Receta Lemon Tart with Meringue Cookies~
Happy Birthday Cindy~
I want to wish my good blogging friend Cindy from Just North of Wiarton and South of the Checkerboard a Happy Birthday!! Stop by and wish Cindy a Happy Birthday:) ~ Have a Very Happy Birthday Cindy~
Today for Cindy's Birthday I thought I would make her a Lemon Tart and this year I have challenged myself to make 12 Recipes in 2014. Recipes I have never made before, but have always wanted too. I bought 2 tart pans, some time ago. I have yet to use either pan even though I'm pretty sure I bought them 5+ years ago! One tart pan has/had a removable bottom and the other one did not. When I decided to make this tart, and to finally use the tart pans, I couldn't find the removable bottom to the pan that I wanted to use. I looked every where I could think of and I couldn't find the removable bottom. Let this be a lesson to me........if you don't use it within a year, lose it!! I used the non-removable bottom tart pan and crossed my fingers.....I hope I can get the tart out of the tart pan!
Kitchen Tip~
I made this Lemon Tart using Meyer Lemons. I love Meyer Lemons!! I try to use Meyer Lemons when ever possible because I love the flavor and sweetness. This time of year I can find Meyer Lemons in most grocery stores, but here in Northern WI, Meyer lemons aren't always available. That's why when I see Meyer lemons in the grocery store, I buy a couple of bags and I juice and zest them. I freeze the lemon zest in a baggie and pour the juice into ice cube trays. I freeze the juice in the trays until frozen and I put the cubes in baggies. Whenever I want to add the freshness of lemons to my recipes or when a recipe calls for fresh squeezed lemon juice or zest, I add a cube or two of frozen juice or a teaspoon or tablespoon of zest:) I also use this same method with oranges, limes, tangerines and grapefruit.
I decided to top the Lemon Tart with Yellow Meringue Cookies instead of Whipped Cream. I love these Light and Airy Cookies~ Delicious and Low-Fat they always add a festive and whimsical touch. Another thing I like about these cute cookies is, you can make them any color you like. I think a platter of pastel colored meringue cookies looks festive on a Spring Luncheon table or on your Easter Dinner table:) Purple, pink, lime green, blue, or yellow, add color with food coloring and/or add color and flavor using dry jello powder.
Lemon Tart with Meringue Cookies~
For the Crust~
- 1 cup all-purpose flour
- 2 T sugar
- 1/2 t salt
- 1/4 t finely grated lemon zest*
- 1 stick cold butter, cut into pieces
- 1 T water
- 1/2 t lemon extract
- For the Lemon Curd~
- 2 large eggs plus 3 large egg yolks
- (Save the egg whites to make meringue cookies)
- 1/4 cup plus 2 T sugar
- 1/4 t cornstarch
- 3 T finely grated lemon zest*
- 1/3 cup fresh lemon juice*
- 6 T unsalted butter, cut into small pieces.
- Meringue Cookies~
- 4 egg whites, at room temperature
- 1/2 t cream of tartar
- pinch of salt
- 1 cup sugar
- 1 t vanilla extract
- a few drops of yellow food coloring, if desired
Directions:
Preheat oven to 375.
Make the crust:
Whisk together the flour, sugar, 1/2 t salt and lemon zest in a large bowl. Cut in butter with a pastry cutter or use your fingers until dough starts to hold together.
Stir together 1 T water and lemon extract. Mix into dough. Shape dough into a disk and wrap in plastic wrap and refrigerate for 30 minutes.
Using your fingers, press dough evenly into bottom and up sides of a 9-inch fluted tart pan with a removable bottom. Refrigerate for 30 minutes.
Bake tart shell until golden brown, about 25 minutes. Let cool completely.
Meanwhile, make the lemon curd:
Whisk together eggs, egg yolks, sugar and cornstarch in a medium saucepan. Whisk in lemon zest and juice. Cook over medium low heat, stirring constantly, until thick enough to coat the back of a wooden spoon, about 7 minutes. Remove from heat and whisk in butter, one piece at a time.
Pour filling into cooled tart shell. Bake until filling is browned, slightly puffed and set, about 30 minutes. Let cool completely.
Make Meringue Cookies:
1. Preheat oven to 225.
2. Beat egg whites in large bowl with electric mixer on medium speed until frothy. Add cream of tartar and a pinch of salt. Beat until soft peaks form. Increase speed to medium-high. Add sugar, 1 T at a time, until sugar is dissolved and stiff peaks form. Beat in vanilla extract and food coloring until well blended.
Transfer meringue to a pastry bag fitted with a 1/2 to 3/4 inch open star tip. Gently squeeze bag to pipe meringue onto 2 large foil lined baking sheets sprayed with a non-stick cooking spray. Bake both sheets of meringues at the same time for 45 minutes. Turn oven off. Let meringues stand in oven for 1 hour or until completely cooled. Remove from oven. Decorate the top of cooled Lemon Tart with meringue cookies. Makes about 3 dozen meringue cookies.
Recipe shared at: Mandy's Recipe Box Yesterfood Tasty Tuesday Hun Whats for Dinner Your Gonna Love It~ See Ya in the Gumbo
Pastel Meringue Cookies photo from: McCormick
Tart Recipe adapted from Martha Stewart
Healthy Note: Make a homemade pizza healthier by using part-skim cheeses instead of their higher fat counterparts, or use lesser amounts of sharper flavored cheese, like Parmesan.