TWD: Lemon Tart Brulee

I love lemon desserts. I really, really, really love them! Lemon pie? Love! Lemon cake? Love! Lemon cupcakes, cookies, custards? Love, Love, Love! And, lemon tarts? Double Love! Needless to say, I was elated to learn that this week's TWD selection was Dorie's Tartest Lemon Tart, chosen by Babette from Babette Feasts.

This recipe is a bit unconventional as the filling is made with whole lemons. That's right, folks. The. Whole. Entire. Lemon. You just whiz the lemons up in the food processor or blender, add the rest of the filling ingredients, pour it all into a crunchy, nutty pate sable and bake. What you end up with is a smooth, sweet and creamy lemon tart with just the perfect amount of pucker power. I'm telling you, this tart is pure sunshine on a plate!

Dorie's recipe calls for her sweet tart dough with nuts. I would normally have used almonds, except that I didn't have any. What I did have was a bag of toasted hazelnut flour, so I used some of that. I think it was a good alternative.

As delicious as this tart tasted, it wasn't really all that pretty to look at. It had a few little cracks and bubbles on the surface. While trying to figure out how to camouflage those blemishes, I decided to throw some sugar on top and brulee it. It worked perfectly! The top had that burnished, glassy finish on it that got all crackly when I cut into it. I served the tart for dessert on Mother's Day and it went so fast that I almost didn't get any pictures!

If you'd like to make Dorie's tart for yourself, the recipe can be found in her book, Baking: From My Home to Yours, as well as on Babette's site. If you need some more convincing, check out all of the other fabulous lemon tarts over on the Tuesdays with Dorie site.