Lemon lime tart plus WIN STUFF!

I’ve always loved the idea of a pie, a homely high-top apple pie cooling on the window sill, filling the kitchen with warm, spicy aromas, curtains fluttering in the gentle breeze. But then, my realistic streak kicks in – why would you leave a pie on the window sill? Isn’t it unhygienic? What about the flies and bugs that might land on it? What if it tips over? What if Foghorn Leghorn wanders by and snitches it? And wah!, I don’t have fluttery gingham curtains in my kitchen so the effect is ruined anyway!

It’s never actually stopped me from eating pies, but I’ve never really made a ‘proper’ one, either, with a crumbly shortcrust pastry, luscious gooey filling and, maybe, an egg-washed, golden high top that is just begging for a dollop of thick cream to decorate it.

I still haven’t made such a pie, but since I got a food processor, pastry-making isn’t such a big deal anymore. And now that I have some ceramic pie weights, blind-baking a shortcrust has become a whole lot easier. Hence this lovely lemon lime tart. And the path to a holy grail apple pie is just another step closer.

Lemon and lime tart

serves 10

Ingredients

Pastry:

2 cups plain flour

1/4 cup icing sugar

150g butter chopped

1 egg yolk

2 tablespoons iced water

Filling:

5 eggs, lightly beaten

3/4 cup caster sugar

300ml thickened cream (cream that has gelatine added; can be low fat)

2 teaspoons finely grated lemon rind

1/2 cup lemon and lime juice (approx 2 lemons and 1 lime)

Method

1. For the pastry: Place flour, icing sugar and butter in a food processor. Process until mixture resembles fine breadcrumbs. Add egg yolks and water. Process until dough clumps together in a ball. Remove from the food processor and shape into a disc. Wrap in plastic and refrigerate for 30 minutes to firm it up.

2. Preheat oven to 190°C/375°F. Grease a deep, 24cm/9in round, loose-based flan tin. Roll out pastry between 2 sheets of baking paper until 3mm/1/8in-thick. Line the tin with pastry; trrim off excess. Refrigerate for 15 minutes.

3. Place prepared tin on a baking tray. Line pastry case with baking paper. Fill with ceramic pie weights or uncooked rice. Bake for 10 minutes. Remove weights or rice and baking paper. Bake for 10 minutes or until light golden. Cool pastry case. Reduce oven temperature to 170°C/340°F.

4. For the lemon filling: Whisk eggs, sugar, cream, lemon rind and lemon juice in a bowl. Stand 5 minutes.

5. Pour mixture into pastry case. Bake for 30 to 35 minutes or until filling has just set. Cool for 15 minutes. Refrigerate overnight or until chilled.

recipe adapted from Super Food Ideas (Aug 2011)

The pastry is easily made in a food processor, though if you have strong arms, it can be done manually.

Handy hint: Rolling the dough between 2 sheets of baking paper will reduce cleanup of your benchtop.

Ceramic pie weights definitely make it easier to blind-bake the pastry case (read further on to see how you could win your own).

The filling is a delicious blend of cream, eggs and lemon and lime juice.

The number of lemons and limes depends on how juicy they are. I used 2 lemons and 1 lime.

The tart is baked until the filling is set, though it is a fairly wobbly filling anyway.

Tangy, lemony, with a hint of lime - this tart is sublime!

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A Kitchenware Direct Giveaway

The folks at KitchenwareDirect.com.au have kindly provided these brilliant baking tools for you to win.

The prize consists of:

MasterChef mixing bowl 3-piece set

MasterChef stoneware pastry weights in a glass jar

Having used these products in making the lemon lime tart, I can vouch for their quality and usefulness (the winner will get a brand new set, obviously!). They've also gotten rave reviews on the kitchenwaredirect.com.au website.

 The bowls are stainless steel and come in 1.5 litre, 3 litre and 5 litre sizes. The pastry weights are a great alternative to the uncooked rice that I normally use, and the glass jar they are stored in is a fantastic idea (and heaps better than my plastic bag of rice with 'Do not eat!!!' written on it).

To be in the running to win this stash of goodies (with fast delivery from KitchenwareDirect.com.au):

 - Leave a comment on this post and tell me what your favourite pie or tart flavour is. Remember to include your blog or email contact details.

- Alternatively, enter by email to: oohlookbel2000 [at] gmail [dot] com.

You have until end of Sunday 11 March 2012 to get your entries in.

Small print conditions are at the end of this post.

Good luck!

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12th March 2012:  We have a Winner!

Thanks to everyone who entered the kitchenwaredirect.com.au giveaway.

The randomly selected winner is:

Anna @ The Littlest Anchovy

Congratulations, Anna; I will email you.

Conditions of entry for Kitchenware Direct giveaway:
1. Entry is via valid comment on this post. Entries are also accepted via email to Ooh, Look.

2. Entries close at midnight on 11 March 2012.

3. Winner will be randomly selected

4. Sorry, the prize can only be sent to Australian addresses

5. Prize is provided by and will be sent from kitchenwaredirect.com.au