The tarte au citron meringuee is a French tart built on three components: a shortcrust pastry shell, a lemon curd filling, and a toasted meringue topping. It is a patisserie standard that emerged in its modern form in the nineteenth century.
A slice shows a pale gold pastry shell, a deep yellow lemon curd layer, and a swirl of white meringue toasted brown at the peaks. The curd is intensely tart and buttery; the meringue is sweet and marshmallow-soft.
The tart rests on three mechanisms. The shell is baked blind. The lemon curd is a starch-free custard thickened by egg yolks, set by protein coagulation in the acidic lemon environment. The Italian meringue is hot-sugar-syrup-whipped egg whites, toasted under a salamander for the browned peaks.
Variations
Some versions use French meringue instead of Italian; the lemon curd, the pastry shell, and the toasted meringue top are the constants.
On the Palate
Where Tarte Au Citron Meringuee sits in the French flavor cloud
Ingredients
Serves 8How it's made
6 steps · 40 min
- 120 min
Make a shortcrust pastry shell and blind-bake it until pale gold.
- 220 min
Make lemon curd: whisk egg yolks, sugar, lemon juice, and zest over a bain-marie until thickened, then beat in butter.
Watch outWhisk the curd over the bain-marie until it visibly thickens before adding butter — pull it too soon and it never sets in the shell.
- 310 min
Pour the curd into the cooled shell and chill until set.
- 410 min
Make Italian meringue: whip hot sugar syrup into egg whites.
Watch outWhip the hot sugar syrup into the whites for Italian meringue — this cooks and stabilizes them so the peaks hold and won't weep.
- 55 min
Pipe the meringue over the curd in decorative swirls.
- 65 min
Toast the meringue with a salamander or torch until browned at the peaks; chill briefly and serve.
Watch outTorch just the peaks to browned tips — hold the flame too long and the meringue melts and slides.
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