Mmmmm....lemon tart

The hubster and I went to my parents' house the other night for dinner, and I brought dessert (are you surprised? you shouldn't be!).  My mom LOVES lemon curd, so making this tart was kind of a no-brainer for me.  I have made this one time before, and it was really popular, and it's pretty easy.  The individual parts don't take too much work, just a little time.  The tart crust is my new favorite.  I gave you the recipe in THIS post about the raspberry tart.  If you have a favorite tart crust, by all means, use it! 

I served this with a generous amount of slightly sweetened whipped cream, and some sliced strawberries on the side.  It's also delicious with raspberries, but strawberries is what I had, so that's what I used.

And a little note:  again, sorry about the crappy pictures.  It was dark, and I used a ton of whipped cream.

Lemon Curd Tart

Source:  The Way the Cookie Crumbles, and America's Test Kitchen Family Baking Book.

Serves 6 – 8

tart crust for a 9-inch pan, completely baked and cooled (I used this one)
3 large eggs
⅓ cup fresh lemon juice (2-3 lemons)
¾ cup (5.25 ounces) granulated white sugar
4 tablespoons (½ ounces) unsalted butter, at room temperature and cut into small pieces
1 tablespoon lemon zest

1. In a stainless steel bowl placed over a saucepan of simmering water, whisk together the eggs, sugar, and lemon juice until blended. Cook, whisking constantly (to prevent it from curdling), until the mixture becomes pale in color and quite thick (like a hollandaise sauce or sour cream) (160 degrees F or 71 degrees C on a thermometer). This will take about 10 minutes.

2. Remove from heat and immediately pour through a fine strainer to remove any lumps. Cut the butter into small pieces and whisk into the mixture until the butter has melted. Add the lemon zest, cover, and let cool to room temperature before filling the pastry crust. (Note: The lemon curd will continue to thicken as it cools. Covering the lemon curd with plastic wrap prevents a skin from forming on the surface.) [flour pile note: i always end up sticking this in the fridge for a bit before filling.  i also don't put the curd into the crust until right before i serve it. i get paranoid that the crust will get soft.]

Serve plain or with softly whipped cream and fresh berries.

This reminds me that half of this tart is still sitting in my fridge.  I will have to remedy that.