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This recipe is from the cookbook
Not Afraid of Flavor: Recipes from the Magnolia Grill by
Award-Winning Chefs Ben and Karen Barker.
Photo
by Ann Hawthorne.
The chef's favorite lemon tart is a somewhat sophisticated take on
Southern-style lemon chess pie. This simple tart really is one of Ben's
favorite desserts and has been a standard in Karen's repertoire for
close to 20 years.
We most often serve this with a mixture of seasonal berries and lightly
whipped cream. You can substitute a simple raspberry
sauce made from
frozen raspberries if it is not fresh berry season.
Check more of
Linda's great
Pie
Recipes.
Chef's Favorite Lemon
Tart
Ingredients for
the tart shell:
1 1/4 cups plus 2 tablespoons
flour
1 tablespoon plus 1 teaspoon sugar
1/8 teaspoon salt
8 tablespoons cold unsalted butter, cut into small pieces
1 large egg yolk, beaten with 1 tablespoon milk
1
egg white, lightly beaten, reserved for baking
Ingredients for the filling:
4
eggs
1 1/2 cups
sugar
1/2 cup
orange juice
1/2 cup
lemon juice
Zest
of 1 lemon, grated
Zest of 1 orange, grated
1/4 cup
heavy cream
Ingredients for serving:
Fresh berries (or berry sauce)
Whipped cream
Preparation for the tart shell:
1. In a food processor, pulse together the flour, sugar, and salt. Add
the butter and pulse until the mixture resembles coarse meal. Add the
egg yolk mixture and pulse just until the dough can be gathered into a
ball. Flatten into a 6-inch disc, wrap in plastic, and chill several
hours or overnight. Let the dough soften slightly at room temperature
before rolling.
2. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. On a lightly floured surface, roll the
dough into a 13-inch round. Fit the dough into a 10 1/2 inch tart pan
with a removable bottom. Trim the dough flush with the rim and freeze
the tart shell until firm.
3. Line the shell with foil or parchment, and fill with pie weights,
rice, or dried beans. Bake for 20 minutes until set. Remove the foil and
weights and bake an additional 10 to 15 minutes until lightly golden.
Remove the shell from the oven and immediately brush the hot pastry with
the egg white.
Hint: When rolling tart pastry, always save all the dough scraps in case
you need them to repair a crack in a partially baked shell. If the
pastry "bubbles up" during the baking process, gently prick the pastry
with a fork to release air bubbles. Check several times and repeat if
necessary. The egg white serves to seal the pastry, which is especially
helpful with a liquid filling such as this. It is essential that there
be no cracks or holes visible in the partially baked shell. Make any
necessary repairs prior to filling.
Preparation for the tart:
1. When the pastry is almost done baking, assemble the filling. Whisk
together the eggs, sugar, orange juice, lemon juice, lemon zest, and
orange zest and cream till smooth. Transfer the tart shell to the oven.
Place the filling in a pitcher and slowly pour into the shell as high as
possible without overfilling. There might be a bit of filling left over.
2. Bake the tart for approximately 25 minutes, until the filling is
barely set. Check the tart after 20 minutes and keep checking it every
few minutes after that. It is crucial to not over bake this filling!
3. Cool to room temperature before serving with berries and whipped
cream.
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