The LEMON TART is a simple but delicious dessert, featuring a crunchy base and a very soft filling. It can be served on many occasions, especially at the end of a meal: its citrus flavor and scent are perfect for concluding even an important dinner, much to everyone’s delight, whether someone wants a generous slice of cake or the refreshment of a light sorbet.
This tart is really very easy to make because it requires only two quick preparations: a classic shortcrust pastry and a delicate, fragrant egg- and milk-free lemon cream, both of which are within everyone’s reach. Then you can have fun decorating: I limited myself to small rosettes and added lemon zest and little mint leaves, but you can also add strawberries, berries or anything that pairs well with lemon and adds color and indulgence to the dessert.
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- Difficulty: Very easy
- Cost: Very inexpensive
- Rest time: 2 Hours
- Preparation time: 20 Minutes
- Portions: 8 servings
- Cooking methods: Oven
- Cuisine: Italian
- Energy 468.41 (Kcal)
- Carbohydrates 70.24 (g) of which sugars 42.42 (g)
- Proteins 5.23 (g)
- Fat 20.28 (g) of which saturated 9.51 (g)of which unsaturated 5.53 (g)
- Fibers 0.74 (g)
- Sodium 65.40 (mg)
Indicative values for a portion of 85 g processed in an automated way starting from the nutritional information available on the CREA* and FoodData Central** databases. It is not food and / or nutritional advice.
* CREATES Food and Nutrition Research Center: https://www.crea.gov.it/alimenti-e-nutrizione https://www.alimentinutrizione.it ** U.S. Department of Agriculture, Agricultural Research Service. FoodData Central, 2019. https://fdc.nal.usda.gov
Ingredients
- 2 cups all-purpose flour
- 5/8 cup granulated sugar
- 1/2 cup butter (cold)
- pinch of salt
- lime zest
- 1 egg (medium at room temperature)
- 1 egg yolk
- 6 tbsp lemon juice
- 7.4 fl oz water
- 3/4 + 2 tbsp cup granulated sugar
- 5 tbsp cornstarch (Maizena)
- 1/2 cup heavy cream
YOU’LL NEED FOR THE LEMON TART
- 2 Bowls
- 1 Tart pan Ø 8 in
- Parchment paper
- 1 Saucepan
- 1 Whisk
- Electric whisk
- 1 Rolling pin
PREPARATION OF THE LEMON TART
In a large bowl place the flour, the sugar, a pinch of salt and the lime zest. Mix all the dry ingredients, make a well in the center and add the cold butter cut into pieces. Then, using your fingertips, start working everything until you get a sandy texture.
Add the whole egg and the yolk and quickly incorporate them with the other ingredients.
Form a dough disk, wrap it in plastic wrap and place it in the fridge to firm up for at least 30 minutes.
Take the shortcrust pastry out of the fridge and roll it out to a thickness of about 1/8 in (3 mm).
Line a 8 in tart pan, preferably with a removable base, prick the base with a fork and cover it with a sheet of parchment paper and dried chickpeas for blind baking. With the remaining pastry you can make cookies or wrap it in plastic and freeze it.
Bake in a preheated conventional oven at 356°F for 15 minutes. Remove from the oven, discard the chickpeas and parchment paper and bake again for another 10 minutes.
Once baked, remove from the oven and let it cool completely.
In a saucepan put the sugar and the cornstarch and mix. Add the water and the lemon juice and, using a whisk, mix everything until you obtain a smooth, lump-free mixture.
Place the saucepan over low heat and cook, stirring continuously with a whisk.
As soon as the cream thickens and becomes nearly translucent, remove it from the heat, transfer it to a bowl, cover with plastic wrap in direct contact with the surface and let it cool to room temperature. Then place it in the fridge for 1 hour.
After chilling, take the cream from the fridge and beat it with electric beaters until soft and velvety.
Whip the cream (it must be very cold) and fold it into the lemon cream until smooth.
Place the cream in a piping bag fitted with a star tip and fill the shortcrust shell. If you wish, decorate with lemon zest and mint leaves. Store the lemon tart in the fridge until serving.
