Tarte Au Citron

Dear Devon

Hands down, Anne Willan’s recipe for tarte au citron is the best. One of my all time favorite desserts, tarte au citron is one of late afternoon, last minute desserts. I have experimented with graham cracker crumb crusts, whizzed whole oranges with sugar in food processors, and topped pale yellow tartes with fresh raspberries. Julia Child, Dorie Greenspan, Patricia Wells, Ina Garten, all have their tarte au citron recipes (which I have meticulously ranked), but Anne Willan’s recipe recently catapulted to the top.

A few weeks back, I hosted a small dinner party. The menu included a creamy blanquette de veau, simple garden salad, and two desserts: tarte au citron and a lovely fruit-topped, whipped cream laden cake from the pastry shop. Dinner was followed by an all night marathon of friendly poker, after which that wonderful cake was a welcome sight. It was a great evening and reminded me of why I love hosting dinner parties. I have a chance to serve a variety of recipes that would otherwise remain in black and white print.

Except for one adjustment, I followed her recipe exactly. The recipe called for ¾ cup almond flour. I’m still not so good with the numbers, so I ordered too small a bag from the dry goods stand. So, I added dried coconut to equal the full ¾ cup. The coconut was a nice addition, subtly balancing the tartness of the lemon filling. However, the biggest surprise was the call for pulverized almond instead of cream. I was a bit hesitant at first, but am now a firm believer in almond flour over cream in all tarte au citron recipes. The tart had a nice light texture and held its shape nicely after each slice. I will never go back to cream, when almond flour can be substituted.

Whipping the egg and lemon juice to the ribbon stage nearly killed me. My shoulder muscle is cramping as I type. I have a new respect for those pre-KitchenAid chefs. I have temporarily shelved an attempt at chocolate mousse in favor of the less labor-intensive dessert of cut fruit.

I intended to top the tarte with macerated strawberries. But at the last moment, I opted to serve the berries at the end as a finishing course. The tarte is so good, that it doesn’t need further embellishments. It is a stand alone dessert.

Pull your copy of The Country Cooking of France from your shelf and try it. I’m dying to hear your thoughts, but please use your electric beater.

Tarte Au Citron
(serves 8)

Pate a Sucre
I used Julia Child’s recipe from Mastering the Art of French Cooking.

Lemon Filling
½ cup ground almonds
¼ cup shredded coconut
3 /4 cup granulated sugar
3 eggs
grated zest of 2 lemons
¼ cup lemon juice
2/3 cup butter melted

Prepare pate a sucre according to Julia Child’s recipe from Mastering the Art of French Cooking.

Blind bake the tart shell until light golden brown.

For the filling, beat eggs and sugar until the mixture until thick and pale yellow. The mixture should leave a ribbon trail when the whisk is lifted. Stir in the lemon zest, lemon juice, and butter. Stir in the ground almonds and the coconut.

Set the tart shell on a hot baking sheet and pour in the filling. Bake until set and golden brown, 25 to 30 minutes. Let cool on a wire rack before unmolding. Serve at room temperature.

Apple Galette

Dear Devon,

Watch out, Zabar's, here I come! I've gotten into the habit of visiting Zabar's in the 7 o'clock hour, when the croissants are marked down 75 cents. I'll pick up two on my way home, and more often than not, croissants aren't the only thing going in my bag. It's one of those places that's absolutely irresistible to anyone with any sensory appreciation. Don't think I'm completely decadent- this only happens once every couple of weeks.

Somehow I got it into my head to make my own morning pastry without having to make puff pastry. Without any real game plan, I set out to make individual-sized galettes, about four inches in diameter. In an SAT verbal-style analogy, galette is to tarte as a English garden is to a French garden. Galettes are a without formal pattern, a bit wild, but with a relaxed elegance derived from combining various elements in one clearly defined space. That being said, I don't usually set out to make galettes. More often than not, they are failed tartes.

I use Julia Child's recipe for pâte sucrée from Mastering the Art of French Cooking, vol. 1. I am still trying to find the best recipe for this stuff. I want one that combines the sweet taste of butter with a light, flaky crumb. It seems that every baker has a recipe for pâte sucrée. I've probably tried a half dozen in the last year or so. Looking back over my cookbooks, a few recipes have ended up marked in red ink, a reminder not to repeat them. Others have been adequate, but ultimately unsatisfying. Julia Child's pâte sucrée comes closest to what I'm searching for. It has a crust that browns beautifully in the oven and is laden with rich, delicious butter. I'm in the habit of using good quality butter- It makes a big difference. If you want the pasty to taste like plastic, use cheap butter; if you want it to transport you to Paris, use a high fat butter.

The recipe is relatively simple. I focus mainly on the crust. The filling takes minutes to prepare. Thinly slice apples and set aside a bowl of cinnamon sugar. No fuss, but maximum tastiness. Apples are the easiest fruit to use because they don't let their juices ooze out like berries or plums. They also retain their shape nicely, so be mindful when arranging your slices.

Taking into account that this is for breakfast, I settle on four small galettes, maybe 3 inches in diameter. You can easily make one large galette, instead, if you like. The crust turns out beautifully. The heady perfume of baking butter fills my kitchen and lungs. Two sets of greedy fingers can barely contain their excitement when the four golden brown galettes come fresh out of the oven. The apples are wonderfully cooked, quietly spiced and lightly sweetened. The soft apples give way to a rich and buttery crust. With each bite, large flakes of crust drop onto the plate, later gathered by butter-soaked fingers.

This definitely breaks the numbing cycle of cereal and coffee.

Apple Galette

1 cup flour
4 oz butter, cubed
1/2 tsp salt
1 tsp sugar
1/4 cup ice water

3 small apples, sliced
1 tbsp vanilla sugar
1/4 tsp cinnamon

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Line a baking sheet with silpat or wax paper.

Prepare a acidulated ice water bath (mixture of lemon juice and water). Peel and core apples. Thinly slice them, about 1/8 inch. Dunk slices in water bath to prevent discoloration. When you are ready to assemble the galettes, drain apple slices and pat dry.

In a large bowl, combine flour, sugar, and salt. Add chilled, cubed butter. Toss butter lightly with flour. With your hands or a pastry blender, work and rub the flour into the butter until the pieces of butter are about the size of peas. Drizzle 1/4 cup of ice water. Gently mix until a soft dough forms. Add an additional tablespoon of water if the dough is dry. Turn out onto a clean surface and knead gingerly until the dough is smooth and the butter is completely incorporated. Wrap tightly in plastic wrap. Set in the fridge to chill for about an hour or up to one day.

When ready to use, allow dough to rest at room temp for a few minutes. Lightly flour your work surface and rolling pin. Divide the dough into four equal pieces. Set one piece on your floured surface. Return the remaining three pieces to the fridge. Gently roll the dough into a rough circle, 5 to 6 inches in diameter. Carefully arrange slices in a circular pattern in the center of prepared dough, leaving a one inch border. Sprinkle with 1/4 tablespoon cinnamon sugar (recipe follows). Fold excess dough over the arranged apples. Set on prepared baking sheet and chill in fridge while you prepare the remaining galettes. Bake 30 to 35 minutes, until golden brown.

Cinnamon Sugar: in a small bowl, combine cinnamon with sugar. Mix with a fork until combined. I used vanilla sugar. I always have that on hand. Simply place a used vanilla bean in a container of sugar. Easy and yummy. Great in coffee too!

Everyday Fruit Tart

Dear Michelle,

That granola looks great! I went through a granola making craze last winter- my favorite was this, but with chocolate chips mixed in at the end. I can never resist the temptation to add chocolate. I saw another recipe recently that added pumpkin seeds, which also sounds really good to me. I bet crisped rice would be good too. Mmm, now I want to make some granola.

A couple of nights ago, for no reason in particular, I decided to make a tart for dessert. We didn't get to eat it after dinner, as I'd started it too late (oops), but I had a weekend-worthy breakfast the next morning; if anything can make waking up bearable, it's plum tart with a cup of steaming tea. The plums melted down to a jam-like consistency and the juices mixed with the sugar to create a red glaze that filled in all the gaps, but the crust stole the show. This was the most tender, flaky, and buttery crust I have ever had.


You know I use Julia Child's sweet short paste recipe (Mastering the Art of French Cooking I, pg 633) almost exclusively for tart and pie crusts, and I did this time as well, but with a slight change--I used cake flour instead of the standard all-purpose. I don't know why I never thought of it before. That soft wheat really makes a difference! There was not even the slightest hint of toughness. This crust is strong enough to hold a filling, but shatters to buttery deliciousness when bitten. I used the same weight of cake flour as was listed for the all-purpose, but if you must measure with volume, 1 cup all purpose = 1 cup 2T cake flour.

Julia's Sweet Short Paste, slightly altered, for one 10-11 inch crust.

7 oz or 2 cups, 4T cake flour (2 cups all-purpose)
2 T granulated sugar
1/4 t salt
11 T COLD butter (Julia calls for 8T butter and 3T shortening, but I always used all butter, due to lack of shortening in my fridge. Also, I think it's gross)
5-6 T cold water

Place flour, sugar and salt in a bowl and mix. Add butter, cut into 1T pieces. I find it easiest to start off with a pastry cutter, just to break the pieces up a little, then start cutting the butter into the flour with your fingers until it is in small flakes, about the size of oatmeal flakes. Work quickly so the butter does not become too soft or create a paste with the flour. Add water and mix just till a dough forms. Julia calls for a smear with the heel of the hand to further blend the butter and flour, but I omitted (forgot) and it turned out fine. Let rest in fridge for at least a half hour.

For major parental brownie points, make double recipes and leave individually wrapped in the freezer. My mother loves it when I do that.

Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Let dough warm a few minutes until pliant, and roll out to fit tart shell. I rolled this dough very thin, a little less than 1/8 inch. Prick all over with a fork, line with foil and fill with weights. Put in the oven for 5-6 minutes till dough is set, then remove foil and weights and return to oven till slightly golden, about 10 minutes more.

For the tart:

9-10 inch tart pan
4-5 empress or prune plums (substitute almost any fruit here; apricots, peaches, apple, etc.)
4-5T granulated sugar
2T butter, cut into about 8 pieces

Turn oven to 350 degrees. Sprinkle 1-2T sugar on crust. Slice plums into eighths, and arrange radiating from middle to the outside in circles. It is ok if there are a few gaps; with such a thin crust it is nice not to have too much fruit, and the sugar and the plum juice fills them with a pretty red syrup. Sprinkle with an additional 2T sugar, more if you like desserts sweeter or the fruit is very tart. Dot with butter, and set in oven. Cook 30-45 minutes until crust is deep golden and fruit is very soft. May be eaten warm or cold. Jeff ate his with whipped cream, or it would certainly also be good with vanilla ice cream, or creme fraiche.

For leftover dough: either freeze, if you have enough, or try wrapping around peeled, cored apple slices (1/8 apple) that have been tossed in cinnamon, sugar, and vanilla; the apples shrink a little, leaving you with a shattering cage of pastry, filled with soft apple. Delicious! These would be perfect deserts for a cocktail party.