My friend Charles of Five Euro Food posted a lovely recipe for lemon curd and it got me thinking about lemons. Once I get lemons on my mind, I usually have to do something about it. Our good friends Paul and T were visiting for the weekend and I knew I had to make a lemony dessert for one of the nights we were eating in. Plus it was Earth Day and we would be dining by candle light during Lights Out (so exciting) so I wanted a dessert that would be easy and not too heavy as I was making Paella for dinner! Thanks Charles for the lovely lemony inspiration.
Classic Shaker Lemon Tarts
Makes four small 3 inch tarts (a Martha Stewart Recipe)
Ingredients:
- 1 large lemon, sliced very thinly
- 1 cup sugar
- 2 large eggs, lightly beaten
- Viennese Pastry (see below)
Directions:
- Cut lemons crosswise into paper-thin rounds using a mandoline or a very sharp knife; discard ends and seeds.
- Place lemon slices in a medium nonreactive bowl, and add sugar; toss to coat. Cover with plastic wrap, and let stand at room temperature overnight.
- Divide the dough into four equal balls. With the heel of your hand, flatten out the balls into a small disk. Place in the centre of each spring form tart pan and press out to the edges with your fingers. Roll the top to get a nice scalloped edge.
- Place on a rimmed baking sheet lined with parchment and refrigerate for 1 hour.
- Preheat oven to 450°F, with rack in lower third. Add lightly beaten eggs to lemon mixture, and stir to combine.
- Pour through a fine sieve into a medium bowl. Divide liquid among tart shells, then top with the lemon slices, arranging decoratively.
- Bake tarts on baking sheet 15 minutes. Reduce heat to 350°F, bake until filling is set and beginning to brown, about 15 minutes. Let cool on sheet on a wire rack 10 minutes. Remove tarts from pans, and allow to cool completely on wire racks.
- Serve with a dollop of whipping cream.
Viennese Pastry
Originally from the Five Roses Flour Cookbook
Ingredients:
- 1/2 cup all purpose flour
- 1/8 cup sugar
- pinch of salt
- 1/4 cup unsalted butter
- 1 small egg yolk at room temperature
- 1/4 tsp vanilla
- 1/2 tsp grated lemon rind
Directions:
- In a food processor, add all of the ingredients except the egg yolk and vanilla, process until the butter is incorporated and it resembles corn meal. Add the egg yolk and vanilla and process until it becomes a ball. If it is very soft, you may want to refrigerate for 30 to 60 minutes.
- Follow directions above.
So tell me, did you honour Lights Out for Earth Hour? We had our dinner party by candle light and cooked everything on gas or the BBQ by candle light. It was a chilly night so we even had a wood fire in the fire place.
[…] too sweet for our taste, so I adapted my old favourite Martha Stewart recipe that I first posted here. Both the filling and pastry components come together very quickly and it sure was tasty with the […]
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These look very elegant – what a great presentation! I’m sure the lemon flavor is delicious and super-rich! Thanks for sharing this – I would never think about doing something like this – now I just might!
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Thanks Bill, it really is very easy and as you said a lovely presentation. I adore little individual desserts, they are indeed very elegant. Thank you.
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Ahh I had no idea why they were called shaker tarts until now! And here I am with a bag of lovely, juicy lemons in the fridge too!
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I do hope you try them Lorraine, so easy and tasty, for sure.
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I am absolutely the same way Eva. Once I get lemon in my head, I have to have something with lemon. Tarts are easily one of my favorites (that and lemon bars). Oh yum! I see where this is going…it’s getting in my head now. LOL.
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You would think for me it would be chocolate (but not for you; I do remember), but I love the lemon because it doesn’t taste heavy or rich. And this tart recipe doesn’t have butter in the curd which also helps cut the richness. PS. I have been known to actually eat a raw lemon or lime without sugar and enjoy it!
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Wow, these tartlets look delectable…and so gorgeous topped with lemon slices!
PS..I have heard that vodka in pie crust adds moistness without developing gluten.
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That’s very interesting Liz, about the vodka (but what a waste!). I’ll give it a try next time. And thank you for your kind words.
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Lemon desserts are my weakness…and don’t even get me started on lemon tarts! Yours look fabulous. Perfect golden crust. 🙂
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The crust was crispy yet easy enough to cut with a fork, Caroline. I love the tartness of these tarts.
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One of my favourite dishes to make in the spring. I’ll have to give this recipe a try! I usually always make a large tart and brulee the top.
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thanks Barb, JT claims the lemons are a bit difficult to eat, but I didn’t hear any complaints from the others. I think next time, I will cut into the rind so it’s started, or you could just omit and dress with a gorgeous jelly lemon!
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I have just been thinking of making some lemon curd sometime next week! I love lemon curd and your tarts sure looks yummy!
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My tart is more of a cheaters lemon curd tart, Joyce. But that’s what I really love about it, it’s quite fast to make once you soak the lemon slices overnight. You should check out Charles, Five Euro Food, he has a lemon curd recipe that looks lovely.
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I too missed earth day. Good idea to make single serving desserts and only enough for the meal, cannot ask for seconds. Your tartlets are beautful.
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That’s the down side Norma, I don’t have extras to serve. But then again, none of us needed it anyway. For me, personally a small bite from JT’s is usually enough, believe it or not. But I will have a second or fifth glass of wine 😉 Have a great weekend.
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Simply stunning!
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Thank you kindly Greg.
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Damn, I missed Earth Day again – missed it last year too 😦 Would have wanted to do something for it – well, there’s nothing stopping me having my own little earth day this weekend!
Thanks for mention Eva – I’m so glad I could inspire you with my curd. I opened up the other jar of it today and it was like a beautiful, zesty, lemony burst of flavour after a few lemon-free days! Your tarts have an amazing colour – they look just the little “tartelettes au citron” that they sell at my nearby patisserie – beautiful!
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Thank you Charles for your lovely compliments, you are always so generous. Yes, you should have your own earth hour, it would be very romantic too 😉
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any recipes by martha is amazing and she would be proud of this one you made. it looks amazing and perfect for this beautiful weather we are having here
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Jessica, thank you. Obviously you were not affected by the tornados in Texas recently, thank goodness.
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We love sweet tangy tarts…this looks so beautiful.
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Thanks Angie, we love them too.
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Your tart looks lovely. Earth Day in the U.S. is a different day than in Canada, apparently — it is later in April.
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Hi Sharyn, I thought it was supposed to be world-wide, but I am no expert. Toronto did reasonably well this time, power use was down 6.8%! That’s quite the deal for a population of 2.6 million. And this year the media didn’t photography our Mayor’s house in full light!
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Really beautiful and tasty looking tarts…love that they are small because lemon can be so dense, albeit light in taste. I wonder, could you use lemon curd baked into a tart somehow?
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Hi Betsy, I’ve never thought of baking curd into the tart, but it might work, you may have to loosen the curd (with lemon juice or water) a bit so it doesn’t bake up too rubbery.
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Eva, I would blind bake individual tart shells and then just spoon in the lemon curd. No need to bake again so it’s a fast last minute dessert you can throw together. 🙂
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That’s so easy, Maria, why didn’t I think of that? Thank you.
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I’ve made lemon curd as well, but this recipe looks to be very unique and flavorful! I would love to try this and only need to pick up some cute little tart pans today! It would be so pretty for Easter, and that sounds like a crust recipe even I could handle:) xo Smidge ps.. I forgot Earth Day, I’m embarrassed to admit!!
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Hi Smidge,
The tarts were a tasty treat after a filling dinner. We had originally planned to go out for dinner on Saturday night, but decided that we’d rather stay in to control our electricity usage. Toronto did reasonably well this time, power use was down 6.8%! That’s quite the deal for a population of 2.6 million.
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Hi Eva! Sorry I’ve been reading….and I just love this one! I love that you had dinner by candle light. I didn’t know it was “Lights Out” day! This tart is just lovely and I’m sure it was a huge hit!
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Hi Ann, Sharyn mentioned that in the US it is a different day, sometime in April, so you still have time. I thought it was one day all over the world. Toronto did reasonably well this time, power use was down 6.8%! That’s quite the deal for a population of 2.6 million.
Thank you for your kind words about the tarts. They are really lovely and being such small size is not that bad for you. As I mentioned to Charlie, I find anything lemony a lighter taste after a heavy meal.
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I’ll add my voice to the chorus and say that lemon tarts are wonderful and these, pastry and all, are certainly accessible — even for me. I’ll be much more likely to follow this recipe for 4 small tarts than I will 1 large one. Thanks, Eva!
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Thank you for your kind words, as always, John. The tarts are a perfect size after a big meal, or just for a few people. I like desserts that I don’t have left overs because it helps to mitigate the long term damage. A treat once in a while but not every day. I’m going to make your cheese bread this weekend. Have a great Easter.
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I hope you enjoy the bread as much as I have, Eva. Wishing you and yours a wonderful Easter!
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What lovely little tarts. And a recipe that makes only 4 at a time so you can’t overindulge … unless you want to. 🙂 The Viennese pastry recipe is something I haven’t seen before.
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PS: Just one quick typo correction.
“With the heal”, should be corrected to ‘heel’.
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Thank you Maria! Corrected 🙂
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The recipe for the pastry originated from the Five Rose Flour Cookbook, I’ll pop back and give them credit, sorry it slipped my mind. It reminded me of a type of dough my mom used to make. I love the lemon rind and the sweetness of it. It’s perfect for these little tart tarts! And you are quite right about indulging, sadly I only made four and one was consumed as tester!
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So that’s why you only took a bite of hubby’s. I thought you were leaving more room for the vino. 🙂
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I love lemon tarts. They are such a great dessert after a heavy meal (or any meal!) I just love to finish off a meal with citrus flavours and a glass of sticky – and I’d love to share a glass with you! Your tarts look incredible. Love the gorgeous pastry. xx
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Thanks Charlie, I’d love to share a glass of anything with you! What is sticky? I really like this recipe because it allows the lemons to be tart but just enough. Lemony anything always feels a little lighter after a heavy meal.
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