Lemon lime toasted coconut tartelettes
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Spring’s celebrations always bring out a wave of lemon, lime and coconut themed recipes, and I’m certainly one who hops on the band wagon tout de suite. I made these for Easter as well as for a spring pastry event right down the road - a big hit.
After our return from a late spring trip to New England and Nova Scotia, I was determined to write at least a bit about these, since, even with summer upon us, there’s always room for citrus.
So delicious!! Plan ahead friendly! Tart lemon lime filling baked in an already blind baked pâte brisée shell then garnished with whipped lemon mascarpone cream and toasted coconut. Yum. Yum. Yum.
I know I go on (and on and on) about the classic bases of pastry and these babies fit the bill big time. Using three of the top components on my A list, the result is a match made in heaven. I like to think of tart preparation as a build-your-own process in which you can change up your chosen dough, filling and garnishes to suit your tastes and occasion.
If you already have pâte brisée in your freezer, you’re one step ahead. If not, make the dough and chill it a few hours or overnight before rolling it out, lining your chosen rings/molds then blind baking the shells. TIP: wrap and freeze the dough up to a couple of months for even more plan ahead fun.
Check out this post for so much more on pâte brisée.
example of rings lined for blind baking
The lemon-lime curd is a favorite based on Yotam Ottolenghi’s recipe in “Sweet”, a book I highly recommend. It can be made several days ahead and holds well in the fridge - another win-win for planning. If I have leftover curd, I’ll add it to whipped mascarpone as I’ve done here. It’s also great added to Swiss meringue buttercream, ice cream base during processing or blended into crème pâtissiére to fill choux puffs.
If you prefer, you can make the filling while the shells are baking. I then typically fill the blind baked shells immediately with the warm curd then pop them into a 325ºF oven for about 10-15 minutes to set with a hint of a jiggle left. Cool at room temperature about 30 minutes then chill completely before adding your chosen garnish.
Some may wonder why I bake the filling since it’s already cooked. While not absolutely necessary, I find it makes for a more luscious, creamy mouth experience by taking that extra step.
Option - chill the curd separately then fill the baked/cooled shells, garnish and enjoy .
In the image below the two tartelettes at bottom left and right are examples of the option just mentioned. You can appreciate a looser texture than the others that have been baked which have a certain sheen and appear more set.
Before the final garnish
Whichever way you do it, the final task is the garnish - whipped mascarpone cream which I prep just ahead of use. In this case I used half of the base recipe, adding lime zest and 3-4 tablespoons (or to taste) of lemon-lime curd to the cream as I whipped.
Decorate the tarts with your favorite swirl pattern and top with a bit of lime zest and toasted coconut. You’ll be so happy.
One more thing - Steve and I can attest to the staying power of these lovelies in the fridge for 4-5 days. Whoopee!!
Enjoy and have fun with it!
