don't try this at home...

...or anywhere, for that matter.


I was only about two minutes into making what I had hoped to be a luscious lemon dessert when I realized that things were definitely not going to work out as planned.

Nevertheless, I persisted...

...and should've stopped while I was ahead.


Wait. I was never ahead.

The problem arose from my decision to use my brand-spankin'-new tartlet tins rather than make the tried and true lemon bars. Let it be known that I'm a tartlet novice, but they always look so elegant and pretty and delicious that I had to give them a shot. Boy, I've got a lot to learn.

I was honestly extremely surprised when I was able to get the tarts out of the tins. Surprised and ecstatic. There was a silver lining in all this--even though they're a bit of an eyesore, they actually tasted good. The best part, and bear in mind that this is coming from someone who doesn't particularly care for lemony things, was clearly the crust. My kitchen smelled like butter all day.

It's a great recipe, and next time I'll just stick with bars. File this one under "bad ideas."


Potentially Luscious Lemon Tarts
(from alpineberry--go visit)
(makes 24 hideous tartlets or fills an 8-inch square pan)

Crust:
1 cup all purpose flour
1/2 cup powdered sugar
1/8 teaspoon salt
8 tablespoons unsalted butter, cold and cut into pieces

Filling:
2 eggs
1 cup sugar
2 tablespoons all purpose flour
1/8 tsp salt
2 teaspoons lemon zest
1/4 cup lemon juice

Here's what I did, but I would advise against it:

Preheat oven to 350F. Generously butter the tiny tartlet tins.

To make crust:
Combine flour, powdered sugar, and salt in the bowl of a food processor. Add butter and pulse until the mixture is pebbly. Or, if you're a tightwad like me, go ahead and break out ye olde pastry cutter and go to town.


Press evenly into the bottom and up the sides of your prepared tins. Bake until lightly golden, about 18-20 minutes. Set aside.

To make filling:
In a medium bowl, whisk together eggs, sugar, flour, and salt. Whisk in lemon zest and juice until well combined. Fill the tart crusts almost to the top--that filling's not going anywhere. Bake until filling is just set, about 15 to 18 minutes. Cool completely before digging out of the evil tins. Dust with powdered sugar to mask some of the ugliness.