sugar high friday — lemon chiffon tart
For my inaugural posting here on off the eaten path, I thought I'd take a stab at this month's Sugar High Friday. Redbeard from life in flow had chosen the theme of tarts for June. I have never cooked a tart. I usually don't even make pies. But I'm game for an adventure, so I went out and bought myself a tart pan.
Then I hit the hard part of the process: what to cook. I thought I'd delve into some of the cookbooks I've bought over the years but never baked from. After consulting several, I decided on the recipe for Lemon Chiffon Tart from Marie Simmons' the good egg.
I am pleasantly pleased to report it was not nearly as hard or as scary as I thought it would be. It wasn't even as time consuming as expected.
And the best part is that it's tasty. And very, very lemony.
The crust is delightful. Rudi compares it to a graham cracker crust, because it's flaky and crunchy. According to Simmons, the dough for this tart crust is known as pâte sucreé in France and is used to make homemade butter cookies as well as tart shells. And I could see why. This may be the only pie crust I've ever had that I would consider eating on its own. (Sorry, Gramma!)
The filling is light and fluffy. It tastes a lot like a lemon merengue pie, which, essentially, it is. Rudi describes it as tart and creamy.
This is definitely not a healthy dessert, but I would argue it's excellent for the soul. And especially good with a cup of tea late at night.