I love Holiday desserts –gingerbread, pumpkin pie, persimmon pudding, multitudinous cookies, chocolate everything– but, as the season goes on, one becomes increasingly aware that they’re mostly, well, brown. And eating them on top of meals of roasted meat and fowl, rich sauces, root vegetables and full-bodies wines tends to lull my already heavy-lidded palate toward sleep. This tart is a wake-up call. It’s light and bright and yet luxurious, like stepping into a shaft on sunlight on a cold day. Even better, it’s quick and easy to make from ingredients you’re bound to have on hand, making it an ideal player in your Holiday entertaining repertoire. It’s been a stand-by of mine for over 10 years, and I never tire of its sunny flavor.
Recipe (adapted from Patricia Wells’ Lemon Lover’s Tart in Patricia Wells at Home in Provence)
Ingredients:
For the shell:
8 tablespoons (4 oz) unsalted butter, melted and cooled, plus more for buttering the tart pan
1/4 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/8 teaspoon almond extract
grated zest of 1 lemon, blanched and refreshed
1/4 cup confectioners’ sugar
a pinch of fine salt
1 1/4 cups unbleached all-purpose flour
For the filling:
2 large eggs, at room temperature
3 large egg yolks, at room temperature
1 cup white granulated sugar
8 tablespoons (4 oz) unsalted butter, at room temperature, cut into 8 pieces
grated zest of of 2 lemons, blanched and refreshed
1/2 cup freshly squeezed lemon juice, strained (from your now bald lemons)
Equipment: 8 or 9-inch fluted tart pan with a removable bottom (available for about $10 at most cooking supply stores, e.g., for $9 at www.williams-sonoma.com); fine-toothed grater, microplane grater or fine wood rasp for grating lemon zest; double boiler, or a metal bowl fitted over a large saucepan.
Instructions
Make the shell:
Apart from it’s light and flaky texture, the best thing about this pastry crust is that it’s fast and unfussy: there’s no chilling the dough, rolling, trimming and re-chilling before you put it in the oven. You just mix it up, press it into the pan and bake it straight away.
1. Preheat the oven to 350F.
2. Butter the sides and bottom of the tart pan.
3. Blanch and refresh the lemon zest. I do this by putting the grated zest in a small strainer, lowering it into a bowl of boiling water for a few seconds and then running cold tap water through it to immediately stop the cooking.
4. In a bowl, combine the butter, vanilla and almond extracts, sugar, zest and salt and stir with a spoon to blend. Gradually add the flower and mix until you have a soft dough.
5. Put the dough in the center of the tart pan.
6. Working from the inside to the edges with your fingertips, distribute the dough evenly over the bottom and sides of the pan.
7. Smooth the surface of the dough. Go for reasonably uniform thickness, but don’t labor over this step. For a prettier edge, press the dough into the flutes with the side of your finger, going round the pan first with your index finger and then your pinky. If you’re short of time (or patience), though, you can skip this step and still have a fine looking dessert.
8. Bake in the center of the oven until lightly browned, about 15 minutes. (Watch the shell closely after about 12 minutes — it browns quickly at the end.) Cool for at least 10 minutes before filling. (You can do this while you prepare the lemon custard.) When take the shell out of the oven, grip the pan by its sides. If you hold it from the bottom, the outer (hot) ring can fall off, possibly burning your arm and damaging your perfect crust as you put it back on. Not that this has ever happened to me . . . . Oh, and don’t remove the tart from the pan before serving.
Make the filling:
1. Off the heat, combine the eggs, egg yolks and the sugar in the top pan of the double boiler.
2. Place over simmering water. (The top pan should never touch the water below.)
3. Whisk frequently (though not constantly) until the entire mixture is frothy and pale yellow in color. This consistency will form first on the top of the mixture and then spread below as cooking progresses. This phase of cooking will about 6-8 minutes, but can take as long as 10, depending on the heat.
4. Stir in the butter, one tablespoon-sized chunk at a time, allowing one to completely melt before adding the next.
5. Add the lemon zest and juice and whisk frequently until the mixture is thick and custard-like. Don’t let it boil. This will probably take 3-4 more minutes.
6. Pour the lemon custard into the cooled shell and smooth the surface of the tart with a spatula. The custard will set (without refrigeration) in about 30 minutes. To serve, gently remove the outer ring of the tart pan and dust with confectioners’ sugar, if you like. Lemon tarts are sometimes served with whipped cream and/or berries, but, in my view, this is gilding the lily. I just slice and serve.
