The Best Meyer Lemon Meringue Tartlets

Lemon is definitely my chocolate–and I especially love lemon meringue pie. This dessert is a “twist” on my favorite pie. I made a Pâte Brisée tart crust (buttery with a sweet balance of sugar). The crust was so tender and almost like a cookie. The Meyer lemon curd had just the right balance of tartness and sweet, and the piped on meringue “stars” made these look so pretty.

Back in the day, when I attended a Food Blogger conference, I attended a writing workshop on how to describe the taste(s) and textures of a recipe. That proved to be quite a personal challenge, because the guest speakers asked us to eliminate the use of the words like “awesome“, “tasty“, “yummy”  and to replace them with alternate words to describe various foods we were asked to taste.

 

Food Grammar Police Rules be darned!  These tarts are amazing, yummy, fantastic... They are delicious. They are buttery,  lemony, and  creamy. This dessert has earned my personal best in bursting with flavor and is now one of my favorite desserts I’ve ever made. Seriously.

Recently, I noticed that our Meyer lemon tree, was laden with lots of fruit, and I needed to pick them and use them immediately.  That is never a problem, because Meyer lemons are perfect for baking. They have an exquisite balance of sweet and tart.  I usually make my fool-proof lemon curd recipe, that uses the whole egg.  Then, I got to thinking about making a lemon meringue pie– which I had not made in many, many years.   That thought process began to morph into an obsession that I was determined to make a lemon meringue pie.

I usually begin by saying that I’m not the biggest fan of shortening based pie crusts.  (I also know that I’m in the minority here.)  I do, however, prefer a French Pâte Brisée crust, which is all butter and a little bit of sugar– very similar to a shortbread.  Using a food processor makes this a whole lot easier. With this pâte brisée recipe, I also added lemon zest and a little bit of pure vanilla extract.

I was going to make one large tart, when I remembered that I had recently purchased these cute 4.75 Inch Round Tart/Quiche Pans.   I did roll out the dough, cut individual circles and then pressed them into each pan.  

I docked them, to prevent too much puffing during baking. Then, I placed them into the freezer for about 30 minutes so that I could also reduce the  “shrinkage” of the tart shells, while they baked. 

NOTE: I baked these tart shells one day ahead of making the final dessert.

Now, to make the filling…

The classic lemon meringue pie filling is made with cornstarch, to thicken it.  Since I wanted to use lemon curd (which is thickened with butter), I had to come up with a different lemon curd recipe that separates the egg yolks from the egg whites.  That way I could reserve the egg whites to make a meringue. (This lemon curd recipe comes from Martha Stewart.com)

I’ve said it many times, and I will continue to say it: “Lemon is my chocolate”.  This lemon curd recipe is so delicious (there goes that word again)– vibrant with the tang of lemon and just the right amount of sweetness.  NOTE: You can make this lemon curd days ahead. Double the recipe, so you can save some in an air-tight container (I use canning jars).  Left in the refrigerator, the lemon curd will keep for weeks.

You should make the lemon curd at least one day ahead, though, so it can chill and thicken.

I didn’t photograph how to make a meringue, because it’s quite simple.  I use my stand mixer to whip egg whites with cream of tartar, gradually adding sugar and pure vanilla extract.  Ever since I took a cake decorating class, I overcame my fear/ignorance of how to use a piping bag.  I love how fancy piping looks, but you can always plop the meringue on top and create decorate swirls with an off-set spatula or knife.

I was tickled pink with how pretty these turned out.  (Note to self: erase all self-doubt on my piping skills.)  Now, to do the classic “browning” of the meringue.  I could use a broiler, but I finally invested in a blow torch for making Crème brûlée– and this was my first time using it.

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Meyer Lemon Meringue Tartlets

Lemon is definitely my chocolate–and I especially love lemon meringue pie. This dessert is a "twist" on my favorite pie. I made a Pâte Brisée tart crust (buttery with a sweet balance of sugar). The crust was so tender and almost like a cookie. The Meyer lemon curd had just the right balance of tartness and sweet, and the piped on meringue "stars" made these look so pretty.

Prep Time1 hour hr

Cook Time20 minutes mins

Chilling Time4 hours hrs

Total Time5 hours hrs 20 minutes mins

Course: Dessert

Cuisine: American

Keyword: Lemon Meringue, Lemon Tartles, Meyer Lemon Meringue Tartlets

Servings: 6 tartlettes

Author: Debby – www.AFeastfortheEyes.net

Ingredients

CRUST FOR AN 8 OR 9-INCH TART PAN:

• 1 cup all-purpose flour
• 2 tablespoons sugar
• Salt
• 1/4 teaspoon Meyer lemon zest finely grated (optional)
• 1 stick unsalted butter cold; cut into pieces
• 1/2 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

FOR 6 TARTLET PANS:

• 1-1/2 cups all-purpose flour
• 3 tablespoons sugar
• Salt
• 1/2 teaspoon Meyer lemon zest finely grated (optional)
• 1-1/2 sticks cold unsalted butter cut into pieces

LEMON CURD (can be made up to a few days in advance:

• 1 cup sugar
• 1 tablespoon lemon zest finely grated ; plus 2/3 cup fresh lemon juice
• 8 large egg yolks egg whites reserved for another use
• 1/4 teaspoon coarse salt
• 1 1/4 sticks unsalted butter 10-tablespoons, cut into 1/2-inch pieces

MERINGUE:

• 4 large egg whites
• 1/4 teaspoon cream of tartar
• 3/4 cup plus 2 tablespoon granulated sugar
• 1/4 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

Instructions

• Before starting, you can break down each of the three components a few days apart. Lemon curd stores very well in the refrigerator. I made the tart shells one day before assembling these tarts.
• I used six non-stick tartlet pans, so I added 50% more ingredients. Otherwise, this should be enough dough for an 8-inch tart pan.

For the tartlets (or tart):

• Whisk together flour, sugar, 1/2 teaspoon salt, and the lemon zest in a large bowl.

  Cut in butter with a pastry cutter or your fingers until dough begins to hold together.
• Note: I used my food processor, and pulsed the dough until it resembled coarse crumbs. Stir together 1 tablespoon water and vanilla, then mix into dough.
• Note: I used the food processor, and pulse this until the dough just started to come together. Shape dough into a disk, and wrap in plastic wrap. 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.
• Note: I used a rolling pin to individual cut the dough to fit into each tartlet pan.
• Dock each tartlet (with a fork) or tart, to prevent too much puffing of the dough while baking.
• Freeze for 30 minutes, to prevent shrinkage of the dough.
• Bake tart shell until golden, about 25 minutes. Let cool completely.

For the curd:

• In a medium saucepan, off heat, whisk together sugar, zest, and egg yolks; whisk in lemon juice and salt.
• Add butter and place pan over medium-high.
• Cook, whisking constantly, until butter has melted, mixture is thick enough to coat the back of a spoon, and small bubbles form around the edge of pan, about 5 minutes (do not boil).
• Remove pan from heat while continuing to whisk. Pour curd through a fine-mesh sieve into a glass bowl. Press plastic wrap against the surface of curd and refrigerate until cool.

For the meringue:

• In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the whisk attachment, whisk egg whites and cream of tartar on medium speed until foamy.
• Gradually add granulated sugar.
• Increase speed and whisk until meringue is glossy and forms stiff peaks.
• Whisk in vanilla until just combined and continue blending until it forms soft peaks.

Final touches:

• To make this look fancy, pipe with a large star tip. Otherwise, top with the meringue and make swirls with the back of a spoon.
• I use a small kitchen blow torch to brown the meringue, or place under a broiler and watch very closely until just slightly browned.

Tried this recipe?Mention @afeastfortheeyes or tag #afeastfortheeyesblog!

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