Lemon Custard Tart

Use leftover dough from the butter crust of this creamy lemon custard pastry to make decorative cookies to adorn the outside.

Tart Shell and Cookies:
2 cups all-purpose flour, unbleached
8 Tbsp. almond flour
¼ tsp. kosher salt
1 cup + 2 Tbsp. confectioners’ sugar
12 Tbsp. unsalted butter, softened
1 egg

Filling and Garnish:
1 lemon, thinly sliced, seeds discarded
2 2⁄3 cups sugar
¼ cup lemon zest, freshly grated, freshly grated
1½ cups lemon juice, freshly squeezed
8 egg yolks
6 whole eggs
8 Tbsp. unsalted butter, cubed and chilled
1 cup heavy cream
1 oz white chocolate, melted and cooled

Make the Tart Shell and Cookie Dough:
Whisk flours and salt in a bowl; set aside. Using an electric hand mixer, beat sugar and butter in another bowl until fluffy, 2-3 minutes. Add egg; mix to combine. With the motor running, slowly add dry until a soft dough forms. Flatten dough into a disk; cover with plastic wrap and chill 1 hour.

Preheat oven to 325°F (160°C/140°C fan, Gas Mark 2).

On a lightly floured surface, roll dough until 1⁄6" thick. Trim dough into a 15" circle. Press dough into bottom and 1¾" up the sides of a 9" cake pan with a removable bottom; trim and gather edges of dough, and set scraps aside. Using a fork, prick the dough in the pan all over. Line dough with parchment paper and fill with pie weights or dried beans; bake until golden and cooked through, about 1 hour, and let cool. Meanwhile, on a lightly floured surface, roll dough scraps 1⁄6" thick. Using cookie cutters, cut out 20-25 cookies and place on a parchment paper-lined baking sheet; bake until golden, 10-12 minutes.

Make the Filling and Garnish:
Place lemon in a 2 qt saucepan filled with water; boil. Strain lemon; set aside. Add 1 1⁄3 cups sugar and ½ cup water to pan and bring to a simmer over medium; cook until sugar is dissolved and stir in lemon. Cook until lemon rind is softened and translucent, about 10 minutes; let candied lemon cool in syrup.

Whisk remaining sugar, the lemon zest, freshly grated, egg yolks, and eggs in a 4 qt saucepan until smooth. Whisk in lemon juice; cook, stirring constantly, over medium until thickened, 10-12 minutes. Remove from heat; whisk in cold butter 1 piece at a time until incorporated. Strain curd through a fine-mesh sieve into a bowl; press plastic wrap onto surface of curd and chill.

Transfer 1½ cups curd to another bowl; set aside. Whip cream in a separate bowl into stiff peaks; fold cream into larger amount of curd and spread evenly into tart shell; chill until set, about 1 hour. Spread reserved lemon curd over lemon cream and top with candied lemon slices; chill 1 hour. Remove tart from pan and transfer to a cake stand or platter. Use melted white chocolate to glue cookies to outer crust of tart.

Makes 6-8 servings.