TWD: Lime Cream Meringue Tarts

For some reason, motivating myself to make these lime meringue tarts was like pulling teeth this week. No, scratch that. Making these tarts was like visiting your tiresome Great Aunt Gladys for the holidays. You don't want to do it, but you feel a great sense of obligation, and you imagine the pangs of guilt that will result if you don't do it. You tell yourself it won't be that bad, and you might even enjoy it. And then you spend the whole visit wanting to poke your eyes out just to give yourself an excuse to leave early. I know, strong words for such cute little tarts:

After many hours of procrastination, I finally convinced myself to make the Great Aunt Gladys tarts, but I was just not excited about this recipe. Partly it's that I don't like cream pies or meringue in general. Partly it's that I'm taking a sugar vacation for a few weeks so I'm trying to limit my exposure to sweets. Partly it's that I was feeling oh so lazy and the whole thermometer/whisking/food processor/extended chilling time seemed bothersome.

In the end, I halved the recipe and it made enough for two deep-dish mini tarts. They were adorable, and the lime cream filling was nice and refreshingly zesty (I omitted most of the butter and it was still plenty creamy and rich.) The crust was decidedly iffy because I used a bag of mystery crumbs in the cupboard (I was at least 80% certain they were graham crumbs before I used them, but the taste of the final tart shell reduces that certainty to about 63%), but that's my own fault. It's not a bad recipe, and it certainly didn't make me want to poke my eyeballs out. I can see making these for someone who loves lemon citrus meringue pies, but for my tastes, I should have listened to myself and skipped out this week. Score another one for the Aunt Gladyses of the world.

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TWD: Coconut-Roasted Pineapple Dacquoise

In honor of this week's TWD recipe, a coconut-roasted pineapple dacquoise, I have composed an original song. Sing with me now:

If you like pina colada,
and making egg white meringue
and placing chunks of pineapple
under an open flame,
Even if fancy french dessert names
tend to stick in your craw
You will like this week's pick of
Coconut-Pineapple Dacquoise!*

*recipe name shortened because the lines already had enough trouble scanning as is, thank you

Yes, folks, this week's dessert made me want to sing. It's hot, it's officially summertime, and what better way to celebrate than with a fruity tropical dessert? Never mind the 3+ hours of baking time to cook the dacquaoise layers, the oven temp is so low it's *practically* like it's not even on! (Riiiiight.) Seriously, though, all that baking in the heat was worth it because this was delicious!

A number of people on the TWD blog commented that the white chocolate ganache either failed for them, or was really too sweet for the rest of the dessert. I took their advice and skipped the ganache and filled my coconut dacquoise layers with a simple whipped cream instead. It was the perfect touch, but I definitely went too heavy on the cream--look at how thick it is! Next time I'll hold way back so that the cream doesn't overwhelm the rest of the dessert.

The oven was taking too long to roast the pineapple and give me my nice caramelized color, so I brought out my butane torch to do the job for me. You remember Old Sparky, right? He joined my kitchen family for the creme brulee challenge, and he's been teacher's pet ever since. I have one other regret with this dessert. I was kind of hypnotized by the picture of the dessert in the book, and like a good sheep I blindly mimicked the precise rows of roasted pineapple in the layers and on top. It looks good, but it wasn't enough pineapple for me! Along with decreasing the amount of whipped cream, I would definitely increase the roasted pineapple next time.

These leftovers are what I want my next attempt to look like:
Other than that, I loved this one. Tangy, juicy fruit, rich cream, crispy coconut meringue melting together in one dish...definitely song-worthy!

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Luscious Lemon Cream Tartelettes

Okay, all right, I do have a citrus obsession. I didn't even realize it until I started this blog, and found that every other dessert I posted was lemon this and orange-chocolate that. But can you blame me? There is something so divine about the pairing of tart citrus flavors in desserts; the citrus brings balance to dishes that might otherwise be too sweet and one-dimensional.

A few months ago I picked up Tartine, by Elisabeth M. Prueitt and Chad Robertson, to add to my already-groaning cookbook shelf. I had a hard time deciding what to make first, and the book's format didn't help. All of the recipes sounded mouth-watering, but many of them aren't pictured. How is my stomach supposed to tell me what to do if it can't fixate on an image?! Hmph. I finally bit the bullet and settled on a variation of their Lemon Cream Tart.

The good: the tart dough recipe was fantastic. It came together easily and behaved very well--rolled out nicely and didn't shrink or otherwise misbehave while baking at all. Once baked it had a nice crispness and a good buttery flavor.

The bad: the lemon cream was too rich for me. It's basically a lemon curd emulsification with gobs of butter, to produce a very creamy, opaque filling. I wanted more of a lemon "bite" to my tart, so I divided the curd and only added butter to half of it. I layered the cream and the curd in the tart, so that it still had some of the rich cream, but also retained the lemon flavor I wanted. Compromise: not just for losers anymore.

My final change to the recipe was adding a meringue topping. The original recipe calls for the tarts to be topped with sweetened whipped cream. Since I don't hate my heart that much, I opted for a lighter meringue that had the added bonus of reuniting me with my long-lost love, the blowtorch. Yesssss! After making a quick Swiss meringue, I piped it onto the tartelettes and gave it a quick once-over with the ole torch, just enough to get the edges of the meringue a toasty brown color.

The tarts were finished with a sprinkling of chopped candied violet, which was done mostly for visual effect, but which added a nice crunch and light floral flavor as a bonus.

Do I have you craving lemon tarts now? The (loooong) recipe is after the cut.



LEMON TARTS
Adapted from Tartine, by Elisabeth M. Prueitt and Chad Robertson

Sweet Tart Dough
Yield: 12 4-inch tart shells
9 oz unsalted butter, room temperature
1 cup sugar
1/4 tsp salt
2 large eggs, room temperature
3.5 cups AP flour

Cream the butter, sugar and salt in a large stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment. Cream until very light and smooth. Mix in one egg until smooth. Stop and scrape the bowl, then mix in the other egg. Scrape the bowl again. Add all of the flour at once, and mix on low speed just until incorporated. Shape the dough into two discs and refrigerate at least 2 hours, or overnight.

To line the tart shells, roll the dough out on a well-floured work surface until it is 1/8" thick. Work quickly so that it does not become too soft. Transfer the rolled dough to the shell, and press it gently into place--do not stretch the dough or it will spring back once baked. Place the shells in the refrigerator or freezer to chill until ready to bake.

To bake the shells, preheat the oven to 350 (the original recipe calls for 325). The recipe does not call for the shells to be blind-baked, but I am always suspicious of that method, so I blind-baked it with pie beans for about 10 minutes until the sides were light golden. I then removed the beans/parchment and continued baking for about another 10 minutes, until the shells were golden. I brushed the shells with beaten egg and baked them a few minutes more, to give them a thin coating to seal them and prevent them from getting soggy. The shells should be dark golden brown when finished.

Lemon Cream
1/2 cup plus 2 tbsp fresh-squeezed lemon juice
3 whole large eggs
1 large egg yolk
3/4 cup sugar
pinch salt
1 stick unsalted butter, cool* (or 2 sticks; see note below)

Bring 2 inches of water in a medium saucepan to a simmer on the stove. In a double boiler (or bowl that fits snugly over the saucepan), whisk together the lemon juice, eggs, yolk, sugar, and salt. Place over the simmering water and cook, whisking frequently, until thickened and 180 degrees (10-12 minutes). Remove the bowl and let cool to 140, stirring from time to time to release the heat.

Cut the butter into small 1-inch pieces. When the curd is the right temperature, remove half of it from the bowl and set aside. Place an immersion blender in the bowl with the remaining half of the curd and turn it on. With the blender running, add the butter on chunk at a time, making sure each addition is incorporated before adding the next piece. The cream will be pale yellow, opaque, and quite thick.

*The original recipe calls for 2 sticks of butter to be incorporated. I found this to be quite heavy and not lemony enough, so I used the method above and had a dual-layer tart: the opaque bottom layer with the butter, and the tarter, translucent top layer of pure lemon curd. If you want, you can use 2 sticks of butter in the full amount of lemon curd to produce a silky, rich lemon cream.

Assembling the Tarts
Divide the lemon cream among the baked tart shells and spread it into an even layer. It should come a little more than halfway up each shell. Spoon the reserved lemon curd on top of the cream in each shell and spread into a thin layer, covering the cream completely. Refrigerate to set the cream and curd while you prepare the meringue.

Meringue for Pies and Tarts
This is my basic recipe; it will probably make more than you need but I find it's hard to work in smaller quantities.
4 egg whites, room temperature
8 oz granulated sugar

Bring 2 inches of water in a medium saucepan to a simmer on the stove. In a very clean mixer bowl, whisk together the egg whites and granulated sugar. Place the mixing bowl over the simmering water and heat the egg white mixture, whisking constantly, until it is hot to the touch. Place the mixing bowl on the stand mixer and beat with a whisk attachment until it is white, very glossy, and hold stiff peaks. Use immediately.

Finish the Tarts
Spoon or pipe the freshly made meringue onto the top of the tarts. Use a kitchen torch (or a butane torch, mwahaha) to lightly and evenly brown the meringue. Top the tarts with crystallized flowers, or fresh or candied fruit. These tarts will keep for up to a day, but they taste best if eaten immediately.

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Chocolate Dacquoise with Hazelnuts and Apricots

Last week, I told you about my dried apricot experiments and the awesome dessert that resulted--chocolate-covered apricot ice cream balls. What I didn't tell you was that I was horribly torn between two possible apricot and chocolate recipes, and could NOT decide which one to make. So, like any good sugar addict, I made both.

This recipe also comes from David Lebovitz's Ripe for Dessert, and I have to be a fangirl for a second and rave about his cookbooks. Don't you hate it when you buy gorgeous cookbooks with the highest expectations, only to find that the recipes don't turn out the way they're pictured, or even worse, are so poorly written that they don't turn out at all? Yeah, David's recipes are the exact opposite. They always work and they're always delicious. Big fan!

But back to the dessert. This recipe consisted of chocolate meringue disks studded with chopped hazelnuts and dried apricots, sandwiching an apricot-infused ganache. The cookies are meant to be assembled a day before serving, so that the meringue softens and loses its crispness. The ganache and the inside of the meringue meld together in a sinful, fudgy rich chocolately orgy, while the outside of the cookies remain crispy. The hazelnuts add a great flavor and crunch, so these cookies don't verge into the too-gooey category.

Since I made these the same day I made the apricot ice cream, I couldn't resist filling some of the cookies with apricot ice cream instead. After carefully taste-testing the different versions, then thoughtfully re-testing them, then going back a third and fourth time, I honestly couldn't tell you which one is better! The chocolate-filled sandwiches are definitely more decadent, but the ice-cream filled ones stay crispier in the freezer, and their light texture and cocoa flavor is a great contrast to the rich ice cream. I'm afraid this calls for more deliberation and testing. I am nothing if not thorough.

I served these cookies with the apricot sauce from the ice cream recipe, because it made a ton and was a great dunking sauce. This recipe is a definite keeper, with the caveat that I would omit the dried apricots from the cookies next time (too chewy!). Otherwise, these were fab and I think they're a great company dessert, especially since they have to be made a day ahead--it ensures that you're not slaving too hard come the day of the dinner party.


Chocolate Dacquoise with Hazelnuts and Apricots
Adapted from Ripe for Dessert by David Lebovitz

3/4 c hazelnuts, toasted, skinned and coarsely chopped
1 cup (5 oz) finely diced dried apricots
1/4 c unsweetened cocoa powder
5 large egg whites, room temperature
pinch salt
1/4 c sugar
2 tbsp apricot jam
1/2 tsp vanilla extract

Preheat the oven to 275. Cover two baking sheets with parchment, and trace six 4-inch circles on each baking sheet.

Place the chopped hazelnuts, diced apricots, and cocoa powder in a small bowl and toss them together so that the apricot pieces are coated and separate.

In a *very clean* bowl if a stand mixer, place the room temperature egg whites and salt. Begin to beat them with the whisk attachment until soft peaks form. Gradually add the sugar, a few spoonfuls at a time, until the whites are thick and glossy, 2-3 minutes. Whisk in the jam and vanilla. Fold in the apricot and hazelnut mixture.

Divide the meringue evenly between the twelve circles on the parchment, spreading each meringue disk into an even layer within the circle. Bake the meringues for an hour, then turn off the oven and let them sit in the oven for another 30 minutes. Remove from the oven and cool completely on the baking sheets.

These meringues are great filled with an apricot-chocolate ganache. They're also good filled with ice cream, and I imagine they'd be great with buttercream or caramel too. If you use ganache, fill them and wrap them in saran wrap, then let them sit (refrigerated) for at least 24 hours so the texture can meld together. They can be refrigerated up to 3 days, or frozen up to 3 months. Allow them to come to room temperature before serving.

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Sugar High Friday: Tropical Pavlovas

I love participating in blog events because they offer a great excuse to experiment and try new desserts that I would probably never make otherwise. Having said that, I was originally a little lukewarm on this month's Sugar High Friday theme, "meringues." I've never liked those dry, chalky meringue cookies that are sold in plastic tubs (surely the bane of dieters everywhere), and I couldn't get excited about making a gooey meringue pie for just the two of us.

However, after a little more thought, I hit upon the idea of making a pavlova--the beloved Australian dessert consisting of a meringue shell filled with whipped cream and luscious fresh fruit. I've never made a pavlova before, and I can't believe I waited this long to try it--this dessert was amazing!

If you've never made a pavlova before, the first thing you need to know is that it's not your typical meringue. Remember my griping about rock-hard meringue cookies, or gooey meringue pies? The pavlova is the best possible combination of these two extremes. It's like when two ugly people produce a gorgeous, angelic baby: you're not quite sure how it happens, but you say a silent prayer of thanks all the same. Made from a simple whipped egg-white base, the ideal pavlova has a crunchy, crisp exterior and a marshmallowey interior that quickly melts in your mouth. It's not sticky, not chewy, and not cloying. It is, in a word, perfect.

Pavlova shells are shaped like shallow bowls, and then filled with whipped cream and topped with fruit. I think it's most common to serve pavlovas with berries, but I had some mango puree I wanted to use up, so I decided to put a tropical twist on my dessert. Instead of a plain vanilla meringue I flavored it with coconut extract. The freshly whipped cream was also flavored with coconut, and was only very lightly sweetened since the meringue itself was so sweet. The mango sauce provided a nice tart note to balance out the sweet tropical coconut flavor, and the whole dessert was topped with juicy raspberries fresh from the market. I cannot think of a better dessert for a lazy summer evening.

The full recipe can be found after the jump.


Tropical Pavlovas
Pavlova recipe modified from Ina Garten
Yield: one 9-inch pavlova or four 4-inch pavlovas

For the pavlova:
4 egg whites, room temperature
pinch salt
1 cup sugar
2 tsp cornstarch
1 tsp cream of tartar
1 tsp coconut extract

For the whipped cream:
1 cup cold heavy cream
2 tbsp powdered sugar
1 tsp coconut extract

For the mango sauce:
9 oz mango pulp, fresh or frozen
2 tbsp sugar

For assembly:
1 pint fresh raspberries

Preheat the oven to 250 degrees. Cover an insulated baking sheet with parchment paper. Using a cake pan or small bowls as a guide, draw either a 9-inch circle or four 4-inch circles on your parchment to use as a guide when forming the pavlova.

Place the egg whites and salt in the clean bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the whisk attachment. Begin to beat the egg whites on medium speed. Once they are foamy, stop the mixer and add the cream of tartar. Turn the mixer back on and beat until soft peaks form. Start to add the sugar a tablespoon at a time, and continue beating until all of the sugar has been added and your whites form thick, glossy, firm peaks.

Remove the bowl from the mixer and sift the cornstarch over the whites. Add the coconut extract and fold the starch and extract in, taking care not to overwork and deflate the meringue. Spoon the meringue onto the circle(s) you drew on the parchment, and smooth it into a circular shape, taking care to make the edges slightly higher than the center.

Bake on low heat for 60 minutes (small pavlovas) or 75 minutes (large pavlova), checking several times to make sure the pavlovas aren't taking on too much color or cracking. If they are, turn the heat down and crack the oven door slightly. The pavlovas should have a crisp shell when done, but they should have only the most faint beige color. Turn off the oven, crack the door, and let them cool completely in the oven, another 1-2 hours.

To make the mango sauce, place the mango puree and the sugar in a saucepan over low heat and simmer to reduce the puree, for about 10 minutes (depending on how liquidy your puree was to start). I use frozen puree so there's usually quite a bit of water to evaporate. If it's chunky use an immersion blender to smooth it out, or pass it through a fine mesh strainer. Set it aside to cool to room temperature. If made far in advance, bring it to room temperature before using.

To make the whipped cream, place the heavy cream in the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with a whisk attachment and beat it on medium. When it starts to thicken, add the powdered sugar and coconut extract and beat until firm but smooth--don't overbeat or you'll have lumpy whipped cream! If made in advance, refrigerate until ready to use.

To assemble, place the pavlovas on a serving platter. Mound the freshly whipped cream in the center of the pavlova, then top with a generous spoonful of mango sauce. Finish with a ring of fresh raspberries on top.

Bon appetit!

Thanks to Melly at One Messy Kitchen for hosting the theme this month! Check her blog to see the full roundup of meringue posts on the 25th.

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