Oh là là! The subtle, sweet-and-sour contrast of sugar and puckery lemon pairs nicely with tea – and sympathy. If you are single this Valentine’s Day, and don’t want to be.. you may want your dessert a bit sour.
Here’s a wee tease from Dynise Balcavage’s upcoming cookbook, inspired by all those hours she spent salivating in the windows of Parisian patiserries. This classic French lemon tart is a little puckery and a little sweet. You can also make it with lime juice and rind, if you need a change of pace. Dynise Balcavage is the author of The Urban Vegan: 250 Simple and Sumptuous Recipes, from Street Cart Favorites to Haute Cuisine. Her 2nd cookbook, Celebrate Vegan! Life-affirming Recipes for Occasions Big and Small, hits the bookstores in October, and we can’t wait! She blogs at urbanvegan.net, and we read.
Tartlettes Aux Citron (Little Lemon Tarts)
[Frugal, Omnivore-friendly, Make-ahead]Aside from the rolling, this is an easy recipe to prepare. You can make these as individual tartelettes, which I think present better. Or make one large tart, and add about 15 minutes or so to the baking time.
Lemon filling
- 1 12.3 oz aseptic box, extra-firm silken tofu (Do not use refrigerated tofu; it will be too grainy and will not taste right)
- 2 2/3 cup confectioners’ sugar, plus more for dusting
- ½ cup fresh squeezed lemon juice
- 2 T lemon zest, very finely grated
- 2 T cornstarch
- ½ tsp salt
Pâté Sucrée
- 1 ¼ cup flour
- ¼ cup sugar
- ½ cup non-hydrogenated vegan shortening (1 stick)
- 1 tsp vanilla or lemon extract
- 1 T lemon zest, very finely grated
- ¼ tsp salt
- 1-2 T water
Makes 12 tartlettes or 1 large tarte.
- Make filling: Whiz everything together in a food processor until absolutely smooth. Better to overprocess than to underwhiz. Pour into a dish and refrigerate until you’re going to use. (You can make this up to one day ahead of time). Clean out the food processor, because you’ll need it to make the crust.
- Make Pâté Sucrée: In the food processor, pulse everything together except the water. Stir in the water, ½ T at a time, untll the dough ball sticks together. If it seems a little sticky, don’t stress. As long as it holds together between your fingers, it’s fine.
- Refrigerate dough for at least 2 hours.
- Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. On a lightly floured surface, roll out the dough to your desired size.
- Fill the tartlettes pans/tart pan with the lemon mixture, leaving at least 1/8 inch of headspace, since the filling will rise a bit in the oven.
- Bake tartelttes for 25-30 minutes, or until they are no longer watery and wobbly. Bake tart about 40-45 minutes or until no longer watery and wobbly.
- Cool on a rack for 5 minutes. Chill completely before serving. Dust with powdered sugar. Garnish with a raspberry or sliced strawberry, if desired.