Meyer Lemon Tart
How to Make the BEST Lemon Tart Recipe Ever! This elegant and Easy Lemon Tart with homemade lemon curd is fabulous for spring and summer parties.
It’s Meyer Lemons Season!
Early spring is the season for making the most of Meyer Lemons.
Not because they are harvested specifically at this time of year. But because it’s the perfect time to start making light perky fruit desserts!
These sweet lemons should not be confused with the regular lemons. Meyer lemons are a cross between lemons and mandarin oranges.
They are milder and sweeter than regular lemons, with thin skins, and a lovely lemon-floral-orange essence making them perfect for fruit desserts.
…Such as homemade lemon curd tarts.
A Lemon Tart Recipe For Spring
I love spring baking. Gone are the heavy holiday cookies, cakes, and blocks of fudge.
It’s now time to bring out the light and airy desserts kissed with citrus, topped with berries, and possibly a dollop of fresh whipped cream.
Today’s lemon tart recipe was given to me by a friend who is a fabulous baker.
She insists you should only use Meyer lemons in this recipe, because they offer the perfect tangy-sweet flavor, without the acrid note of classic lemons.
After making this gorgeous homemade lemon tart, I totally agree.
The perky floral taste of the Meyer lemon curd filling is the ideal complement to the flaky buttery tart shell.
This lemon tart also has a well-balanced curst-to-filling ratio. Not too much, not too little.
It has a light refreshing flavor that takes like pure sunshine!
Meyer Lemon Substitutes
If you do not have Meyer lemons in your area, you can use a combination of mandarin oranges and standard lemons, to replicate the unique flavor of Meyer lemons.
However, I would not recommend using just lemons to make this fabulous lemon tart recipe. The flavor will be too acidic.
Freshly squeeze the oranges and lemons, using half of each.
Meyer Lemon Tart Ingredients
- All-Purpose Flour
- Butter – unsalted butter
- Eggs – Eggs provide stability in both the crust and the filling.
- Powdered Sugar – To sweeten the crust.
- Salt
- Granulated Sugar – To sweeten the lemon curd filling.
- Heavy Cream – This creates a luxurious texture in the lemon curd.
- Meyer Lemons – You will need about 7 lemons for both the filling and the topping.
- Water
How To Make A Lemon Tart
This vibrant Lemon Tart Recipe is fairly easy to make.
- For the crust all you need to do is pulse the ingredients in the food processor until they come together.
- Then roll the pie crust dough into a thin crust to fit into the tart pan.
- For the lemon curd filling, whisk the eggs until pale in color.
- Add the cream and Meyer lemon juice. Then pour the filling into the crust.
- Bake until the center is set.
- Then simmer thin slices of lemon in sugar and water to make a candied lemon topping.
Get the Full (Printable) Meyer Lemon Tart Recipe Below!
Can A Lemon Tart Be Made In Advance?
Yes! You can make the pastry dough up to a week in advance. Wrap the dough in plastic and refrigerate until ready to use.
Or make the entire lemon tart up to 3 days before serving. For best appearance, place the candied lemons on top the day you plan to serve it.
Can You Make Lemon Tartlets With This Recipe?
Yes! Depending on the size of your tartlet pans, you can make anywhere from 6 to 12 lemon tartlets.
Tartlet pans usually range from 3 to 5 inches.
The baking time will be reduced to 15-25 minutes. Make sure to check the tartlets at the 15-minute mark to prevent overbaking.
Can You Freeze Meyer Lemon Tart?
Yes. Wrap the tart well in plastic wrap and freeze it for up to 3 months. Thaw it at room temperature.
Gluten-Free Lemon Tarts?
Yes, you can use a gluten-free 1-to-1 baking flour mix in place of the wheat flour.
Then crust will be slightly more like shortbread, but will still taste fantastic!
More Spring Dessert Recipes
- Meyer Lemon Italian Ice
- Lemon Crinkle Cookies
- Perfect Sour Cream Pound Cake
- Homemade Strawberry Cake
- Lemon Buttermilk Layer Cake
- The BEST Lemon Bars Ever
- Layered Banana Pudding Cake
- Strawberry Shortcake S’mores
- Cherry Pie (Best Filling Recipe)
- Duke’s Hula Pie (Ice Cream Pie)
- Easy Apple Crisp Recipe
Meyer Lemon Tart Recipe
Ingredients
For the Crust:
- 2 cups all-purpose flour
- 10 tablespoons cold diced butter
- 2 egg yolks
- 1/4 cup powdered sugar
- 1 pinch salt
- 3-5 teaspoons cold water
For the Curd Filling:
- 4 large eggs
- 3/4 cup granulated sugar
- 1/2 cup heavy cream
- 2/3 cup freshly-squeezed Meyer lemon juice (from 4-5 lemons)
- 1 tablespoon grated Meyer lemon zest
For the Topping:
- 2 Meyer lemons, thinly sliced
- 1/2 cup granulated sugar
- 1/2 cup water
Instructions
- For the Crust: In a food processor place the flour, butter, egg yolks, sugar and salt. Pulse for about 1 minute until the mixture resembles oatmeal. Then add a teaspoon of cold water at a time, until the dough comes together in a ball. Take the dough out of the food processor, wrap it in plastic and refrigerate for about 30 minutes.
- Meanwhile, heat the oven to 400 degrees F. When the crust is chilled, roll it out on a floured work surface. Carefully, place the rolled crust on the bottom and the sides of a 10-11 inch tart pan. Fit the crust into the edges. Then trim off any excess.
- Cover the crust with parchment paper, then fill it with dried beans or baking weights. Bake the crust for 15 minutes. Without turning the oven off, remove the parchment paper and baking beans, and bake the crust for another 10 minutes. Remove from the oven and cool for at least 30 minutes.
- For the Lemon Curd Filling: Reduce the oven temperature to 300 degrees F. In a mixing bowl, add the eggs and sugar. Whisk (or beat) for 5 minutes or until pale in color. Add the heavy cream, Meyer lemon juice and lemon zest. Whisk to incorporate.
- Pour the filling into the cooled crust and bake for 30-35 minutes, or until just set when you jiggle the pan. Cool completely before removing from the pan.
- For the Lemon Topping: Slice 2 Meyer lemons into ultra-thin rounds. Remove the seeds.
- In a small saucepan add the sugar, water, and lemon slices. Stir to combine. Place over low heat. Simmer for 25-30 minutes or until the pulp looks transparent. Take the slices out and arrange them on top of the tart. Dust with some powder sugar (optional), slice and enjoy!
So good!
I love the brightness of this tart, both in looks and in flavor. It’s so good! And the finished product is so pretty!
Just made this today! I had some Meyer lemons that I didn’t know what to do with. Delicious, I will make this again. Shared this with my grandchildren and they were thrilled.
Good golly miss Molly, this is lemon heaven in a dessert!
My favorite of all time. So delicious. Awesome recipe.
Simon
Such a pretty pretty tart. Great post!
So bright and beautiful! This looks delicious :) I love meyer lemons.