citrus

For those of you who asked, here is the recipe (adapted from about five different sources). Enjoy!

Meyer Lemon Meringue Tartlets with Cornmeal Butter Crust

and Candied Orange Slices

Dough

1 1/2 cups flour
1/2 cup stone-ground cornmeal or polenta
1/2 teaspoon sea salt
2 teaspoons baking powder (preferably aluminum-free)
9 tablespoons unsalted butter, at room temperature
1/2 cup sugar
1 large egg
1 large egg yolk

1/8 teaspoon almond extract

1 egg white, for pre-baking

Meyer Lemon Curd

2 eggs

3 egg yolks

1 T. Meyer lemon zest (decrease to 1 t. if desired; I like my lemon desserts mouth-puckering)

¾ c. freshly squeezed and strained Meyer lemon juice

2/3 c. sugar (add more if you prefer a sweeter tart)

7 T. unsalted butter, chilled and diced

Meringue

5 large egg whites, at room temperature

¼ t. cream of tartar

pinch of salt

10 T. sugar

1 t. vanilla

Candied Orange Slices (optional, see recipe below)

coarse raw sugar, for finishing the tart (optional)

Make dough

1. In a small bowl, whisk together the flour, cornmeal, salt, and baking powder. Using paddle attachment, beat together butter and sugar just until smooth. Mix in the egg, egg yolk and almond extract just until combined. With mixer running on low, gradually add the dry ingredients, just until dough comes together.

2. On a lightly floured surface, pat it into a disk, wrap it in plastic, and chill it, 10 minutes in the freezer or 30-60 minutes in the refrigerator.

3. With the heel of your hand, press the dough into the bottom and sides of an unbuttered removable bottom tart pan (9″ or 10″) or a springform pan, patting it evenly. (I prefer to roll it out first, then press into the pan. Your choice.) You can also divide it into 8 equal portions and roll/pat into 8 tartlet pans (depending on how thick you like your crust you may have some dough left over). Prick the bottom of the crust with a fork. Chill until firm, 30-60 minutes in fridge or 10-15 minutes in freezer. (I tend to use freezer.)

4. Preheat oven to 350. Line crust(s) with a piece of parchment paper and fill with dry beans or weights. Prebake 15 minutes. Remove from oven, remove parchment and weights, brush with egg white. Bake again for 5 minutes. Crust(s) should be lightly golden and mostly dry-looking. Remove from oven and let cool slightly. (Can do a few hours ahead.)

Meanwhile, make lemon curd (can be made ahead)

1. Have ready a mesh strainer set over a bowl.

2. In a medium-sized non-reactive saucepan, whisk together all the ingredients except the butter. Add the butter and cook over low heat, stirring constantly, until the butter melts. Continue to cook over low heat, stirring constantly, until the mixture thickens and almost begins to bubble around the edges. Do not let it boil. The curd is ready when it coats the back of a spoon.

3. Pour the lemon curd though the strainer, scraping with a rubber spatula to press it through. Let cool and refrigerate until ready to use. Or, if you're doing the whole recipe all at once, let cool slightly then fill tart(s) right away.

Assemble and bake tart, make meringue

1. Fill the tart(s) with the lemon curd. Return to 350 oven and bake again for 15 minutes.

2. Meanwhile, make meringue. In a clean, dry bowl of standing mixer fitted with whisk attachment, whisk egg whites on low speed until frothy. Add the cream of tartar and the pinch of salt, then increase speed to high and continue to whisk until whites begin to form soft, drooping peaks when the beater is lifted. While mixer is running, gradually add the sugar, then the vanilla, and continue to whisk until meringue forms stiff peaks.

4. Remove hot tart(s) from oven, top with meringue. You can either pipe it on, as we did, or use a spoon to mound it decoratively. Be sure to start at the edge of the crust with a ring of meringue, then work your way in. This will anchor the meringue to the crust.

5. Return to oven for 10-20 minutes (depending on size of pan and desired brownness), or until meringue is golden brown.

6. Remove from the oven and let cool before serving. Refrigerate if desired but keep in mind the meringue will begin to bead and weep after an hour or so in the fridge.

7. If desired, sprinkle with raw sugar and garnish with candied orange or lemon slices.

Candied Orange Slices (option to dip in chocolate)

Warning to all Sour-Patch Kids addicts (or recovering addicts, like me): get ready for au-naturel bliss. Don't say I didn't warn you.

4 large oranges, such as blood orange, Cara Cara or navel, sliced crosswise ¼-inch thick

4 ½ cups sugar

4 cups water

optional

chocolate (I used Ghirardelli dark chocolate chips)

coarse raw sugar

1. Place orange slices in a large pot and cover with cold water. Bring to a boil over high heat. Boil 2 minutes, then pour into colander, discarding water. Rinse immediately in cold water. [Some sources skip this blanching step and I'd skip it next time, too.]

2. Meanwhile, combine 4 cups water and the sugar in a large, wide pot (a Dutch oven or large, deep skillet works well). Stir over low heat to dissolve sugar, then raise heat to medium and bring just to a boil. This seems like a crazy amount of syrup, and you will have a lot left over (think Italian sodas and yummy orange cocktails), but the oranges cook more quickly and evenly this way.

3. Add orange slices and simmer (do not boil) over moderate heat, gently turning occasionally, until slices are translucent, about 20 minutes. Reduce heat to moderately low and simmer until syrup is thick and slices are tender but still intact, turning occasionally, about 10 minutes.

4. Turn off heat and allow slices to cool in syrup. You can leave them in there a few hours to soak up sweetness, or just move on. I like them on the tart side, so I let them cool in the syrup and then proceeded.

5. Now, choose your own adventure. Either:

a) Preheat oven to 300. Using tongs, remove slices to baking sheets lined with parchment paper. If desired, brush with more syrup (I didn't). Bake for 20-30 minutes or until slightly dried out and chewy. Or...

b) Remove slices to a rack or sheets of wax paper (don't use parchment here; it sticks!) and allow to cool and dry out for several hours before serving. Depending on humidity, this could take all day, which is why the oven is a nice option.

(I did both A and B, but here in Colorado they were dry and chewy in about 15 minutes so probably could have skipped A.)

To dip in chocolate:

Melt dark chocolate. Since it's such a small amount, I did this very carefully in the microwave, with lots of stirring breaks. Stop once 2/3 of the chips are melted and stir to melt the rest to avoid clumpy chocolate. You could use a double-boiler if you're in the mood.

Dip half of orange slice in chocolate, being sure to coat both sides. Place on sheet of wax paper to cool and harden.

Sprinkle with raw sugar, if you like.

Can be made ahead and refrigerated for up to 2 weeks.

Enjoy!