L: Lemon and Blueberry Cloud Tartlets

I have less than a week left in Edinburgh before I continue on with my travels. I will be making some stops in different places for a month and then I will fly back to Canada. That being said, I am going to try to push myself to produce as many recipes as possible before leaving the comforts of my apartment here..

This recipe once again comes from Tarts by Maxine Clark. Stupidly I didn't look at the recipe closely enough before scanning the page in Toronto. It refers to other pages in the book for making pate brisee  (for the crust) and also to explain how to "bake blind" which is just baking the pastry without the filling; it usually involves parchment paper and beans. These instructions can all be found on the internet but quite frankly I still don't have a food processor and just couldn't be bothered to make pastry so I bought some ready-made shortcrust pastry. Instead of using parchment and beans for "baking blind", I hung a little bit of the pastry over the edge of each ramekin so it wouldn't shrink when I baked it. I baked the crust on its own for approximately 5 minutes but a few more wouldn't have hurt.  For presentation, you can gently saw off this extra crust from the edge once it has been baked with the filling.

Luckily I was able to find ramekins that were quite cheap. If I didn't have any I probably would have used a larger baking dish and I would have baked the dessert at a slightly lower temperature and for longer. If you do have smaller individual dishes, they are much nicer for presentation and I'm not sure how well the tart would fare once sliced otherwise. 

All of my flatmates were very fond of the dessert. The result is an almost mousse-like, yet slightly more solid, texture...kind of like a soufflé. It tastes great no matter the temperature but serving it straight out of the oven is probably better for presentation.  As it cools, the filling sinks and starts to separate from the crust a little bit. 

On a slightly different note, I treated myself to a new camera lens (a Canon EF 50mm f 1.8) which is a bit of an upgrade from the one that came with the camera. It's ideal for portraits and still life so I hope you enjoy all the pictures below!

Ingredients:

1 package of ready-made short crust pastry or Pate Brisee Dough 

4 extra-large eggs, separated

3/4 cup sugar (I accidentally used powdered sugar and it turned out fine)

finely grated zest of 2 unwaxed lemons or 3 limes

freshly squeezed juice of 1 lemon or 2 limes

a pinch of salt

1 lb.  fresh blueberries (3 cups)*, plus extra to serve

powdered sugar, for dusting

sour cream or creme fraiche, to serve

* I think I used a bit less so use your discretion 

Tools:
8 tartlet pans, 4 inches diameter

baking sheet
parchment paper and baking beans (if baking blind)

1) Bring the dough to room temperature. Preheat the oven to 400F (200C).

2) Roll out the dough on a lightly floured work surface, then use to line the tart pans. Prick the bases and chill or freeze for 15 minutes. Bake blind (unless you're lazy like me and can't be bothered -- see comments in beginning).

3) Turn the oven down to 325 F (160 C). Beat the egg yolks and 6 tablespoons of the sugar with an electric beater until the mixture is pale and mousse-like, and leaves a trail when the beaters are lifted. Beat in the lemon or lime zest and juice. Set the bowl over a saucepan of simmering water and stir the mixture until thickened enough to coat the back of a wooden spoon. Let cool.

4) Beat the egg whites with the salt until soft peaks form, then gradually beat in the remaining sugar, a spoonful at a time. Beat a spoonful of the egg white mixture into the lemon mixture to loosen it, then carefully fold in the remainder.

5) Put a single layer of blueberries into each pie crust. Carefully cover with spoonfuls of the lemon mousse, making sure the mousse seals the edges. Put onto the baking sheet and bake for 15-20 minutes until beginning to rise.

 

6) Dust with powered sugar and return to the oven for 4-5 minutes until just beginning to brown.

7) Serve warm (the tartlets will sink a little) or at room temperature with spoonfuls of sour cream or creme fraiche and extra blueberries.

Makes 8 tartlets

These last two photos are from the following day after the tarts were chilled overnight. Note how the filling has slightly separated from the crust and that the powdered sugar got absorbed.