My favorite lemon tart tastes just like a classic ‘tarte
au citron’ from France. It has shallow sides, a crumbly, sweet, cookie-like
crust, and classic lemon curd filling with just enough butter to make it creamy
and not too sour. Since the filling is quite rich, the lemon layer isn’t very
thick.
I usually don’t like a lot of butter in my lemon curd, but
here it helps to mute the bold lemon flavor, which I find really makes this
tart superb. You can cut the butter by half if you prefer, or on the contrary,
add more. The butter also adds a thick, creamy texture and the long whisking
when adding it makes it light and airy. You can whisk the butter by hand, or
even better, use a blender. Add the butter to the lemon mixture and blend,
adding a few cubes of butter at a time, until completely smooth.
Ingredients
- one fully baked tart crust
For the lemon curd filling:
- 2 large eggs, plus 2 egg yolks (or 3 whole eggs)
- ¾ cup (150 g/5.3 oz) granulated sugar
- 1 tablespoon lemon zest
- ½ cup (120 ml) freshly squeezed lemon juice (2-3 lemons for both zest and juice)
- 2 tablespoons heavy cream, optional
- ½ cup (1 stick/115 g) unsalted butter, cut into small pieces
Instructions
- To make the lemon curd: In a medium heatproof bowl, place eggs, sugar, lemon zest, lemon juice, and heavy cream and whisk to combine. Place the bowl over a saucepan of simmering water (bain-marie). Cook on moderate heat, whisking constantly, until mixture becomes thick (mine was ready in 10 minutes, but it can take up to 20). If you have a thermometer, it should register 170°F/75°C; otherwise, it should coat the back of a wooden spoon and leave a clear pass if you run your finger through it. The curd will thicken more once cooled.
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full recipe : prettysimplesweet.com
