Sunshine Lemon Tart

Days like yesterday where the weather is too cold for Texas and no sunshine in sight, all I wanted to do was eat and be cozy.  These dreary days can take a toll on my cheeriness and happy all the time attitude, so I look for pick me ups to get me back to a good place!  If there is no sunshine outside, I'll bring it inside my kitchen.  I got a craving for something lemon-y and a desire to make something I have never attempted...a lemon tart.

This lemon tart was the perfect dessert!  A bright, sweet, and tart creamy lemon filling over a shortbread crust warmed with cardamom to give it that "winter" feel.  I use cardamom whenever I can!  I put it in my chai while it boils, in my Pakistani version of coffee, and any dessert that needs a bit of this warm spice. The tart is then topped off with a dollop of fresh whipped vanilla cream and eaten happily in bed watching TV and snuggling.

Sunshine Lemon Tart

Shortbread Crust:

1 cup all-purpose flour, unbleached
1/2 cup sifted powdered sugar
1 tbs ground cardamom
1/8 tsp salt
1/2 cup cold unsalted butter, cut into chunks

Lemon Filling:

6 oz. cream cheese, room temperature
1/2 cup white sugar
1/3 cup fresh lemon juice, about 3 small lemons
2 large eggs
1 tbs grated lemon zest

Vanilla Whipped Cream:

1 cup heavy cream, cold
2 tbs powdered sugar
1 tsp vanilla

Shortbread Crust:

Prepare a 8"-9" tart pan, pie pan, or any pan (I used a 9" cake pan) with vegetable oil or spray.

Combine flour, powdered sugar, ground cardamom, and salt.  Add butter and work in the butter until the crust begins to form large chunks and comes together. You can use a food processor for this, however, since ours is on the fritz, I just used my fingers to work the butter into the flour.

Add the crust into your pan and evenly press it into pan so it reaches the edges and up the sides a bit. You can smooth out the crust with the back of a spoon.  Pierce the bottom of the crust with a fork, cover the pan and place in the freezer to set for 15 minutes.  This will prevent puffing of the crust and the crust from shrinking.

Preheat oven to 425 degrees, place the pan on top of a baking sheet and bake 15 minutes until the crust is a golden brown. Remove from oven and place on a wire rack to cool.

Decrease the oven temperature to 350 degrees.

Lemon Filling:

In a blender, process the cream cheese until smooth.  Add the sugar and process until incorporated.  Add the eggs and process until combined.  Add the lemon juice and lemon zest and process until well blended and smooth.

Pour filling into the pre-baked crust and bake 25-30 minutes.  Transfer the tart to a wire rack and let cool. Cover and refrigerate until well set chilled, at least an hour.

Vanilla Whipped Cream:

Place your mixing bowl and whisk in the freezer for about 15 minutes.  Pour in the whipping cream and powdered sugar and whip on high speed until almost stiff.  Add vanilla and whip until stiff peaks are formed. Spread on tart, or add a dollop to individual slices and store the rest in a sealed container in the fridge.

Slice a huge slice for yourself, add a dollop of cream, and garnish with a thin slice of lemon.  ENJOY!