Bright Tangy Lemon Tart (Printable)
Zesty lemon tart featuring creamy filling in a crisp buttery shell, ideal for starters or finger foods.
# What You'll Need:
→ Tart Shell
01 - 1 cup all-purpose flour
02 - 1/4 cup unsalted butter, cold and cubed
03 - 1/4 teaspoon salt
04 - 1/4 cup cold water
→ Lemon Filling
05 - 2 large eggs
06 - 1/3 cup granulated sugar
07 - Zest of 1 lemon
08 - 1/4 cup freshly squeezed lemon juice
09 - 1/4 cup heavy cream
10 - 1 tablespoon unsalted butter, melted
→ Garnish
11 - Lemon zest, thin strips
12 - Fresh herbs such as thyme or basil (optional)
# How to Make It:
01 - Preheat the oven to 375°F.
02 - In a bowl, combine flour and salt. Add cold cubed butter and rub together until the mixture resembles coarse crumbs. Stir in cold water until a dough forms.
03 - Roll out dough on a lightly floured surface to 1/8-inch thickness. Cut into 3-inch rounds to fit mini tartlet pans. Gently press dough into pans and trim excess. Prick bottoms with a fork.
04 - Bake shells for 10 minutes, then remove from the oven.
05 - Whisk eggs and sugar until smooth. Add lemon zest, lemon juice, heavy cream, and melted butter, mixing until fully combined.
06 - Pour lemon filling into pre-baked tart shells. Bake an additional 12 to 15 minutes, or until just set and slightly wobbly in the center.
07 - Let tarts cool to room temperature. Remove from pans and garnish with lemon zest and fresh herbs if desired. Serve chilled or at room temperature.
# Expert Advice:
01 -
- The filling is pure brightness—that startling tartness that wakes up your whole mouth and leaves you wanting another one.
- You can make these ahead and keep them in the fridge, pulling them out whenever you need something elegant that took almost no effort.
02 -
- The filling will look like it's barely set when you pull it from the oven, and your instinct will be to bake it longer—don't, because it will continue to set as it cools, and overbaking turns the filling grainy and separated.
- If your butter is warm when you make the dough, everything falls apart; keep a stick in the freezer and cube it directly into the flour so you're working with a cold hand and cold ingredients.
03 -
- If you don't have mini tartlet pans, a standard muffin tin works perfectly—just be gentle when pressing the dough in and expect to use a smaller muffin cup if you want to see the filling clearly.
- The moment when the filling is still slightly wobbly in the center is crucial; pull them out at that exact second and trust that they'll finish setting as they cool, giving you that silky texture that makes people ask if you made them in a restaurant.