My Fruit Tart Easter Egg Cookies are easy to make and so much fun to decorate! I used a shortbread cookie base to make these cookies more traditional and tart-like, but you can also use a sugar cookie base if you like. The mascarpone cream ties everything together and makes these cookies so special. Both kids and adults will have a blast decorating and eating these alternative Easter eggs this year.
If there’s one thing I enjoy as much as I love cooking, it’s crafting, and it makes me really happy when those two things come together. I love using my hands to create beautiful things, and playing with our food can be really fun and delicious, despite what your parents told you! These Fruit Tart Easter Egg Cookies are one of my favorite creations yet, and I enjoyed making them just as much as I enjoyed eating them.
If you love food and crafting, I hope you’ll really enjoy this fun, edible Easter activity!
Why You’ll Love These Fun Easter Egg Cookies
- Fun to make – I don’t know about you, but I love a good craft project, and making these Easter cookies is like one! You can make your cookies as creative as you like or keep them simple. Either way, both kids and adults will have fun making these.
- A great alternative to dying Easter eggs – Egg prices are a bit high right now, so I thought these Easter egg cookies would be a great alternative to using real eggs. You can decorate them with all kinds of beautiful, edible ingredients.
- Taste great – These Easter Egg Cookies are not only pretty to look at, but they also taste great! They’re not overly sweet, so they can be enjoyed for breakfast, snacks, or dessert. You can also make them sweeter using vanilla or cream cheese frosting and a sugar cookie base.
Fruit Tart Easter Egg Cookie Recipe Ingredients and Substitutions
- Cookie – I wanted to make these Easter egg cookies taste as much like fruit tarts as possible, so I used a traditional shortbread cutout cookie dough recipe (linked in the recipe card), and then I used my egg cookie cutter to shape the cookies. Instead of shortbread, you can use any kind of cut-out cookie or pie dough. Sugar cookie dough would work great. Other options to choose from include puff pastry rolled out thinly, toasted bread, pancakes, or waffles. You can really use anything that can be cut into an egg shape, which goes well with cream cheese and fruit.
- Cream – I used mascarpone cheese, softened at room temperature, and mixed in maple syrup and vanilla extract for sweetness. Mascarpone substitutes include cream cheese, cream cheese frosting, vanilla frosting, whipped cream, or pastry custard/cream.
- Toppings – You can get as creative as you like when decorating these fun Easter cookies. I used a mixture of fresh fruits, including dragon fruit, star fruit, raspberries, blueberries, kiwi, and pomegranate. You can also decorate with dried fruits, nuts, or seeds. Use your imagination, and nothing edible is off-limits!
How To Make These Cute Easter Cookies
- Heat oven to 350 degrees F. Line a large baking sheet with parchment paper. Roll out your cookie dough until it’s about 1/4-inch thick. If it’s sticky, you can roll it out on a lightly floured surface or between two pieces of plastic wrap or parchment paper. Use an Easter egg cookie cutter to cut out as many easter egg shapes as possible from the dough. Depending on your cookie sheet size, you may have to do a few batches. You can make as many or as few egg-shaped cookies as you need. The recipe I used made 12-13 cookies.
- Place the dough in the oven and bake until golden brown and cooked through, about 10-12 minutes. Remove from the oven, transfer cookies to a cooling rack, and allow to cool fully. Repeat with the remaining dough until finished.
- Add the softened mascarpone or cream cheese to a medium-sized bowl and add pure maple syrup and vanilla extract to taste. You can make it as sweet as you like. Powdered sugar can also be mixed in for sweetness, or you could use a cream cheese frosting. Mix until completely combined.
- Use a spoon to carefully spread the mascarpone cheese over the cookies, and then use a knife to even it out. Shortbread cookies can be a bit fragile, so make sure the cream spread is at room temperature. If your cookies have any bubbles, you can use the bottom side, which was against the cookie sheet; that side should be completely flat.
- You can cut the fruits into different shapes and plan how you want to decorate each cookie. It’s fun to play around with varying combinations of fruit and flavors. Feel free to use any other edible ingredients you like. These are best when enjoyed shortly after making, as the pie crust can get a bit soggy if stored overnight. Have fun and enjoy!
Recipe Frequently Asked Questions
- Make this recipe gluten-free by using your favorite gluten-free cut-out cookie recipe.
- Make this recipe vegan by using a vegan cream cheese substitute.
- Which shortbread cookie recipe did you use? I used this one, and it worked great!
- Do I need to use shortbread cookies? No, you can use any kind of cut-out cookie dough you like for this recipe. I’ve also made these cookies using store-bought pie crust, saving a lot of time.
- How long do leftovers last? I suggest eating these fruit tart cookies soon after making them, as they can get a bit soggy if left sitting out for too long. If you need to store them, store them in an air-tight container in the refrigerator for up to three days.
Have a question I didn’t answer? Ask me in the comment section below, and I will get back to you ASAP!
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Fruit Tart Easter Egg Cookies
- Total Time: 45 minutes
- Yield: 10 1x
- Diet: Vegetarian
Description
These Easter Egg Cookies are easy to make and so much fun to decorate! I used a shortbread cookie base for these, to make them more traditional and tart-like, but you can also use a sugar cookie base, if you like. The mascarpone cream ties everything together and makes these cookies so special. Both kids and adults will have a blast decorating and eating these alternative easter eggs this year.
Ingredients
Scale
- 1 traditional shortbread cookie recipe
- 1–2 containers mascarpone cheese, or cream cheese, softened to room temperature (I used one 8 oz tub for about 8 cookies)
- Pure maple syrup, to taste
- Vanilla extract, to taste
- Your favorite brightly colored fruit, nuts, seeds, herbs, etc…
- I used dragonfruit, star fruit, strawberries, blueberries, raspberries, pumpkin seeds, and pomegranate seeds
Instructions
- Heat oven to 350 degrees F. Line a large baking sheet with parchment paper. Roll out your cookie dough until it’s about 1/4th inch thick. You can roll it out on a lightly floured surface, or between two pieces of plastic wrap or parchment paper, if it’s sticky. Use an Easter egg cookie cutter to cut out as many easter egg shapes as you can out of the dough. You may have to do a few batches, depending on how big your cookie sheet is. You can make as many or as few egg shaped cookies as you need. The recipe I used made 12-13 cookies.
- Place the dough in the oven and bake until golden brown and cooked through, about 10-12 minutes. Remove from the oven, transfer cookies to a cooling rack, and allow to cool fully. Repeat with the remaining dough until finished.
- Add the softened mascarpone or cream cheese to a medium-sized bowl and add pure maple syrup and vanilla extract, to taste. You can make it as sweet as you like. Powdered sugar can also be mixed in for sweetness, or you could use a cream cheese frosting. Mix until completely combined.
- Use a spoon to carefully spread the mascarpone cheese all over the cookies, and then use a knife to even it out. Shortbread cookies can be a little fragile so make sure the cream spread is at room temperature so it’s easier to spread. If your cookies have any bubbles, you can use the other side, which was against the cookie sheet, that should be completely flat.
- You can cut the fruits into different shapes and plan how you want to decorate each cookie. It’s fun to play around with different fruit combinations and flavors. Feel free to use any other edible ingredients you like. These are best when enjoyed shortly after making, as the pie crust can get a bit soggy if stored overnight. Have fun and enjoy!
Notes
This recipe is really versatile and can easily be customized to your own taste preferences. Instead of shortbread, you can use sugar cookie dough or puff pastry. And, rather than mascarpone, you can use cream cheese, vanilla frosting, whipped cream, icing or even something like peanut butter.
- Prep Time: 30 mins
- Cook Time: 15 mins
- Category: Snack
- Method: Oven
- Cuisine: American
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