Double Lemon Meringue Tartlets

By chelyc13

Ingredients

• 1 cup all purpose flour
• 1 tblsp plus 1/4 cup granulated sugar
• 1/8 teas kosher or fine graind sea salt
• Finely grated zest of 1/2 large lemon
• 6 tblsp unsalted butter, chilled
• 1 extra large egg yolk, at room temperature, divided
• 1 tblsp heavy whipping cream
• Lemon Curd
• 2 extra large egg whites at room temperature

Preparation

Step 1

1. Pulse together the flour, 1 tblp of sugar, salt, and lemon zest in the work bowl of a food processor.

2. Cut the chilled butter into small pieces and add to the flour mixture. Pulse until the butter is cut into very tiny pieces, about 30 seconds. The texture will be sandy with very tiny lumps throughout.

3. In a small bowl, use fork to mix the egg yolk with the cream. With the food processor running, pour this mixture through the feed tube. Process the dough until the mixture wraps itself around the blade, about 1 minute.

4. Shape the dough into a flat disk and wrap tightly in a double layer of plastic wrap. Chill in the refirgerator until firm before using, about 2 hours. If the dough is too cold and firm, let it stand at room temperature for 10 to 15 minutes to beome more pliable before rolling out.

5. On a smooth, flat surface, roll out the pastry dough between sheets of lightly floured waxed or parchment paper to a large disk about 12 inches in diameter. Carefully peel the paper off the top of the dough and brush off any excess flour. Dip a 2 1/2 inch plain round biscuit cutter into flour and cut out 24 circles of dough. Gently place each dough circle into a tartlet pan, fit it against the bottom and sides of the pan, and pinch off any exces dough at the top edge.

6. Top the dough in each tartlet pan with another tartlet pan to act as a weight as it bakes. Place the pans on a baking sheet. Chill in the freezer for 15 to 20 minutes.

7. Position a rack in the center of the oven and preheat the oven to 375.

8. Bake the tartlet shells for 8 minutes. Remove the top tartlet pans. If the bottoms of the pastry shells puff up, gently pierce them with a fork or the point of a knife to release the air. Bake another 8 to 10 mintes, until light golden brown. Remove the baking sheet from the oven and transfer it to a rack to cool coompletely. To remove the tartlet shells from their pans, gently tap each pan on the countertop.

9. Place the egg whites and remaining 1/4 cup of sugar in a grease free large mixing bowl and place the bowl over a lage saucepan of simerring water. Whisk constantly until the egg whites are warm. Remove the bowl from the pan of water and wipe the bottom and sides dry. Whip the egg whites in an elecric stand mixer with a grease free wire whip attachment or in a meium bowl using a handheld mixer on medium high speed until they hold shiny and firm but not stiff peaks.

10. Pipe lemon curd into shells. With a star tip pipe the meringue on top of each tartlet in a rosette. Use a butane kitchen torch to lightly brown the meringue.

11. Serve immediately or chill in the refrigerator, lightly covered with waxed paer, then loosely wrapped with plastic wrap, up to 3 hours before serving.

12. Store the tartlets in a single layer on a baking sheet. Cover the tops of the tartlets with a lare piece of waxed paper to keep the surface from becoming marred. Tightly wrap the pan with plastic wrap and keep in the refrigerator up to 1 day.