French Lemon Cream Recipes

CLASSIC FRENCH LEMON TART

Steps:

• Make the « pâte sucrée » crust.
• In large mixing bowl, combine the butter and powdered sugar until creamy and smooth. Add the vanilla extract, almond flour and egg, and mix until homogeneous. Add the all-purpose flour and salt, and mix until just incorporated and the dough comes together into a ball. Wrap in a plastic film and place in the fridge for 2 hours, minimum.
• Pre-heat your oven to 350F (180C).
• Take the pâte sucrée out of the fridge, place it between two large sheets of parchment paper and roll it out to a 12-inch circle. Unpeel the top sheet of parchment paper, transfer the crust to a 9-inch tart pan (trim the sides if needed) and poke the bottom of the crust all over with a fork. Chill it again for 30 minutes. Line the top of the crust with foil or parchment paper and place pie weights or dried beans to keep the pie crust from puffing when baking.
• Bake the pâte sucrée for 20 minutes. Carefully remove the parchment paper filled with weights and bake for 10 more minutes, until the edges of the crust are golden.
• Set the tart shell aside to cool (still in the dish). Leave your oven on at 350F/180C.
• In the meantime, make the lemon filling.
• Grab a fine-mesh strainer before you start and have it ready within arm's reach.
• In a medium saucepan (no heat yet), whisk together the lemon juice, lemon zest, sugar, salt, egg yolks and eggs. Add the cubed butter and turn the heat to medium. Whisk slowly until the butter is all melted. Continue whisking steadily for several minutes until the mixture thickens to a thin custard consistency.
• Immediately pass the lemon filling through the fine mesh strainer, directly into the tart shell. Using an offset spatula (or back of a large spoon), smooth out the top of the filling. Bake the tart for 5 minutes, until the filling has slightly set and turned slightly deeper in color.
• Set aside to cool for at least 30 minutes. Enjoy slightly warm or chilled.

FRENCH LEMON CREAM

Steps:

• For this recipe you will need an instant read thermometer, a strainer and a blender or food processor, but it will be worth the trouble.
• Bring a few inches of water to a simmer in a pan.
• Place the sugar and zest in a heat-proof bowl that will fit over the pan. Prior to placing it over the pan, rub the zest and sugar together with your fingers until the sugar is moist and very aromatic. Whisk in eggs, followed by the lemon juice.
• Set the bowl over the pan with simmering water and start stirring with a whisk as soon as the mixture feels tepid to the touch.
• Cook the lemon cream, stirring and whisking constantly, until it reaches 180 degrees Fahrenheit. The cream will start out bubbly but as it gets closer to 180 degrees Fahrenheit, it will start to thicken and leave tracks. This means the cream is almost ready. Getting the cream to this temperature can take up to 10 minutes.
• As soon as it reaches 180 degrees Fahrenheit, take it off the heat and strain it into a blender or food processor, discard the zest.
• Let the cream cool to 140 degrees Fahrenheit (about 10 mins) and then blend on high, adding in the butter 5 pieces at a time with the machine running. Scrape down the sides of the processor as you go.
• Once the butter is all in, continue to blend for another 3 minutes to get the perfect light, airy texture.
• Pour into a container, press a piece of plastic wrap against the surface and refrigerate for at least 4 hours or overnight. (The cream will keep well in the refrigerator for 4 days, or tightly sealed in the freezer for up to 2 months).

LEMON PASTRY CREAM

Steps:

• Gather the ingredients.
• In a small saucepan, warm the milk and lemon zest over low heat until it is just hot enough to steam.
• While the milk is warming, whisk together the egg yolks, sugar, flour, and cornstarch until the mixture is completely smooth.
• Once the milk is steaming, add half of it, whisking constantly, to the egg mixture.
• Add the milk and eggs back into the hot milk, continue stirring, and heat it for 1-2 minutes, until the custard reaches 170 F on a digital thermometer and is very thick.
• Remove from the heat, stir in the vanilla extract and lemon liquor (or extract), and chill before filling the pastry.
• Serve and enjoy!