Creamy Lemon Tarts
"These are perfect to serve at a get together, this recipe makes a ton of tarts (about 50 mini tarts) but the recipe can be cut in half if desired. The original recipe states to prepare the lemon mixture on top of the stove, but this tends to scorch easily so the second time I made it, it worked out better in the microwave, but you can definitely prepare it on top of the stove in a heavy-bottomed saucepan if desired. Although it is always better to use fresh lemon juice, I use the juice of two lemons and bottled lemon juice to make up the 1 cup, this is very lemony and tart, so you might want to adjust the sugar to suit taste, just add in more while the mixture is cooking."
photo by Paula
- Ready In:
- 35mins
- Ingredients:
- 11
- Yields:
-
50 mini tarts
ingredients
- 45 -50 prepared tart shells, baked and cooled
- 2 cups white sugar (add in more sugar to taste if desired while filling is cooking)
- 7 tablespoons cornstarch
- 3 tablespoons lemon zest
- 1 cup fresh lemon juice
- 6 egg yolks, slightly beaten
- 1 1⁄2 cups half-and-half cream
- 1⁄2 cup whipping cream (unwhipped)
- 1⁄2 cup butter or 1/2 cup margarine, cut into pieces
- 3⁄4 cup sour cream
- cool whip frozen whipped topping, thawed
directions
- In the microwave (I use my 8-cup Pyrex measuring cup for this) or on top of the stove (using a heavy-bottomed sauce pan) combine sugar, cornstarch, lemon zest, lemon juice, egg yolks, half and half and whipping cream (can use 2 cups half and half cream if desired and omit the whipping cream); whisk to combine.
- Microwave on HIGH until thick (removing about every minute to whisk/stir).
- Cook until thickened.
- Stir in butter; whisk until butter has melted and the mixture is smooth.
- Cool to almost room temperature, stirring every so often.
- Stir in sour cream until well blended.
- Divide evenly between baked tart shells.
- Top with a dollup of Cool Whip.
- Delicious!
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Reviews
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These look delicious and I will definitely make them. Thanks for the recipe. One thing, though. Cool Whip?? Really?? These deserve real whipped cream! -
Delicious, easy, and even better frozen!! I used a homemade gingersnap crust instead of the pastry shells and made individual dessert-sized portions in a muffin tin. -
Just made these as directed, except I cooked it on the stove instead of the microwave, and they are delicious. I often find lemon things too sweet but this is a perfect lemon taste. -
I have to give these 5 stars because I made them particularly because my husband loves lemon so I thought they would be a good addition to my Christmas baking, and well, he definitely loved them! I did it on the stove and had no problems at all, just kept it at a low heat and stirred often and it came out perfect! I'm not as big on the lemon stuff as he is, but I would even give it 4 stars myself but probably would have been better for me with more sugar, I didn't add the extra sugar though so that it would keep the very lemony flavor for my husband. -
I fought this recipe the whole way through but in the end everyone really enjoyed them. It took a while to thicken the filling and being my first attempt at tarts I had no frame of reference on time or consistency so maybe comments on how others cooked and time it took would be helpful?
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Tweaks
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These tarts are sensational! The filling is the perfect balance of tart and sweet, and I really do believe that the fresh lemon juice makes all the difference. Instead of prepared tart shells, I used a basic shortbread recipe, which I pressed into mini muffin tins before adding the creamy lemon filling. My mother said that these replicated Saunder's bakery tarts from her childhood (it's a Michigan thing), and that is a major compliment. Thanks for the awesome recipe! -
KittenCal you have done it again. These are wonderful. Instead of using tart shells, I made a batch of shortbread cookie dough. I just took about a tablespoonful of that into a cupcake/ muffin pan. Baked for about 15 minutes until they were brown. Then used this for filling. Makes 24 tarts, and was super easy to take to a picnic.
