Bake a classic French lemon tart, to make your holidays bright

By Leslie Brenner

It may seem counter-intuitive, but winter is citrus season — which works out fabulously, as citrus flavors are so bright and sunny.

That’s why a classic French lemon tart — tarte au citron — makes such a lovely ending to holiday celebrations of any kind.

I’ve been perfecting this tart recipe for eons. It features a tender, crisp, buttery short crust that doesn’t require rolling out (yay!). I like making the curd the day before I want to bake, so it has time to chill; it’s also nice to make the crust up to the point of chilling it in the tart pan, so all that’s left to do the day-of is blind-baking iand cooling it, then filling and baking it again.

Are you in possession of some Meyer lemons? Go ahead and use them — that’s wonderful, too.



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