Lemon Tart with Rosemary Crust

I saw this lemon tart on Pinterest and thought I would make it - since I have plenty of lemons and a rosemary bush that grows right outside my door.  I, of course, changed it up a bit. It's a nice tart with a creamy consistency, crisp crust and a definitely lemon twang. It is hardly sweet at all, so if you like things sweet you'll need to add more sugar.  It has just a hint of rosemary - you can barely tell it's there. It's just a nice background note that gives the tart an earthy quality. The original recipe can be found here, but this is what I did.

First I went to get the rosemary. My rosemary bush has started to flower, so I had to negotiate with the bees to get a few sprigs. I only needed 1 Tbsp, so the bees were kind enough to oblige without stinging me.

I stripped the leaves off the stems.

And chopped the leaves as fine as I could get them.

Then I put 1 1/3 cup flour into a mixing bowl. . .

and added the chopped rosemary.

Then I added 3 Tbsp of sugar . . .

1/8 tsp of salt

and 1/3 cup of butter. (Are you shocked at the size of my butter? I buy these lovely 1 pound - 4 stick - blocks from Costco. You shouldn't be shocked at the size of the butter, you should be shocked at how quickly I go through one of these blocks.) I'm showing you this, because these nice big blocks have a line that marks the 1/3 cup I need and I love that. Things that make my life easier are priceless!

I cut the cold butter into small piece and added it to the flour mixture.

Then I mixed it with my fingers.

Yes, you could use one of these - but I thought I would be hands on today.

I broke up the butter until it was about the size of peas - some were smaller and some were bigger but that's o.k.

Then I added about 2 Tbsp of ice water.



After I added the water, and mixed it well it looked like this.

I took a handful and squoze (yes that is a real word).

It held the shape of my hand, so it was ready. I dumped the whole mess into an 11 inch silicone tart pan - if you don't have one of these you can use a regular tart pan (as small as 9-inches) but you'll need to grease it first.

Then I pressed it into the pan, making sure to get it up the sides and into the corners.

Bake the crust @ 350 for about 15 minutes. Then cool for 5 minutes.

Now it's time for the filling. The original recipe called for plain Greek yogurt, but this is my husband's favorite so this is what I used this time.

If I were going to use plain yogurt, I would have used this one - and added a little more sugar.

I put the yogurt in a bowl along with some sugar.

Then I needed to juice some lemons. I always roll my lemons on the counter before I cut them open and juice them. This helps me to get more juice.

Then I juiced away! Manual juicers help you burn more calories. :) - Did I juice enough? Good grief!

I also zested 1 small lemon - I only needed 1 tsp.

Don't forget that most of the zest gets trapped on the back!

Once it was all in the bowl, I whisked until smooth . . . and tasted it to see if I thought it was sweet enough. I did, but after it baked I found myself wishing I had added more sugar. You do what you'd like.

Then I added 2 eggs.

Then I whisked it again, and poured it into my tart shell.


I forgot to blind bake my crust. My tart turned out o.k. but the crust was not golden and delicious like it could have been. Don't be like me. Remember to blind bake your crust.

Then I put it in the oven for 25-30 minutes.

 This is mine after it came out of the oven.

I actually cooked mine a little too long - the timmer went off, but my angels needed me. If you take yours out when it's still a little jiggly in the center, then you won't have the cracks like I do.

 Now just cool in the fridge for at least 1 hour and you have a lovely tart. (Mine isn't as pretty as the original, but it still tastes good.)

Here's the recipe:

Lemon Tart with Rosemary Crust

Crust:
1 1/3 cups flour
3 Tbsp sugar
1 Tbsp fresh rosemary, chopped fine
1/8 tsp salt
1/3 cup cold butter, cut into small pieces
2 Tbsp ice water

Filling:
1 1/4 cup Vanilla flavored Greek Yogurt
1/3 cup sugar
2 eggs
1/2 cup lemon juice
1 tsp lemon zest

Preheat the oven to 350F. Combine four, sugar, rosemary and salt together in a mixing bowl or food processor. Add butter and mix until the butter pieces are the size of peas. Add the ice water slowly. Dump into a greased tart pan (any size from 9 to 11 inches). Bake for 15 minutes and then let cool for 5 minutes.
In a mixing bowl, combine the yogurt, sugar, lemon juice and zest. Taste it to see if you want more sugar. When it is to your liking, add the eggs and whisk until smooth. Pour into tart shell and bake for 25-30 minutes. It should be a little jiggly in the center - it will firm up as it cools. Refrigerate for at least 1 hour before serving.