How to Make an Amazing Silky-Smooth Lime Tart

As soon as I posted my lemon tart video, I started planning another recipe using the same principles. This time using limes instead of lemons, making a slightly smaller but deeper tart, and improving on the previous method.

You can use the adjusted method of this video with the lemon tart recipe just as well. Quite often have I found new ways of doing something and updated the original recipes to show you too. It’s all part of the baking experience. There are very few recipes that I consistently stick to. There is always something new to try and/or improve.

This tart will fit perfectly in an 8in (20cm) x 1.5in (3.8cm) round tart case.

In order for the filling to be as smooth as it can be it should be cooked to only 70C (158F). This of course means that the eggs will not be fully cooked. If you are worried about it, then cook the filling to 75C (167F). Saying that, even at 75C it will be very smooth.

This time I did not measure the temperature because I did not want to make a hole in the filling. You can test the doneness of the tart by shaking it. If it has just a very slight wobble, it is done. If you bake it for 30 minutes, it will be done that’s for sure.

Watch the video down below for detailed instructions.

Ingredients

For the pastry –

200g (7.05oz) plain flour

110g (3.9oz) cold butter, cut into cubes

2g (0.07oz) salt

80g (2.8oz) icing sugar

2 egg yolks

4g (0.17oz) vanilla paste

1 lime worth of zest

1 whole egg for glazing

For the filling –

120g (4.2oz) lime juice and the zest of the limes that were used for the juice. I used 4 limes.

160g (5.6oz) thick cream

180g (6.3oz) caster sugar

250g (8.8oz) eggs (5 medium eggs)

15 drops of green food colouring

Method

1. Make the pastry. In a large bowl combine the flour, salt, and butter cubes. Crumble until the mix is uniform and has a sandy texture.
2. Sift the icing sugar into a separate bowl. Add the lime zest, vanilla paste, and egg yolks. Whisk until smooth.
3. Combine the dry ingredients with the wet ingredients and mix to a dough.
4. Remove 20g (0.7oz) of the pastry and whisk it with the whole egg to make the glaze.
5. Flatten the pastry into a disc, wrap in clingfilm, and refrigerate for 1 hour to solidify the pastry and make it easier to work with. You can make it a day ahead of time if you like.
6. Pre-heat the oven to 170C (340F) fan on or 190C (375F) fan off for 30 minutes before you start rolling the pastry.
7. Roll the pastry between two sheets of non-stick paper. Measure it and make sure that it fits the tart case.
8. Grese the tart case and lay the pastry inside it. Gently mould it to fit the tart case. It is quite delicate, but don’t worry if it breaks. Just patch it up and continue.
9. Lay down a scrunched-up piece of non-stick paper to fit the case perfectly. Fill with baking beans or rice. Press it down to fill the case properly.
10. Bake the pastry for 20 minutes.
11. Once 20 minutes are up remove the tart case from the oven and remove the baking beans and non-stick paper from the tart case. Brush the whole surface of the pastry with the glaze.
12. Bake the pastry for 10 more minutes. Trim the edge of the tart case after it comes out the oven.
13. Make the filling. In a large bowl combine the sugar, eggs, cream, lime juice, and lime zest. Whisk until combined.
14. Place the bowl over a pot of boiling water set on medium heat making sure that the water does not touch the bottom of the bowl.
15. Warm the filling to 60C (140F) while gently stirring. This will take a while depending on the size of the pot. It took me 12 minutes, but if you use a larger pot, it will take a lot less time.
16. Set the oven to 100C (210F) fan on or 120C (250F) fan off and place the tart case inside to get warmed up.
17. Once the filling is up to temperature pour it into a jug and remove any large bubbles from the surface (a blowtorch would work perfectly here). Pour the filling into the tart case while it is in the oven. Fill it up as high as possible. There may be a little leftover filling.
18. Cook the tart for 30 minutes.
19. Refrigerate the tart until it is completely cold. Remove from the case and serve it up.

The best way to cut it is by running a knife under hot water, wiping it dry and then cutting. You will get the cleanest cut that way.