Recipe for the lemon tart

Ingredients

For the pastry

• 1 large egg yolk

• 200g cups all-purpose flour (1 ¼ cups), plus 2 tablespoons plus more for dusting

• 50g caster sugar (4 tablespoons)

• 1 pinch of salt

• 100g cold unsalted butter, cut into small cubes

• 3 tablespoons of iced water

For the filling

• 4 large eggs

• 225g caster sugar (1 cup)

• 250g lemon juice (aprox. 1 cup, from about 6 lemons)

• 3g salt (½ teaspoon)

• 200g cold unsalted butter, cut into pieces

• Zest from 5 lemons

Instructions

For the pastry

1. Chill ⅓ cup of water.

2. In a large bowl, combine the flour with the sugar and salt.

3. Add the butter cut into small cubes and, using your fingertips rub the butter into the flour until it resembles coarse meal.

4. In a small bowl, whisk the egg yolk with the 3 tablespoons of chilled water.

5. Stir in the yolk mixture and gently knead the pastry until it comes together. If necessary, add more water.

6. Divide into eight balls, flatten them into discs and wrap each one in clingfiln. Chill for 30 minutes.

7. Preheat the oven to 200°C/180°C fan.

8. Roll out the dough on a lightly floured surface and line each one of the tartlet tins, pressing firmly into the sides. You can do this with the help of a rolling pin or by pressing portions of the dough into the tins using your fingertips. Trim any excess. Cover with parchment paper and chill for 30 mins. In the meantime you can make the custard.

9. Once chilled, fill the tins with dried beans or pie weights and blind bake for 15 minutes. Remove the paper and beans and bake for 5 minutes longer, until golden brown. Set aside to cool completely.

For the custard

1. Finely zest 5 of the lemons and use the peel of the last lemon to cut out strips for decoration.

2. Bring a pan of water to simmer.

3. In a bowl, mix the zest, lemon juice, sugar, salt and eggs, then place the bowl over the pan with the simmering water making sure it doesn’t touch the water.

4. Whisk gently but continuously, until it thickens (around 15-20 minutes). It should be thick enough to coat the back of a spoon.

5. Remove the bowl and stir in the butter, a few pieces at a time, whisking continuously until fully incorporated. You should get a smooth cream.

6. Cover by pressing plastic wrap directly onto surface.

7. When cooled, pipe the custard into the shells and transfer to the fridge to chill (at least 2 hours).

8. Serve with whipped crème and a tart fruit coulis. You can also just sprinkle icing sugar just before serving.

9. Decorate with the lemon peels.

10. The tart can be refrigerated overnight.

Read French lemon tart - one more try