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A lemon tart is a beautiful thing, and the one served at The River Cafe is one of the most beautiful we've ever seen. Be sure to use the very best lemons you can find to create the filling.
For the sweet pastry, pulse the flour and butter with a pinch of salt in a food processor, until the mixture resembles coarse breadcrumbs. Add the icing sugar, followed by 3 of the egg yolks and pulse. The mixture will immediately combine and leave the sides of the bowl. Remove the pastry, wrap in cling film and chill in the fridge for at least 1 hour
Heat the oven to 160°C/fan 140°C/gas mark 3. Coarsely grate half the pastry into a 30cm loose-bottomed fluted flan tin, then press it evenly onto the sides and base. Chill in the fridge for 15 minutes. Freeze the remaining pastry for another dish at a later time
3
Line the pastry case with baking paper and fill with uncooked rice (or dried beans or baking beans). Blind-bake for 20 minutes. Remove the paper and rice, then bake for a further 10 minutes, or until golden brown. Leave to cool
4
Meanwhile, make the filling. Put all the ingredients, except the softened butter, in a large saucepan over a very low heat and whisk until the eggs have broken up and the sugar has dissolved
Add 150g of the butter and continue to whisk. At this point, the eggs will start to cook and the mixture will thicken enough to coat the back of a spoon. Add the remaining butter and continue whisking until the mixture becomes very thick. It is important to keep whisking throughout the cooking process to prevent the mixture from curdling
Remove the saucepan from the heat and set it on a cold heatproof surface. Continue to whisk until the mixture is lukewarm. Meanwhile, preheat a grill to its highest setting
7
Spoon the lemon filling into the pastry case and leave to settle for 5 minutes. Place under the grill and cook until the top is mottled brown – this should take 3–5 minutes. Allow to cool before slicing. Serve with a spoonful of crème fraîche
A legendary chef who launched The River Cafe in 1987 with Rose Gray, Ruth Rogers continues to set the bar for seasonal Italian cooking in the UK alongside her all-star team of head chefs Sian Wyn Owen, Joseph Trivelli and Danny Bohan.