Lemon Tart

Why, hello summer…

It’s about time you arrived.

Haven’t made many tarts, but I found this lemon tart recipe that sounded really good. It’s supposedly Bouchon’s Lemon Tart recipe! Didn’t make their crust since I didn’t have pine nuts on hand, however, I’d like to try it next time.

Crust (Original Recipe)

• 125 mL unsalted butter, cut into pieces
• 1 tablespoon oil
• 3 tablespoons water
• 1 tablespoon sugar
• 1/8 teaspoon salt
• 3/4 to 1 C flour

Preheat the oven to 410º F (210º C).

1. In a medium-sized oven-proof bowl, such as a Pyrex bowl, combine the butter, oil, water, sugar, and salt.
2. Place the bowl in the oven for 15 minutes, until the butter is bubbling and starts to brown just around the edges
3. When done, remove the bowl from oven (and be careful, since the bowl will be hot and the mixture might sputter a bit), dump in the flour and stir it in quickly, until it comes together and forms a ball which pulls away from the sides of the bowl.
4. Transfer the dough to a 9-inch (23 cm) tart mold with a removable bottom and spread it a bit with a spatula.
5. Once the dough is cool enough to handle, pat it into the shell with the heel of your and, and use your fingers to press it up the sides of the tart mold. Reserve a small piece of dough, about the size of a raspberry, for patching any cracks.
6. Prick the dough all over with the tines of a fork about ten times, then bake the tart shell in the oven for 15 minutes, or until the dough is golden brown.
7. Remove from the oven and if there are any sizable cracks, use the bits of reserved dough to fill in and patch them. Let the shell cool before filling.

Lemon Sabayon (Original Recipe)

• 2 large eggs, cold
• 2 large egg yolks, cold
• 3/4 cup sugar (change to 2/3 C)
• 1/2 cup fresh lemon juice
• 6 tablespoons cold unsalted butter, cut into 6 pieces (change to 4 tbsp)
• 1 tsp lemon zest

1. Bring about 1 1/2 inches of water to a boil in a pot that is slightly smaller than the diameter of the bowl you will be using for the sabayon. Meanwhile, in a large metal bowl, whisk the eggs, yolks, and sugar for about 1 minute, or until the mixture is smooth.
2. Set the bowl over the pot and, using a large whisk, whip the mixture while you turn the bowl (for even heating). After about 2 minutes, when the eggs are foamy and have thickened, add one-third of the lemon juice. Continue to whisk vigorously and, when the mixture thickens again, add another one-third of the lemon juice. Whisk until the mixture thickens again, then add the remaining lemon juice. Continue whisking vigorously, still turning the bowl, until the mixture is thickened and light in color and the whisk leaves a trail in the bottom of the bowl. The total cooking time should be 8 to 10 minutes.
3. Turn off the heat and leave the bowl over the water. Whisk in the butter a piece at a time. The sabayon may loosen slightly, but it will thicken and set as it cools. Pour the warm sabayon into the tart crust and place the pan on a baking sheet.
4. Preheat the broiler. While the sabayon is still warm, place the tart under the broiler. Leaving the door open, brown the top of the sabayon, rotating the tart if necessary for even color; this will take only a few seconds, so do not leave the oven. Remove the tart from the broiler and let it sit for at least 1 hour before serving. Serve at room temperature or cold. (I didn’t broil my tart, but rather just sprinkled a bit of zest overtop)

I loved the look of this tart, however, I think I’ll be changing a couple of things for next time. I found the tart fairly sweet for my taste, so reducing the sugar to about 2/3C might work better. I used margarine for this tart, but will be using butter next time. And lastly, I’d really like to try Bouchon’s pine nut crust. Oh and one more thing – maybe it’s just my taste, but I found the filling slightly too rich with all the margarine, so cutting that down next time might help.

For the most part, I think the tart turned out well. Was so glad the filling set up and thickened properly, since some reviewers had problems with the filling not thickening enough to fill the tart.

Hmmmm I’ve got about 4 more lemons left… What to make…