit. That’s exactly the kind of business our family loves to support!
Cheese Tart Ingredients
- Crust – Homemade or store-bought pie crust, cream cheese pie crust, phyllo dough or phyllo shells.
- Cabot Seriously Sharp Cheddar Cheese – The star of the show! Aged for 12 months, it’s creamy and smooth, and melts beautifully! It offers a buttery flavor to this delicious dish. You can always mix it up with one of Cabot’s flavored cheddars!
- Heavy Cream – Makes these tarts incredibly light and moist.
- Eggs – Create an incredible custard base for this savory appetizer or brunch bite.
Optional Additions
- Herbs – Thyme, rosemary and basil are all wonderful additions and the perfect compliment to cheddar.
- Veggies – Caramelized onions, peppers, spinach, arugula, mushrooms, or cherry tomatoes.
- Protein – Prosciutto, ham, cooked bacon, cooked guanciale, cooked sausage.
How to Make Cheese Tarts
- Prep – Grease mini tart pan or mini muffin tin and preheat oven to 400 degrees.
- Make Custard – In a medium mixing bowl or stand mixer, beat eggs and heavy cream until well combined.
- Fill – Roll out pie dough on a floured surface. Cut into circles and place pie crust in each cup.
Optional – add caramelized onion, mushrooms and/or protein. Fill 3/4 of the way with custard. 
Top generously with freshly shredded Cabot Cheddar Cheese. 
- Bake – These mini tarts don’t need long in the oven – approximately 15 minutes or until set.
Fresh Shredded Cheese
If you’re a regular reader, you already know this little secret…
Shred your cheddar fresh from a block of cheese. It’s the simplest step that makes an incredible difference in your recipes. It’s worth the extra minute or two of effort!
When you freshly shred quality cheese, it’s SO creamy and melts to perfection. Additives from shredded cheese prevent the cheese from sticking in packages.
While those pre-shredded bags can certainly work in a pinch, give that extra step of shredding your cheddar a try. You might be surprised at the additional flavor it adds to these little cheddar cheese tarts and ALL your cheesy recipes!
When you’re buying a quality cheddar, why not take the extra step to shred it fresh? Cabot has swept the cheddar categories for years and years. They won a total of 37 awards last year alone. That’s the fresh shredded flavor I’m talking about!
Tips
- Season – Salt and pepper to taste, if you wish – but they don’t need it! Be especially careful with any added salt, because cheddar cheese is generally salted.
- Pre-made Pie Crust – If you’re using a premade pie crust, use anything as a circle cutter to make your life easier. This cuts the crust into the perfect shape for the muffin tin cups.
- Serving Suggestion – These can be served warm or at room temperature. They’re delicious either way and all the better for entertaining!
- Make Ahead – Yes, you can bake these up to two days in advance and store in a sealed, refrigerated container. Simply reheat to warm when ready to serve.
To Store
- Refrigerate – Allow to cool. Store in an airtight container refrigerated up to 5 days.
- Freeze – Allow to cool. Store in an airtight container up to 3 months. Thaw overnight. Bake in an oven preheated to 350 degrees Fahrenheit 12 minutes or until golden brown.
If you’re looking for the simplest way to serve these miniature cheddar cheese tarts, you’ve got to check out this amazing tart pan! It even comes with a cutter to help create the pretty scalloped edges you see pictured here!
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PS if you’re a cheese lover, too, try Cabot’s 1, 2, 3, and 5 year cheddars. You’ll thank me later!
More Easy Entertaining Recipes
- Guacamole Bites
- Spinach Dip Bites
- Quiche Lorraine
- Fresh Fruit Skewers
- Mac and Cheese Cups
- Whipped Goat Cheese Spread
- Baked Goat Cheese and Honey Recipe
Cheddar Cheese Tarts
Ingredients
- 1 pie crust divided
- 4 eggs
- 3/4 cup heavy cream
- 1 cup Cabot cheddar cheese grated
- 1 tablespoon thyme or other fresh herbs
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 400 degrees Fahrenheit. Grease tart or mini muffin tin.
- Roll out pie dough on a floured surface. Cut dough into circles using a tart or cookie cutter and place into individual tins.
- In a medium mixing bowl or stand mixer, whisk eggs and cream.
- Pour mixture into crusts until 3/4 full.
- Top generously with cheddar cheese. Garnish with herbs.
- Bake 15 minutes or until set.
Notes
Substitutions
Crust- Homemade, store-bought pie crust or cream cheese pie crust cut into circles to press into tartlet pan or mini muffin tin
- Phyllo Dough – cut into circles to press into tartlet pan or mini muffin tin
- Phyllo Shells – place on a small cookie sheet. Yields 36.
Variations
- Herbs – Garnish with thyme, rosemary or basil just before baking.
- Veggies – Add caramelized onions, peppers, spinach, arugula, mushrooms, just before filling with custard and cheese. Place halved cherry tomatoes on top just before the bake.
- Protein – Add prosciutto, ham, cooked bacon, cooked guanciale, cooked sausage before filling with custard and topping with cheese.
Tips
- Season – Salt and pepper to taste, if you wish – but they don’t need it! Be especially careful with any added salt, because cheddar cheese is generally salted.
- Pre-made Pie Crust – If you’re using a pre-made pie crust, use anything as a circle cutter to make your life easier. This cuts the crust into the perfect shape for the muffin tin cups.
- Serving Suggestion – These can be served warm or at room temperature. They’re delicious either way and all the better for entertaining!
- Make Ahead – Yes, you can bake these up to two days in advance and store in a sealed, refrigerated container. Simply reheat to warm when ready to serve.
To Store
- Refrigerate – Allow to cool. Store in an airtight container refrigerated up to 5 days.
- Freeze – Allow to cool. Store in an airtight container up to 3 months. Thaw overnight. Bake in an oven preheated to 350 degrees Fahrenheit 12 minutes or until golden brown.
I can’t get the recipe and I would love to try it. What is the secret to receiving the recipe. I signed up for emails. Thanks, looking forward to more food ideas and recipes.
Sorry, Linda! You should see it at the bottom of the post or you can click Jump to Recipe. Enjoy!
I look forward to receiving your recipes.
I am getting desperate for new meal ideas during this self isolating period of our lives. This sounds perfect to serve with a fruit salad on these hot summer nights. I have lots of herbs a d will experiment to see what the family likes best. Thanks Julie.
Enjoy! I know how that feels. Let me know if you need more ideas along the way!
Haven’t tried this yet but is sounds delicious! Have been a huge fan of Cabot cheeses for years and years. Excellent brand. Both the Extra Sharp White Cheddar and the Seriously Sharp are “to die for”. Definitely agree with you on grating your own for the best results. I do keep bagged grated cheeses on hand for convenience (and where it doesn’t affect the recipe) , but there is NO substitute for freshly grated cheese. Thank for sharing.
So glad you enjoy them, too! It’s so funny…when we have friends over they can’t believe the difference it makes. It’s one of those “who knew” things for many. Hope you have a beautiful weekend.
This was fabulous as it looks… and so easy! Absolutely delicious, so of course I had to buy the tart pan to make the hundreds more tarts that I plan to make in the future. Thank you so much for this wonderful recipe and great pictures.
Thank you, Jeanne! The tart shape makes everything feel elegant, doesn’t it?!
These look delicious and so easy! I’ve never tried to make cheese tarts before but I am totally adding these to my list to bake.
Enjoy!