French food Friday...Classic Lemon Tart

 

recipe and photo from here

 

This week I am in the mood for something with lovely lemons, here is a recipe from one of my favourite food blogs written by a fellow kiwi. 

Classic Lemon Tart

Ingredients

110g cold butter, chopped

1/3 cup icing sugar

1 1/3 cups plain flour

finely grated zest of 1 lemon

1 egg yolk plus 2 egg yolks (reserve 1 egg white and lightly whisk)

1 teaspoon iced water

4 eggs

3/4 cup caster sugar (1 cup for extra- sweet-tooths)

200mls cream

250mls freshly squeezed lemon juice

baking spray

 

METHOD

Put the cold butter in a food processor and add flour, icing sugar and lemon zest. Pulse to combine then add 1 egg yolk and 1 teaspoon of iced water. Pulse until the mixture forms big clumpy breadcrumbs and starts coming together. Tip out onto a clean bench and press and squash together into a round disc.

 

 Wrap in plastic wrap and put in the fridge for half an hour. Preheat the oven to 180 ˚C (350˚F) and remove the pastry from the fridge.

 Let it sit for 5 minutes then roll out on a lightly floured surface until it is 5cm bigger than your 25cm removable base tart tin. Spray the tin very lightly with baking spray and use a paper towel to wipe off any excess. Use a fish slice (I actually use a thin metal pizza paddle) to slip it off the bench and into the tin. Press firmly into the base and sides and prick the base lightly with the tines of a fork. Pop in the freezer for 10 minutes.

 

 Whisk eggs with remaining yolks, sugar, and cream. Don't whisk it too hard or you will make it foamy and bubbly - gently does it. Stir in lemon juice. 

 

 Cut a circle of baking paper 5cm bigger than the tart tin, place in the tin and fill with either baking beans or rice. Bake for 12 minutes, brush the base with a little reserved egg white and bake a further 10 minutes. 

Put the tart base on a baking tray and place back in the oven. Pour the filling through a sieve into a jug and carefully pour straight into the base in the oven. 

 

Reduce oven temperature to 150˚C and bake 25-30 minutes until the filling is just set, but still with a bit of wobble in the middle. Cool in the tin before removing to serve to your very lucky guests! Serves 8-10.

 

bon vendredi à tous, Leeann  x