Blueberry Tartlets with Lemon Curd

Although I love sucking on a lemon sprinkled with salt, lemon desserts have not been a favorite of mine until quite recently. I first made Lemon Curd Phyllo Tartlets with Raspberries, and loved it. Last week, I made lemon curd again for Quasia's wedding cake, and found the lemon taste refreshing in the lemon curd mousseline buttercream. I have seen blueberries and lemons paired in many desserts before, so I thought that I should give this combination a try.

This recipe is from the Pie and Pastry Bible--another excellent book from the author of the Cake Bible. Although the recipe was for a 9-inch tart pan, I used my tartlet pans and the amounts given below made 5 4-inch tartlets. Lemon and blueberries were very good together, but not quite as good as lemon and raspberries.



1 recipe flaky pie crust, prebaked and still warm
1 recipe lemon curd
1/2 large egg white, lightly beaten
2 1/2 cups fresh blueberries, rinsed
2 tsp cornstarch
1/4 c sugar
1/3 c water
1 tsp lemon juice

Preheat the oven to 300F. While the crust is still warm, brush it with the egg white. (This moisture-proofs the bottom but I forgot to do it.) Spread the lemon curd smootly in the tart shell and bake for 7-10 minutes or until the center is barely jiggly when the tart is moved gently from side to side. Cool.

For the blueberry topping, stir the cornstarch and sugar together. Now stir in the water and lemon juice, and heat until the mixture is clear, thickened and bubbly. Remove the pan from heat, and add the blueberries all at once, tossing until coated with the glaze. Drain excess glaze if necessary. Gently spoon the glazed berries on top of the lemon curd. Cool completely and unmold the tart before you serve.


Rana making her own pie crust