Lemon Tart Recipe

For the shortcrust pastry

1. Place the butter, flour and salt into a bowl (this process can also be done in a kitchen stand mixer or food processor). Using your fingers, work the ingredients together until they resemble fine bread crumbs and no lumps of butter are present.
2. Add the water a little at a time (or in a steady stream if using a kitchen stand mixer), until it forms a firm but malleable mixture. If you used a food processor earlier, it'd be best to finish this one off by hand.
3. Move the dough to your benchtop and work into a puck-sized shape. Wrap with plastic wrap and allow to rest in the fridge for at least 30 minutes.
4. Preheat your oven to 180 °C (360 °F). Place the pastry on a piece of baking paper and cover with a second piece of baking paper. Using a rolling pin, roll out the pastry into a circle roughly 35 cm (approx. 13¾ in) wide, and around 3 mm (⅛ in) thick. Allow the pastry to firm up again in the fridge for at least an hour before lining the tin (if lining the tin immediately, be sure to rest it for at least an hour).
5. Remove one piece of baking paper from the pastry and drape the pastry over your tart tin. You may find this easier to do by using a rolling pin.
6. Press the pastry into the knuckles of the tart tin using the flats of your fingers.
7. Use a sharp knife to remove any excess trim from the edges of the pastry. Allow the pastry to sit for 15 minutes or so in the freezer for one final rest.
8. Take one large sheet of aluminium foil and gently press into the edges of the pastry shell, ensuring that the sheet is big enough to go over the edge and completely line the tart. Fill it to the brim with uncooked rice, then fold the foil gently back over the top and place into the oven.
9. Bake for 25-30 minutes, or until the edges of the pastry are a nice medium-golden color.
10. Remove from the oven and sneak a look under the foil to check the doneness. Cook until the colour is consistent, then allow to cool at room temperature. Remove the foil and rice when cool enough to touch.

For the lemon tart

1. Preheat the oven to 125°C (255°F).
2. Add the lemon juice and zest, creams and sugar to a saucepan over medium heat.
3. Bring to a simmer then immediately remove from heat. To temper the whole eggs and egg yolks, add them to a mixing bowl and whisk in a small amount of the hot cream mixture until well incorporated. Then add the remaining cream mixture and whisk again until combined. Using a hand-held blender, blend until the mixture is shiny and smooth, keeping the head of the blender submerged so that no air gets into the mix. Strain the custard into a jug and let sit for 10 minutes for any impurities to rise to the top, then skim them off with a ladle.
4. In the meantime, spread the dulce de leche over the base of the baked pastry shell. This will provide a protective layer between the custard mix and the shell, ensuring it stays crisp. Once the surface is clear of bubbles, place the prepared shell in the oven. Pour the warm custard into the tart shell straight away to ensure that the mixture cooks evenly in the oven.
5. Bake for 30 minutes, or until the custard is slightly wobbly in the center, then remove from the oven and allow to cool.
6. Once the custard has completely cooled, remove the tart from the tin and portion into slices with a hot, sharp knife.