Tarte au Citron

This weekend we hosted a 9-person formal dinner at our apartment to welcome yet another Class of '98 Campolindo High School grad (and her husband) to DC!  We had to pull out both leaves of our table, turn it sideways a tad, and pull over the desk chair to fit everyone, but it turned into a great night of good food and good friends.

One of the highlights of the night was the new dessert recipe I tried: Tarte au Citron (French Lemon Tart).  I found the recipe on Saveur and it looked simple enough, so I thought it would be a great dessert on a hot and humid DC summer evening.

Truthfully, it wasn't as simple as I thought because the crust didn't roll out as neatly as I expected, but I can honestly say that it was worth it!  The crust was like a delicious shortbread cookie surrounding this light, refreshing lemon custard.  The filling was super quick and easy to throw together and I garnished it with fresh mint leaves from our balcony garden and raspberries for a splash of color.



INGREDIENTS
For The Pastry:
2 1/2 cups flour
1/2 cup superfine sugar
Pinch salt
2 eggs
1 egg yolk
16 tbsp. butter, cut into small pieces

For The Filling:
6 eggs
1 1/4 cups sugar
1 cup fresh lemon juice
6 tbsp. heavy cream

1. For the pastry: Preheat oven to 375°. Sift together flour, sugar, and salt into a mixing bowl. Beat together 1 of the eggs and the yolk in a small bowl, then add eggs, along with the butter, to the flour mixture. Use a pastry cutter or 2 knives to work butter and eggs into flour until mixture resembles coarse meal. Transfer to a clean surface and, working with a handful at a time, knead mixture with the heel of your hand into a smooth dough. Gather together and knead briefly to form a smooth ball, then dust with flour.

2. Roll dough out on a lightly floured surface into a 14" round, then carefully ease into a 12" false-bottomed tart pan. (Pinch dough back together if it tears or cracks.) Run rolling pin over the top of the pan to cut off overhanging dough, then prick crust with a fork. Line dough with parchment paper, add pie weights or dried beans, and bake on a cookie sheet until edge of crust is golden, about 25 minutes. Beat remaining egg in a bowl. Remove parchment and weights from crust, brush bottom with egg, and continue baking until crust is golden, 5–7 minutes more. Set aside to cool.

3. For the filling: Reduce oven to 300°. Beat eggs and sugar in a medium bowl until thick and well mixed. Gradually add lemon juice, then cream, whisking constantly. Pour filling (you may have a little extra) into prepared crust and bake until filling is set, about 40 minutes. Allow to cool completely before serving.