Tarte au Citron
Tarte au Citron or Lemon Pie, the luxury version with meringue. A divine tart. History has it that the first lemon meringue tart was baked in Philalephia in 1806 by Elizabeth Goodwell. If that weren’t the case, credit goes to Elizabeth for being the first to publish a usable recipe. Our recipe isn’t that old. It’s inspired by our favorite pastry chef, Karen, who makes the prettiest and best tarts.
A tarte au citron consists of 3 components: a shortcrust pastry, a lemon cream and a meringue. These 3 components are also prepared at different times. The shortcrust pastry has to rest – preferably overnight. The same goes for the tart filled with the cream. Finally, the meringue mass is piped on and then browned with the burner. If you take 3 days, the tarte will be perfect.
Important questions
Can you substitute the lemons?
Yes you can, with other citrus fruits. e.g. oranges, grapefruit
What’s with the metal taste?
Sometimes one has the impression that the lemon flavor is overlaid by a metallic note. This is interesting because not everyone perceives the taste. The reason is the citric acid.
The reasons for the metal taste can be different. Citric acid reacts with metal. Standard kitchen appliances are made of stainless steel and are therefore not a problem. Another reason is to use lemon zest. The white skin tastes bitter and can produce the metallic taste. Be careful when rubbing off the zest.
Ingredients
for a 22 cm Tarte
shortcrust pastry
– 150g flour (multi purpose W480, T55)
– 75g butter (room temperature)
– 60g granulated sugar
– 1 egg
– 2g salt
Lemon Custard
– 100g fresh lemon juice
– 150g egg (3 medium sized eggs)
– 125g granulated sugar
– 10g Maizena (corn starch)
– 100g butter (room temperature)
Meringue
– 40g water
– 120g granulated sugar
– 60g eggwhite (2 M sized eggs)
Refining
If you don’t like the taste of lemon, you can also use orange juice. The citric acid can also be toned down a bit with more sugar.
CULINAMUS
For our Culinamus Tarte we like to double the amount. The tart freezes perfectly.
Phase 1 - Dough
Preparation
10 minutes
– Take the butter and egg out of the fridge one hour before the start and warm them up to room temperature.
– Weigh and prepare the sugar, flour and salt
Making
15 minutes
– Place the flour on the work surface. Make a well in the middle.
– Put sugar in the middle, spread salt
– Add butter and mix by hand to a coarse consistency
– Add the egg and quickly knead to a smooth dough.
– Form into a ball and then flatten slightly. This will make it easier to roll out later.
– Wrap in cling film and leave to rest in the fridge for at least 2 hours, but preferably overnight.
Tip: If we use double the amount, we use our KitchenAid to make the dough.
Phase 2 - Tarte Base and Lemon Custard
Preparation Tart
10 minutes
– Preheat the oven to 180° Convection
– Prepare flour and spread a little on the work surface
– Cover a baking tray with parchment paper and have a baking ring ready.
Preparation Tart
10 minutes +15-20 minutes in the oven+ 30 minutes to cool down
– Take the dough out of the fridge and knead until the dough starts to soften. Caution: the dough will soften quickly.
– Place the dough on your worktop, make a notch in the middle with the rolling pin and roll out from the middle outwards.
– Turn the dough and roll it out from the center again. Sprinkle (generously) with flour when turning. Turning and rolling out of the center should give the dough a round shape.
– Roll the dough onto the rolling pin and transfer it to the baking ring.
– Distribute the dough evenly in the form, pressing down the edges to create an even bottom and edge.
– When the dough has the desired thickness, roll the rolling pin over the edge of the tarte ring and cut off the excess dough.
– Make holes in the bottom with a fork
– Place in the oven and bake for 15 to 20 minutes until golden brown.
– let cool down
Preparation Lemon Custard
10 minutes
– Put the eggs in a mixing bowl with half the sugar
– Put the lemon juice in a saucepan with the 2nd half of the sugar and lemon zest.
– get butter ready
Preparation Lemon Custard
15 minutes
– Beat the egg/sugar mixture with a whisk until the mixture has an even and light colour
– Add the cornflour and mix until no more lumps are visible.
– Boil the lemon juice with the sugar and zest.
– Pour half of the hot lemon juice through a sieve into the egg mix and stir vigorously.
Caution: above 70°C the egg starts to cook. It’s important to keep stirring and by doing so, reducing the temperature.
– Add the second half of the lemon mix through a sieve and continue mixing for a few minutes.
– Return the mixture to the saucepan and start to heat up.
– Stir continuously with the whisk until the liquid begins to thicken.
– Remove the pan from the heat and add the butter.
– keep stirring until the butter has dissolved.
– Pour the lemon cream into the cooled tart base. Smooth out and cover with cling film.
– Put in the fridge for at least 2 hours. Overnight is ideal.
Phase 3 - Meringue and Completion
Preparation
10 minutes
– Put water and sugar in a pan
– Place the egg whites in a food processor
– Prepare a piping bag with the nozzle you want
Preparation
20 minutes
– Heat the water/sugar mixture to 118°C.
– Meanwhile, beat the egg whites.
Caution: It is important that the egg white has the right consistency when the sugar syrup reaches 118°C. The egg white should be lightly beaten (already white) but not yet firm. It’s a good idea to beat the egg whites on high when the syrup has reached 110°C. In the following minutes, the egg white will be ready while the sugar reaches the desired temperature.
– Set the mixer to medium and slowly pour in the syrup.
– when the syrup is completely incororated in the egg white, set the mixer to high and mix until short ‘bec d’oiseau’ (birds’ beaks) form. The mixture must have a firm consistency
– Pour into the piping bags and decorate the cake.
– Finally, brown the meringue decoration with a flaming burner as desired.
and next?
A fine coffee or tea and no wine for a change.
If you still insist, then an ice wine, e.g. the excellent Eiswein Gelber Muskateller from Angerhof Tschida, is an excellent choice.
CULINAMUS!
