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French Lemon Meringue Tart (Tarte au Citron Meringuée)

Lemon meringue tart on a plate.
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French lemon meringue tart (tarte au citron meringuée) is a crisp sweet pastry crust layered with lemon confit, candied lemon slices, and lemon cream, then topped with torched Italian meringue. Adapted from Philippe Conticini, it is bright, tangy, and best served chilled.

Ingredients

Scale

For sugar dough:

  • ½ cup plus 1 tablespoon (125 g) butter, softened
  • ¼ cup (30 g) almond flour
  • 1 cup (120 g) icing sugar
  • 1 egg
  • zest of 1½ limes or 2 small yellow lemons
  • ½ teaspoon (2 g) salt
  • 2 cups (250 g) all-purpose flour

For candied lemon slices:

  • 3.5 oz (100 g) very fine lemon strips, 2 mm thick
  • ½ cup (100 g) sugar
  • ⅓ cup (70 g) water
  • 1 vanilla bean or ½ teaspoon (1 g) vanilla powder
  • ½ cinnamon stick

For lemon confit:

  • ¾ cup (170 g) lemon juice
  • ⅓ cup plus 1 tablespoon (90 g) caster sugar
  • ½ cup (60 g) lemon peel, without the white pith

For the lemon cream:

  • ⅓ cup (75 g) butter, melted
  • ½ cup plus 2 tablespoons (120 g) sugar
  • 3 small eggs
  • ⅓ cup (70 g) lemon juice
  • 2 tablespoons (30 g) lime juice
  • zest of 1½ green limes
  • 2 sheets gelatin

For the lime meringue:

  • ½ cup (130 g) egg whites, about 4 large
  • ⅓ cup (75 g) water
  • 1¼ cups (260 g) caster sugar
  • zest of 1 lime

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Instructions

  1. To make the sugar dough, take the butter out of the fridge 1.5-2 hours in advance. Place the butter in a bowl of the stand mixer and beat it at slow speed. Add the icing sugar and whisk until you get a creamy texture. Add the citrus zest, then the almond powder and whisk again. Then incorporate the egg, then the previously sifted and mixed flour and salt. From the moment you incorporate the flour, the mixture must be whisked twice, very quickly.
  2. Form a flat ball from the dough and cover with a food film.  Refrigerate for 3-4 hours, better over night.
  3. Preheat the oven to 300°F (150°C). Roll the dough between two sheets of parchment paper or plastic sheets to a thickness of 2-3 mm. Butter and flour a 7-inch (18 cm) tart ring. Spread the dough over the ring: make a circle 7 inches (18 cm) in diameter (use the tart ring) and cut long strips with a width equal to the height of the ring. Place the dough circle on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper to form the bottom of the tart crust. Then arrange long strips of dough along the ring's border.  Place a sheet of wax paper on the surface with beans, lentils, or rice. Bake the tart crust at 300°F (150°C) for 30 minutes.
  4. To make candied lemon slices, place the fine slices of the lemon in a pan and rinse them 3 times (with clean water each time). Cook them in a pan with the other ingredients for about 15 minutes. The slices must be melting but keeping their shape. Don't hesitate to cook a little bit more if you need to.
  5. To make the lemon confit, wash the lemons and then, using a peeler, peel the lemons, leaving as little white as possible, which is a source of excessive bitterness. Place them into a pan with cold water, then bring it all to a boil. Empty the pan by passing the lemon peels through a sieve, then repeat the operation two more times. Cook these lemon peels with the lemon juice and sugar, stirring for 40-50 minutes. Once a few tablespoons of juice remain in the pan, mix it in a robot while it is still hot.
  6. To make the lemon cream, melt butter in a pan. Then add the sugar, eggs, lemon juice, and lime zest, stirring constantly. Bring this mixture to a boil. Remove the pan from the fire when the first bubble forms. Whip a bit more while adding the gelatin soaked in the cold water. Cover the cream with a food film, making contact with the cream. Let it rest until the lemon cream starts thickening.
  7. To make the lime meringue, whisk the egg whites till they are foamy. At the same time, heat the sugar with water to 250°F (121°C). Slowly pour the sugar syrup into the egg whites and continue whisking. Add the lime zest while the meringue is still hot (for infusion), then whisk until the meringue has cooled.
  8. To assemble the tart, spread the lemon confit at the bottom of the tart crust with a spoon. Place the candied lemon slices on top of the confit. Fill the tart crust with the tempered lemon cream up to the edges, and spread it with a stainless steel spatula. Place the tart in the fridge for at least 2 hours.
  9. Decorate the Lemon tart with the Italian meringue and burn it with a blowtorch.

Notes

  1. Line the shell with paper and baking beans so the crust bakes flat and crisp before you add the fillings.
  2. Heat the sugar syrup to exactly 250°F (121°C) before whisking it into the egg whites, which gives a stable, glossy Italian meringue.
  3. Keep whisking until the meringue reaches room temperature, so it holds its shape and does not weep on the tart.
  4. Torch the meringue and finish the tart shortly before serving for the crispest crust and cleanest layers.

Nutrition

Find it online: https://www.bakinglikeachef.com/lemon-meringue-tart-philippe-conticini/