Lemon Pine Nut Tart Recipes

RUSTIC LEMON TART (TORTA DELLA NONNA AL LIMONE) WITH PINE NUT LACE COOKIES

Steps:

• Make the crust:
• Whisk together 1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour and whole-wheat flour, salt, and baking powder in a medium bowl; set aside.
• Simmer lemon juice and zest in a small skillet over medium heat until syrupy and golden, 1-2 minutes, stirring frequently.
• Using an electric mixer, beat butter, both sugars, and lemon reduction on medium-high speed until fluffy, about 3 minutes. Add whole egg and yolk and beat until just combined. Reduce speed to low and gradually add flour mixture; beat until just combined.
• Preheat oven to 350°F.
• Transfer dough to a work surface, flatten into a disc, then wrap in plastic and freeze for 10 minutes. Roll dough on a lightly floured surface to a 12" round, about 1/4-inch thick. Fit dough into tart pan, pressing it into the fluted sides. If the dough breaks, just press it back together with your fingers. Trim the excess by running a rolling pin over the tart pan. Prick the pastry several times with a fork and freeze tart shell until firm, about 15 minutes. Bake on the middle rack until the tart shell is golden and dry, 30 minutes. Let cool completely.
• Reduce oven temperature to 275°F.
• Make the filling:
• Combine cream, lemon zest, and 1/4 cup sugar in a medium saucepan and bring just to a simmer.
• Whisk egg yolks and remaining 1/4 cup sugar together in a medium bowl. Gradually whisk in hot cream. Add lemon juice and strain mixture into a heat-proof pitcher or large measuring cup with spout.
• Set tart pan on a sturdy baking sheet and pour in filling. Bake until custard is just set when jiggled, about 1 hour (the filling should not start to brown). Cool to room temperature on a wire rack, then refrigerate until completely chilled, at least 4 hours.
• Meanwhile make the Pine Nut Lace Cookies: Preheat oven to 350°F and line a cookie sheet with parchment.
• Using a wooden spoon, stir butter and corn syrup in a medium bowl until smooth. Add sugar and stir to thoroughly combine. Add flour and pine nuts and stir until blended and smooth.
• Working in batches, scoop level teaspoons batter onto baking sheet 2 inches apart, allowing room for the cookies to spread. Bake until cookies are golden and lacy, 8-10 minutes. Let cool on baking sheet and then transfer to a plate. Wipe parchment and repeat with remaining batter.
• Cut torta into wedges and garnish each slice with toasted pine nuts, candied lemon zest, and Pine Nut Lace Cookies.
• Do ahead
• Torta can be refrigerated up to 1 day before serving and Pine Nut Lace Cookies can be stored in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 1 day before serving.

LEMON PINE-NUT TART

Steps:

• In a shallow nonreactive bowl, combine lemon slices and granulated sugar. Cover with plastic wrap; let macerate in refrigerator at least 4 hours or overnight.
• Preheat oven to 350 degrees. In a medium bowl, lightly beat egg yolks and salt. Add lemon slices; gently toss to coat.
• On a lightly floured surface, roll out one disk of cornmeal dough to a 12-inch round. Fit dough into a 10-inch fluted round tart pan with a removable bottom, pressing gently into corners and sides. Trim edges with a sharp paring knife.
• Pour lemon filling into the tart shell, evenly distributing lemon slices. Dot with butter pieces. Roll out remaining dough disk. Carefully place it on the tart, pressing edges gently to adhere.
• Whisk together egg and heavy cream in a small bowl; brush mixture evenly over top of dough. Sprinkle tart with pine nuts, and chill 30 minutes.
• Place tart on a rimmed baking sheet, and bake until golden, about 40 minutes. Transfer to a wire rack to cool. Serve, sprinkled with confectioners' sugar.

PINE NUT TART

Steps:

• For the tart crust: Add the flour, granulated sugar and salt to the bowl of a food processor and pulse until combined. Add the butter and pulse until small pebbles form. With the machine running, add the egg yolk, vanilla and water and pulse until the dough just comes together. Remove to a piece of plastic wrap and press together into a dough ball. Flatten into a disk then refrigerate, at least 30 minutes.
• Meanwhile, make the honey and pine nut filling: Add the honey, brown sugar and salt to a medium saucepan over medium heat and whisk to combine. Cook, whisking occasionally, until the sugar melts, 2 to 3 minutes. Add the butter and whisk until melted. Pour the mixture into a large bowl and allow to cool for 25 to 30 minutes.
• Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.
• On a lightly floured surface, roll the dough to a 13-inch circle and place in an 11-inch tart pan with a removable bottom. Chill 30 more minutes.
• Prick the bottom of the tart with a fork. Place a piece of parchment in the center of the tart and fill all the way to the top with dried beans. Bake until the crust is set but still slightly pale, about 15 minutes. Allow to cool, then remove the parchment and beans.
• Reduce the oven temperature to 325 degrees F.
• Meanwhile, whisk the heavy cream, egg yolk, lemon zest and juice into the cooled filling. Place the cooled tart shell on a rimmed baking sheet and scatter the pine nuts inside the shell. Evenly pour the filling into the tart crust and bake until the top is golden brown, the filling is set and the very center still has a slight jiggle, 50 to 60 minutes.
• Cool completely before slicing, at least 30 minutes and up to 1 hour. Serve dusted with confectioners' sugar.

HONEY AND PINE NUT TART

Steps:

• Make the pasta frolla: Whisk cream, egg, yolk, and vanilla in a medium bowl. Pulse flour, sugar, salt, and baking powder in a food processor to mix. Add butter, and pulse until mixture resembles coarse meal. With the machine running, add cream mixture, and process until dough just comes together. Shape dough into 2 disks, and wrap each in plastic. Refrigerate 1 disk until firm, about 1 hour; reserve remaining disk for another use. (Dough can be refrigerated for up to 2 days or frozen for up to 3 months; thaw before using.)
• Preheat oven to 325 degrees. On a lightly floured surface with a lightly floured rolling pin, roll dough to 1/8-inch thickness. (If dough is soft and sticky, transfer to a baking sheet and freeze until firm but pliable, about 5 minutes.) Cut out a 12-inch round, and fit it into a fluted 10-inch tart pan with a removable bottom. (Patch any tears with scraps of dough.) Freeze while making the filling (or cover and freeze for up to 3 days).
• Make the filling: Bring sugar, honeys, and salt to a boil in a medium saucepan, whisking until sugar dissolves. Add butter, and whisk until incorporated. Transfer honey mixture to a medium bowl, and let cool for 30 minutes. Whisk in cream, egg, and yolk until incorporated.
• Place tart pan on a rimmed baking sheet. Scatter pine nuts over bottom. Slowly pour filling over pine nuts, redistributing pine nuts evenly with your fingers. Bake until crust is golden brown and center is set but still slightly wobbly, about 1 hour. Transfer tart to a wire rack, and let cool completely. Remove from pan, and serve immediately.

LEMON SABAYON TART WITH PINE-NUT CRUST

Steps:

• Place the pine nuts with three tablespoons of sugar in a food processor and process until finely ground. Transfer to a bowl and mix with the flour. Using your fingertips or pastry blender, work in four ounces of the butter, a scant two tablespoons of the beaten eggs and the vanilla to form a soft dough. Refrigerate for 10 minutes.
• Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Butter and flour a 10-inch straight-sided tart pan.
• Press the dough evenly into the pan and up its sides. Prick the bottom. Bake about 30 minutes, until the crust is golden. Remove from the oven and allow to cool.
• Select a large metal bowl that will fit partway into a saucepan. Put about one-and-a-half inches of water into the saucepan and bring to a simmer. Put the remaining beaten eggs, the egg yolks and the remaining sugar into the bowl and beat them using a whisk or a hand-held electric mixer. As the mixture begins to warm and thicken, add about a third of the lemon juice. Continue beating constantly, adding lemon juice as the mixture heats and thickens. The mixture should thicken to about the consistency of yogurt. Beat in the remaining butter. Take care that you do not overheat the mixture or the eggs will curdle.
• Remove the sabayon from the heat and pour it into the cooled tart shell. Preheat the broiler. Broil the tart, watching it carefully, until the top is golden brown.
• Refrigerate for one-and-a-half to two hours, or overnight, before serving.

LEMON TART

Steps:

• For the crust:
• Preheat the oven to 350°F. Generously butter and flour a 9-inch fluted tart pan with a removable bottom and refrigerate it while the oven preheats.
• Remove the tart pan from the refrigerator. Use your fingertips to press the chilled pine nut dough evenly over the bottom and up the sides of the pan. Trim off any excess dough.
• Bake the crust for 10 to 15 minutes, then rotate it and bake for another 10 to 15 minutes, or until it is golden brown. Remove the crust from the oven and let it cool while you make the filling. (There may be some cracks in the crust; they will not affect the finished tart.)
• For the sabayon:
• Bring about 1 1/2 inches of water to a boil in a pot that is slightly smaller than the diameter of the bowl you will be using for the sabayon. Meanwhile, in a large metal bowl, whisk the eggs, yolks, and sugar for about 1 minute, or until the mixture is smooth.
• Set the bowl over the pot and, using a large whisk, whip the mixture while you turn the bowl (for even heating). After about 2 minutes, when the eggs are foamy and have thickened, add one-third of the lemon juice. Continue to whisk vigorously and, when the mixture thickens again, add another one-third of the lemon juice. Whisk until the mixture thickens again, then add the remaining lemon juice. Continue whisking vigorously, still turning the bowl, until the mixture is thickened and light in color and the whisk leaves a trail in the bottom of the bowl. The total cooking time should be 8 to 10 minutes.
• Turn off the heat and leave the bowl over the water. Whisk in the butter a piece at a time. The sabayon may loosen slightly, but it will thicken and set as it cools. Pour the warm sabayon into the tart crust and place the pan on a baking sheet.
• Preheat the broiler. While the sabayon is still warm, place the tart under the broiler. Leaving the door open, brown the top of the sabayon, rotating the tart if necessary for even color; this will take only a few seconds, so do not leave the oven. Remove the tart from the broiler and let it sit for at least 1 hour before serving. Serve at room temperature or cold.