| Level: | Intermediate |
| Total: | 1 hr 35 min |
| Prep: | 20 min |
| Inactive: | 30 min |
| Cook: | 45 min |
| Yield: | 1 (9 or 10-inch) tart |
Ingredients
- 12 tablespoons (1 1/2 sticks) unsalted butter, plus more for greasing, at room temperature
- 1/2 cup sugar
- 1/2 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
- 1 3/4 cups all-purpose flour
- Pinch salt
- 4 lemons, at room temperature
- 1 1/2 cups sugar
- 1/4 pound (1 stick) unsalted butter, at room temperature
- 4 extra-large eggs, at room temperature
- 1/8 teaspoon salt
Instructions
- For the tart shell:
- Mix the butter and sugar together in the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with a paddle attachment until they are just combined. Add the vanilla. In a medium bowl, sift together the flour and salt, then add them to the butter-and-sugar mixture. Mix on low speed until the dough starts to come together. Dump onto a surface dusted with flour and shape into a flat disk. Press the dough into a 10-inch-round or 9-inch-square false-bottom tart pan, making sure that the finished edge is flat. Chill until firm.
- Meanwhile, preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.
- Butter 1 side of a square of aluminum foil to fit inside the chilled tart and place it, buttered side down, on the pastry. Fill with beans or rice. Bake for 20 minutes. Remove the foil and beans, prick the tart all over with the tines of a fork, and bake again for 20 to 25 minutes more, or until lightly browned. Allow to cool to room temperature.
- For the lemon curd:
- Remove the zest of the lemons with a vegetable peeler or zester, being careful to avoid the white pith. Squeeze the lemons to make 1/2 cup of juice and set the juice aside. Put the zest in a food processor fitted with a steel blade. Add the sugar and process for 2 to 3 minutes, until the zest is very finely minced. In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with a paddle attachment, cream the butter with the sugar and lemon zest. Add the eggs, 1 at a time, and then add the lemon juice and salt. Mix until combined.
- Pour the mixture into a 2-quart saucepan and cook over low heat, stirring constantly, until thickened, about 10 minutes. The lemon curd will thicken at about 175 degrees F, or just below a simmer. Remove from the heat.
- Fill the tart shell with warm lemon curd and allow to set at room temperature.
Reviews
Lemon curd was excellent. Crust was a little too thick, will make it thinner next time, added a freshly made blueberry sauce on top and swirled it, a real beauty.
If I use graham wafer crumbs for crust how long do I bake it on its own?
The curd never set even after being in the fridge all night!
The beans and rice were a great addition to the tarts – they truly brought out the lemon taste! The crunchiness of the rice was unexpected but lovely in my mouth.
Do not put butter on bottom of tin foil as that causes the foil to stick to the shell and removes some when you remove the tin foil.
I need to print this…
I should have read the comments. The crust was really difficult to manage, and I make tarts all the time. But it was Ina so I used her recipe. The curd is good. Mine curdled even before I put the lemon juice in, though. but it did cook up fine. I am at 7,600 ft. so it took 18 minutes not 10 to thicken properly.
I like the fact that you mix everything together and than place in pan. I did grate the lemon with a extra fine grater instead of using a peeler
I also had a bad experience with the dough not coming together. I threw it away on the first try. On the second try I added a great deal of water and it did come together but the pastry was very hard after baking. We really enjoyed the curd, though. That part was delicious!
I’ll grade myself here and I earned an F on presentation. The crush puffed on me a bit and the sides were rough to say the least. However, taste was an A. The curd was easy to make and the imperfect crust was tasty.