Lemon Tarts

A tart is a pastry dish, usually sweet, that is a type of pie with an open top not covered with pastry. The Tarte Tatin is a particular kind of "upside-down" tart, of apples, other fruit, or onions. Savoury varieties include German Zwiebelkuchen (Onion tart), or Swiss cheese tart made from Gruyere.

Yield:

Makes 9 individual tarts.

Ingredients

1. For crust:
2. ===============
3. 1 1/3 cups all-purpose flour
4. 2 tbsp sugar
5. 1/8 teaspoon salt
6. 1/2 cup unsalted butter, cold and cut into pieces
7. 1 large egg
8. 2 tbsp vodka
9. 1 tsp cinnamon
10. 1/2 tsp ground ginger
11. 1/4 tsp nutmeg
12. 1/8 tsp ground cloves
13. .
14. For filling:
15. ===============
16. 2 eggs
17. 1 cups sugar
18. 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
19. 2 tbsp all-purpose flour
20. 1/4 cup plus 1 tbsp lemon juice

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
2. Place flour, sugar, salt, butter, egg, spices and vodka in a food processor. Pulse until blended into one large ball of dough.
3. Roll the dough out on a floured surface, into an approximately 14″ square. Cut the dough into 9 equally-sized pieces. Press one piece of dough into each section of a muffin pan, and trim the edges evenly. Prick the bottoms of the tart shells with a fork so air can escape.
4. Bake the tart crusts for 15-20 minutes, or until the tarts’ edges are just slightly golden. Place on a counter or table to cool.
5. In a large bowl, beat eggs and sugar until light and fluffy. Combine the baking powder and two tbsp of flour, and stir the mixture into the eggs. Stir in the lemon juice. Pour over the crust and bake for an additional 20-25 minutes, or until just set.

Notes