I think we can all agree, there’s just nothing like Mom’s home cookin’. It just tastes better, doesn’t it? For that reason I’ve asked my Mom to submit some of her favorite recipes for me to share with y’all each Monday. Let’s get cooking in the kitchen with Mom!
Lemon always seems like the perfect flavor for Spring and Summer, so for Easter this year we decided that was our go-to flavor for dessert. I love me some Lemon Meringue Pie, but I love a good tart crust even more. So this year we combined the two into this ah-mazing Lemon & Orange Meringue Tart. It’s super tart, sweet and tasty – the perfect ending to a Spring time feast.
Lemon & Orange Meringue Tart
Author: NorCal Coupon Gal
Recipe type: Dessert
Cuisine: American
Prep time:
Cook time:
Total time:
Serves: 6
This lemon & orange tart is the perfect dessert for Spring and Summer - tart and sweet, and totally delicious!
Ingredients
CRUST
- 1 cup all-purpose flour
- ½ cup blanched almonds
- ¼ cup sugar
- ½ tsp. salt
- 1 stick cold unsalted butter, cut into small pieces
- Butter for pans
FILLING
- 1 cup sugar
- 2 tbsp. finely grated lemon zest
- ½ cup fresh lemon juice (3 – 4 large lemons)
- ⅓ cup fresh orange juice (1 large orange)
- 2 tbsp. cornstarch
- 1 large egg
- 3 egg yolks
- 6 tbsp. unsalted butter, cut into pieces
MERINGUE
- 3 large egg whites
- ½ tsp. cream of tartar
- 7 tbsp. sugar
Instructions
To make the crust:
- Pulse the flour, almonds, sugar and salt in a food processor until the almonds are finely ground. Add the pieces of cold butter and pulse until the mixture looks like coarse meal. Next add three tablespoons of ice water and pulse until the dough starts coming together. Place the dough onto a piece of plastic wrap, pat into a disk and wrap in plastic wrap. Refrigerate until cold, about 15 minutes. While the dough is in the refrigerator, preheat the oven to 375 degrees
- Lightly butter a 10 inch tart pan with removable bottom. Press the dough into the bottom and up the side of the prepared pan. Freeze until firm, about 10 - 15 minutes.
- Place the tart shell on a baking sheet and line the tart shell with foil. Fill with pie weights or dried beans. Bake until golden around the edges, about 20 minutes. Remove the foil and weights and continue baking until the crust is golden brown all over, 5 – 10 minutes more. Remove from oven and let cool. Once cooled, carefully loosen the crust but leave in the pan on the baking sheet.
To make the filling:
- Whisk the sugar, lemon zest, lemon juice, orange juice, cornstarch and ¼ cup water in a medium saucepan until smooth. Whisk in the whole egg and egg yolks. Cook over medium heat, whisking, until the mixture simmers, about 5 minutes. Add the butter and continue whisking over medium heat until thick like pudding, 4 to 6 more minutes. Spoon this mixture into the cooled tart shell.
To make the meringue:
- Beat the egg whites in a medium bowl with a mixer on medium speed until foamy, about 1 minute. Sprinkle in the cream of tartar and continue beating until soft peaks form, about 3 minutes. Gradually beat in the sugar and beat until stiff shiny peaks form, 4 to 5 more minutes. You can then mound the meringue on top or place the meringue into a pastry bag fitting with a star tip and pipe the meringue onto the tart. Bake at 375 degrees until the meringue is set and golden, about 15 minutes. Let cool completely before unmolding.
Enjoy!