Lemon macaroon tarts

Every year J and I take a trip down the coast and come back with kilos lemons from his parent's coast house. The trees are magical, they get very little love and attention but every year around August they become covered in lemons of all shapes and sizes so every year I have to come up with new ways to use lemons.

So when I saw this recipe on Evan's Kitchen Ramblings I knew I had to make something similar. I couldn't make the exact recipe as I had the intention of making these for a celiac friend and, well, pastry is gluten central.

Sure, I could have made gluten free pastry but I've tried that before and it was, to be completely honest, a disaster. I won't doubt that the issue was me but I wasn't game enough to try again.

Instead I opted for a macaroon base which was perfect as it was extremely simple and an excellent way to use up the egg whites I had stashed in my freezer.

As the base is macaroon it is extremely coconut-y tasting if you don't like coconut this isn't for you. However I would definitely recommend making the filling and using it in something else as it's seriously good.

Lemon macaroon tarts

Adapted from Simple Essentials: Chocolate by Donna Hay and Desserts by Pierre Herme

makes six 10cm (3 1/4") x 2.5cm (1") or seven 10cm (3 1/4") x 2cm (3/4") tarts

Macaroon base

• 3 egg whites
• 165g (5 3/4oz) sugar
• 255g (7 7/8oz) unsweetened, dessiccated coconut

1. Preheat oven to 140°C (280°F). Grease and line the bases of 8 10 tart tins.
2. Combine the egg whites, sugar, and coconut in a large bowl. Once thoroughly mixed divide evenly between the tart dishes. Press mixture firmly over the base and up the sides, using the back of a spoon if necessary.
3. Bake for 25-30 minutes or until macaroon shells are firm and lightly golden. Cool then remove from the tins.

Lemon filling

• 240g (1 cup) castor sugar
• Zest of 3 lemons
• 4 eggs
• 330ml (3/4 cup) freshly squeezed lemon juice
• 295g (10.5 oz) unsalted butter, cut into tablespoon sized pieces

1. Place a saucepan of water of heat and bring it to a simmer. Combine the sugar and lemon zest in a heatproof bowl. Rub the sugar and zest together with your fingers until fragrant. Whisk in the eggs and lemon juice.
2. Place the bowl over the saucepan of simmering water. Cook, whisking gently, until the cream thickens and reaches 82°C (180°F). You will see the cream turn from light and foamy in the beginning to thick and smooth as it nears the correct temperature. When the whisk starts to leave tracks the cream is nearly finished. Be patient, it could take as long as 10 minutes for the mixture to cook.
3. As soon as the cream reaches the correct temperature, remove it from the heat and strain it into a blender or food processor. Cool the cream to 60°C (140°F), or for about 10 minutes.
4. Working with the blender or food processor on high speed, add the pieces of butter about 5 at a time. Blend until combined, scraping down as required. Continue until all the pieces of butter are combined, then blend on high speed for another 3-4 minutes to ensure the cream is perfectly smooth.

Assembly

1. Spoon the lemon cream into the cooled coconut shell. Transfer to the refrigerator for 2-3 hours or until set.

Torta di mele di fattoria

I have a confession to make, this confession is the reason I do not like this cake. I have to confess that I cannot stand the taste of eggs. The faintest hint of sulfur-y eggs and I'm immediately turned off.

Last week I had my first boiled egg and, I can tell you, it won't be the first of many. The sheer eggy-ness of it was astoundingly unpleasant. I'm assuming eggs are an acquired taste?

I should have known this cake would taste faintly of eggs but the picture in The Four Seasons of Italian Cooking made it look so delicious. So delicious that I ignored the part of me that said "this will taste of eggs". And, needless to say, it tasted of eggs. the eggy taste isn't overwhelmingly by any means but even a little hint is too much for me. Others enjoyed it though. In fact, they keept sneaking in and stealing bits. I'm okay with that, I'm not going to eat it.

I did give it a chance, I really did. I didn't take my first bite and refuse to finish it because it tasted like eggs. No, no. I made it through a piece and a half - and that's pretty good. Many in a few years I'll make this again and adore it.

I'd just like to note that the measurement conversions in the book this recipe is from are terrible. According to the book 250 grams is the equivalent of 8 ounces, when it reality 225g is much closer. There's inconsistency throughout the recipe to the point where I'm not sure what unit of measurement is the correct one. The recipe below is merely the measurements I used - who knows, maybe I needed more of something and less of something else!

(I've just been informed that the eggy-ness of this cake dies down once it's properly cooled and it becomes significantly more apple-y. Maybe it was a success after all?)

Torta di mele di fattoria

(from The Four Seasons of Italian Cooking by A.J. Battifarano and Alan Richardson)
makes 8-10 servings

5 apples
2 large eggs
225g (1 cup) sugar
55g (1/2 cup) all-purpose flour
125 mls (1/2 cup) milk
100g (3 1/2 oz) unsalted butter, melted
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
2 teaspoons baking powder

Preheat the oven to 190°C (375°F), grease and and line a 28cm (11") cake tin or deep dish pizza tray.

Peel, core, and quarter the apples. Slice the apple sections crosswise into very thin slivers.

Beat the eggs and the sugar in a large bowl with a wire whisk until the mixture has lightened and increased in volume. Stir in the flour, then add the milk, butter, and vanilla. Blend the mixture throughly. Quickly stir in the baking powder and then fold through the apples.

Pour the mixture into the cake tin and bake on the flour on the floor of the oven (or on the lowest rack, if you cannot bake on the floor) for 10 minutes. Transfer the pan to the centre rack and bake for 50-55 minutes, or until the cake is cooked through and golden and a skewer comes out clean. Cool the cake on a wire rack and serve warm or at room temperature.

Chocolate, raspberry, & macaroon tarts

I actually made these quite a while ago but I figure there's no harm in adding them to the blog. I've been a bit sick over the last week so I haven't had a chance to cook, let alone photograph anything. I do remember these being delicious so I think they're worth sharing. There's no harm in sharing things for the past, right?

I'm a sucker for coconut and I'm always surprised when I meet people who don't like it as much as I do. I'm not sure what it is about coconut that I find so irresistible but if something has coconut in it, I'm there.

I'm also a sucker for chocolate and raspberries despite only having had fresh raspberries a few times in my life. I adore anything with frozen ones in it, so I can only imagine how good fresh ones are!

These tarts turned out quite different to the picture in the book, in the book they've sunken and collapsed in on themselves. They look good both ways, so if yours sink it's not a big deal.

Cramming the macaroon mixture into the cases was quite hard, I think the tart tins I own are shallower than the ones used in the book but I didn't realise this until after cramming all the mixture in. I'll never quite understand why books don't specify the height of tart tins, so if you're using 2cm (2/3") tart tins you'll probably end up with 7 tarts. You can cram the mixture into 6 tart tins but it's not really worth the effort. If you're using 2.5cm (1") tins you should be fine, though I haven't tried it.

Chocolate, raspberry, & macaroon tarts

(adapted from Simple Essentials: Chocolate by Donna Hay)
makes six 8cm (3 1/4") x 2.5cm (1") or seven 8cm (3 1/4") x 2cm (3/4") tarts

Macaroon base

3 egg whites
165g (5 3/4oz) sugar
255g (7 7/8oz) unsweetened, dessicated coconut

Preheat oven to 140°C (280°F).

Combine the egg whites, sugar, and coconut in a large bowl. Once thoroughly mixed divide evenly between the tart dishes. Press mixture firmly over the base and up the sides, using the back of a spoon if necessary.

Bake for 25-30 minutes or until macaroon shells are firm and lightly golden.

Raspberry chocolate filling

125ml (4 fl oz) single cream
125g (4oz) dark chocolate, chopped
2 eggs
2 tablespoons caster sugar
2 tablespoons self raising flour
200g (7 oz) raspberries, fresh or frozen

Turn oven temperature up to 160°C (320°F)

Place the cream and chocolate in a saucepan over a low heat and stir until smooth. Remove from heat and set aside. Place the eggs and sugar in a bowl and beat, using an electric mixer, until light and creamy. Fold in the flour and chocolate mixture.

Spoon the chocolate mixture into macaroon shells and top with raspberries. Bake for 25 minutes or until the filling is firm. Cool in tins.

Chocolate ganache tarts

Sometimes I just love an excuse to bake and often I'll hunt for the tiniest excuse to do so. Luckily, just the other day I had a real, actual excuse with more depth than "the cream was on sale at the supermarket". Really, a real reason: picnic time! Spring is (kind of) in the air; there are flowers and grass (!). Unfortunately the weather isn't quite warm enough for fruit based dessert but it's always the right temperature for chocolate.

I tend to forget that most people don't like dark chocolate as much as I do, so these are incredibly rich. I also tend to forgot that at picnics everyone brings sweets and so I really should make something savory to counter it. I never remember and by the end of the day I'm overloaded with sugar and wanting nothing more than an apple.

Chocolate ganache tarts

(adapted from The Art and Soul of Baking)
makes six 10cm (4") tarts

1 quantity French Tart Dough divided into six 10cm (4") tart tins.

Filling

2 tablespoons strawberry jam
225g (8oz) bittersweet dark chocolate, finely chopped
225g (8oz) double cream
100g (3.5oz) chocolate of your choice, extra

Spread 1 teaspoon strawberry jam over the the base of the cooled tart crusts, set aside.

Place chocolate in a medium bowl. Pour cream into a small saucepan and heat until it just beings to boil around the outside, remove from heat and pour over chocolate pieces. Sit for 30 seconds and then gently whisk to blend. If chocolate does not melt completely place the bowl over a saucepan of simmering water. Stir gently until chocolate is fully melted. Spoon ganache into tart crusts and smooth using an offset spatula. Refrigerate for 1 hour or until set.

Melt extra chocolate and using a fork flick over set ganache to create a pattern. Allow to set in the refrigerator until ready to serve.

Pear & almond tart

I started this last night after having a real hankering to poach pears, as well to retry the French tart dough recipe by David Lebovitz. I only managed to poach the pears last night, and worked on the tart crust before breakfast this morning. The tart crust works very well, but it's unfortunately not the prettiest thing in the world. Luckily, taste trumps looks any day.

I'm a big fan of pears, which is funny because in the past I would never eat them. Recently I've been wanting to bake pears into everything. There's something wonderful about baked pears that, for me, apples lack. So I headed out, bought some almond meal, and began my adventure. This tart isn't the prettiest in the world, I mostly put it down to my lack of experience so maybe someone else can do better? It's not really a worry though because it still tastes rather good!

Pear & almond tart

(Filling adapted from Simple Essentials: Fruit by Donna Hay)
makes six 10cm (4") tarts

1 quantity French Tart Dough divided into six 10cm (4") tart tins.

Poached pears

750ml (3 cups) water
330g (1 1/2 cups) sugar
1 tablespoon rose water
3 Packham pears, peeled, halved, and cored.

Place water and sugar in a large saucepan over a low-medium heat and stir until sugar has dissolved. Once dissolved simmer for 5 minutes. Start peeling your pears now, if you haven't already done so.

Add pears and simmer for 10 minutes, or until tender. Gently stir in the rose water and simmer for another 5 minutes. Remove pears and cool on paper towel.

Almond filling

35g butter, room temperature
60g caster sugar
1 egg
1 teaspoon vanilla essence
75g almond meal
1 tablespoon plain flour
1 tablespoon water

Cream butter and sugar in a large bowl until light and fluffy. Beat in egg and vanilla essence until thoroughly combined. Fold in almond meal, flour, and water.

Assembly

Preheat oven to 180°C (350°f)

Spoon almond mixture into pre baked tart crusts, slice pears thinly and lay them over the almond mixture, you should have enough pears to cover all six tarts. If you have any extra, slice the remaining pieces even smaller and use them to fill any gaps. The almond mixture should be fairly well covered. Bake tarts for 15-20 minutes or until almond mixture is a faint golden colour. Serve at room temperature with cinnamon and whipped cream.