Jevay Pucker up, buttercup! We have a sweet and tangy lemon curd tart coming our way! This lemon curd tart is a delight at any time of the year. The curd is sharp, smooth and sweet all at the same time. The pate sucree base is crisp, and tender and the perfect base for the lemon curd. This dessert is easy to make and is sure to become a staple!
Lemon Curd
Lemon curd is a traditional filling for cakes and stands on its own in pies. Historians have noted that lemon curd originated in the 19th century in England. The earliest mention of it was in a cookbook in 1844. The cookbook is “The Lady’s Own Cookery Book” by Lady Charlotte Campbell Bury. This recipe was a departure from what we would recognize as lemon curd. Back then lemons and lemon peel were added to cream in order to acidify the mixture. Then, the mixture was put through cheesecloth to separate the curds from the whey. This process would yield a “lemon cheese”, if you will. And for many years, that’s what it was called! But whether we want to call it a cheese, or a curd -it is made with simple ingredients in a very simple way!
A traditional curd calls for beaten egg yolks, sugar, butter, lemon juice, and lemon zest! You’ll want to ensure that all ingredients are at room temperature before beginning. I also recommend using a double boiler during this process. Double boilers keep the ingredients from coming into direct contact with the heat which slows down the cook. Instead, the ingredients will go inside of a bowl that sits on top of boiling water. The heat from the boiling water will allow the ingredients to come together.
After the ingredients come together in the bowl, they will need to be passed through a sieve. This is the most important step! The sieve will catch the lemon zest that hasn’t dissolved. It will also catch the parts of the egg that have scrambled from the heat! Even if you think the lemon curd is smooth, pass it through the sieve anyway. Trust me!
The only step left is to allow the lemon curd to cool! I like to transfer mine to a mason jar or a bowl before putting it in the fridge. Sometimes a thin film can form on top of the curd as it’s cooling. To prevent that, I drape a piece of plastic wrap over the top of the lemon curd. This ensures that no film forms. After the lemon curd has chilled, it will be good for 2-3 weeks. Trust me, it won’t last that long!
Pate Sucree Base
Pate Sucree is a sweet French pastry dough that is used as a base for most tarts. This tender shortbread cookie base is buttery, lightly sweet and has a crumbly texture. Pate sucree is mostly known for being a very sturdy base to work with despite its 6 simple ingredients! In fact, pate sucree can support the heaviest of fillings with ease and it’s perfect for my lemon curd!
I heard that there are two ways to make a pate sucree pastry. One method is creaming, while the other is cutting the butter into the flour. However, a true pate sucree is made with the creaming method. Cutting the fat into the flour will create another pastry altogether. Essentially, you would end up having an irregular flaky texture. This texture is similar to pate brisee, which is more suitable for savory pies or quiches.
After assembling the pate sucree, I shaped it into a 6-8 inch circle. I then wrapped it in plastic wrap. This allowed it to chill in the fridge for about 30 minutes. Chilling the dough helps the fat to solidify which prevents the pastry from shrinking in the oven. Chilled pastry dough always yields a more desirable crust.
I’m making mini lemon curd tarts using 6 4-inch tart pans. This pastry dough easily fits into a 9 inch tart pan. So, I rolled out the tart dough as it was sandwiched between plastic wrap. From there I traced the tart pan over the dough to ensure enough for the bottom and the sides. The beauty of pate sucree is how forgivable of a dough it is. You can piece-meal this dough into the tart pan and you still won’t have any leaks!
Because the lemon curd does not need to be baked, the pate sucree does! I chose to blind bake this pastry for 15 minutes initially using baking beans, rice, and sugar. All three blind baking methods work, but for this bake, the baking beans worked the best. I removed the baking beans after 15 minutes. I then used an egg wash on this pate sucree. It ensured that I would have a nice shiny and leak-proof pastry dough after it was done baking. I then baked the tartlets for an additional 15 minutes. At this point the tartlets were golden brown and ready to cool!
After letting the tartlets cool for at least 30 minutes, I added the chilled lemon curd into the shells. The tartlets then chilled in the fridge until I was ready to decorate them.
Assembly
Traditionally tarts are usually sold in the window of a patisserie because of how beautiful they are. There is a saying that we humans eat with our eyes first. Therefore, decoration is key to any tart or any dessert for that matter. I decided to decorate these tartlets with vanilla macarons, candied lemons, and a generous amount of powdered sugar. You could also eat these with just the lemon curd and they will still be delicious.
I think that you’ll love this recipe! If you give it a try, let me know how it worked for you in the comments.
Happy Reading. Happy Eating.
-jevay
Lemon Curd Tartlet
Ingredients
Lemon Curd
- 3/4 cup fresh lemon juice
- 1/2 cup salted butter cut into tbs chunks
- 3 large eggs
- 3/4 cup sugar
- 1 tbs lemon zest
Pate Sucree
- 1/2 cup salted butter
- 1/3 cup sugar
- 1/4 tsp salt
- 1 1/4 cup AP flour
- 1 egg yolk
Instructions
Pate Sucree
- Cream the butter, sugar and salt in a mixing bowl.
- Add the flour. Then add the egg yolk.
- Using your hands, pull the pastry dough together onto a piece of plastic wrap. Shape the dough into a 6 inch circle. Cover it completely with plastic wrap.
- Chill in the fridge for 30 minutes.
- Remove from the fridge and roll out between two pieces of plastic wrap into a large circle.
- Use the tart shell to “cut” out the dough piece that you will need. Lift that dough into the tart shell and mold it to fit the tart shell. Ensure that you don’t have any large tears or holes.
- Dock the pastry with a fork and chill for an additional 30 minutes.
- Preheat the oven to 350F and prepare the dough for blind baking by adding a piece of aluminum foil and baking beans.
- Blind bake for 15 minutes. Remove the baking beans and aluminum foil and bake for an additional 15 minutes. The pastry will be golden brown upon removal. Set aside and cool.
Lemon Curd
- Add the sugar, lemon zest, and lemon juice into your bowl over the double boiler.
- Begin adding the butter chunks until melted.
- Continue to stir for about 10 minutes.
- Check for doneness by seeing if the lemon curd has thickened and if the lemon curd can fully coat the back of a spoon.
- Remove from the heat and pass the lemon curd through a sieve.
- Place plastic wrap over the lemon curd (ensure it's touching the lemon curd surface) and let cool in the fridge for 2-3 hours.
Assemble
- When the tart shells have cooled and the lemon curd is set and cooled. Scoop lemon curd into the tart shells and smooth out. Let chill in the fridge for another 20-30 minutes. Sprinkle with powdered sugar and enjoy.
