WTSIM – Clementine and lemon tart

I have been baking all week for a high tea I organized for some of my dearest friends. This tart was one of the goodies I made and it’s also my entry for the ‘Topless tart’ edition of WTSIM that is hosted by Cook Sister! this month. The tart has a simple egg-less sweet shortcrust basis and is filled with clementine and lemon curd. The crust and curd are then baked for 25 minutes.
It was the first time I made a curd and I must say that clementines make one delicious curd! I didn’t read the recipe very well before started so I didn’t process the clementine zest with the sugar before mixing it with the eggs. Instead I put the rind in the clementine juice and allowed it to steep for a couple of hours in the fridge. Even though it turned out delicious it would probably have been even better if I followed the recipe (and maybe a little more orange). I raised the temperature that was needed for lemon curd from 71°C (160°F) to 77°C (170°F) degrees because only then it had the right consistency. In the recipe it says that it will take about 5 minutes for the mixture to reach 71°C but it took me much longer, I think about 25 minutes.
The only time I ever had curd was years ago and that was lemon curd. I don’t remember the taste very well but I would say this one is less tart. At first you taste lemon, but after that you taste a very destinct clementine taste. The tarty sweetness combines especially well with the shortcrust pastry…yum! Definitely will be making more curd in the future…maybe next time I’ll try it as cookie filling.

Clementine and lemon curd (adapted from The Secrets of Baking by Sherry Yard)

170 g (â…” cup sugar
2 tbs finely chopped or grated clementine zest
3 eggs
5 egg yolks
½ cup clementine juice
¼ cup lemon juice
50 g (4 tbs / 1/2 stick)

Prepare an ice bath. Use a large bowl to hold the ice.
Combine the sugar and and clementine zest in a food processor and pulse until the sugar is yellow and very fragrant (about 1 minute).
Combine the clementine sugar, eggs, and egg yolks in a medium heatproof bowl and whisk together for 30 seconds. Heat the contents au bain marie while whisking continuously. Whisk until the sugar is dissolved.
Add the clementine and lemon juice and cook, whisking continuously. Check the temperature from time to time. Cook and whisk until the mixture reaches 77°C (170°F) and the mixture has the consistency of sour cream.
Transfer the curd to a large bowl and whisk in the butter piece by piece. Continue to whisk until the mixture is homogenous.
Strain the curd through a fine-mesh strainer into a medium bowl and place the bowl in the ice bath to cool down. Cover the surface with plastic wrap to avoid the forming of skin. Stir the curd occasionally until it has cooled completely.

It keeps for up to a week in the fridge.

Sweet shortcrust pastry (from Modern Classics Book 2 by Donna Hay)

makes 3 small tarts or 1 large tart

270 g (2 cups) flour
3 tbs caster sugar
150 g (5 oz) cold butter, chopped
2-3 tbs iced water

Process the flour, sugar and butter in a food processor until the mixture resembles fine breadcrumbs. While the motor is running, add enough iced water to form a smooth dough and process until just combined. Knead the dough lightly, wrap in plastic wrap and refrigerate for 30 minutes.
Preheat the oven to 180°C (350°F). Grease three 15 cm (6 in) tart tins (or springforms). Divide the dough in three and press into the tins. Blind bake for 10 minutes. Remove the baking weights and bake for another 10 minutes or until the crust is golden. Allow to cool down. Preheat the oven to 180°C (350°F). Divide the curd over the 3 shortcrust pastries and bake for 25 minutes. Allow to cool down.