An easy recipe for lemon tartlets with lemon curd. Sweet pastry shells make the perfect container for the best lemon curd ever – it’s so silky and smooth.
As Spring approaches, I just wanted to squeeze (no pun intended!) in one more lemon recipe! This was another recipe that I shared at a recent dessert night (remember those lemon curd pavlovas?).
You’re telling me you don’t have dessert nights? You should definitely make them a regular thing – there’s nothing better than catching up with friends over sweet treats.
With our backyard lemon tree making meyer lemons faster than we can pick them, everyone also got a handful of lemons as a parting gift. With multiple lemon desserts and these parting gifts, I probably overdid it a bit. Luckily I didn’t hear any complaints!
This recipe is so versatile – tartlets make a great (two) bite-sized appetizer, a fun dessert, or a good dish to pass at a potluck. Its sweet pastry dough is the perfect vessel for the best lemon curd you’ll ever have.
Making the Best Lemon Curd
There are lots of recipes out there for lemon curd, but I’m hear to tell you this is the best one, and it’s so easy to make. Even if you mess up a step, there are ways to troubleshoot it to almost guarantee success every time.
Overcook the curd so small chunks start to form? Just strain it through a fine mesh strainer. Undercook it and it doesn’t thicken when you add the cream and butter? Just put it back on the stove and cook it until it does. Was it too damn delicious and you ate the whole thing before you made the tartlets? I recommend always starting with a double batch. 🙂
Easy Make Ahead Dessert – Lemon Tartlets
As with so many of my recipes, these tartlets can be made ahead of time. The shells will keep at room temperature in an airtight container for 2-3 days. The lemon curd will keep in a sealed contained in the fridge for a week. When you’re ready to serve them, just spoon the lemon curd into the shells and you’re good to go!
Looking for other lemon recipes? Try these:
Tartine Lemon Shaker Pie
Mini Pavlovas with Lemon Curd
Fig & Chèvre Appetizer Bites with Candied Lemon
Lemon Ricotta Pancakes
Dried Lemon Slices
Thanks so much for reading! For more Sweet in your life, you can find me on Instagram, Pinterest, and YouTube, or subscribe to receive a weekly email with new posts and musings from me.
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PrintLemon Tartlets with Lemon Curd
Pretty lemon tartlets with the best lemon curd you’ve ever had! Definitely a crowd pleaser as an appetizer or dessert at your next party!
- Prep Time: 2 hours
- Cook Time: 20 minutes
- Total Time: 2 hours 20 minutes
- Yield: 20-24 1x
- Category: Dessert
- Method: Oven
- Cuisine: French
Ingredients
For the tart dough:
- 1 1/3 cups (166 grams) all purpose flour
- 1 stick (115 grams) cold unsalted butter, cubed
- 1/3 cup granulated sugar
- pinch of salt
- 1 large egg
For the lemon curd: (makes extra, about 1 1/2 cup in total)
- 1/3 cup lemon juice, about 2 lemons
- 2 large eggs
- 1 egg yolk
- 1/2 cup sugar
- 2 tablespoons chilled unsalted butter, cut into 1/2-inch cubes
- 1 tablespoon heavy cream
- 1/4 teaspoon vanilla extract
- pinch table salt
- Berries for serving (optional)
Special supplies:
Instructions
Make the tartlets:
- Cut the butter into the flour using a pastry cutter until the mixture resembles course breadcrumbs.
- Stir in the sugar and salt, then add the egg and stir with a fork until just combined. Use your hands to work the mixture into a dough. It might seem too dry at first, but as you mix it it will start to come together.
- Roll the dough out on a floured surface to 1/8-inch thick*.
- Cut the pastry into rounds with a cookie cutter** and press into mini muffin tins. Freeze for 30 minutes prior to baking to prevent shrinking.
- Bake at 350° Fahrenheit for 20 minutes or until golden. Set aside to cool.
Make the lemon curd:
- Heat lemon juice over medium heat until hot but not boiling.
- Meanwhile, whisk eggs and yolk in a medium bowl. Gradually whisk in the sugar. While whisking, slowly pour hot lemon juice into the eggs. Return to saucepan and cook over medium heat. Stir constantly with a wooden spoon until mixture registers 170° Fahrenheit and coats the back of a spoon.
- Remove pan from heat and stir in butter. Once melted, stir in cream, vanilla, and salt. If the curd didn’t come together and thicken, simply return to heat and cook a bit longer, stirring constantly, until it thickens.
- Curd can be stored in an airtight container in the fridge for up to a week, just cover with plastic wrap to prevent it from drying out.
Assemble the lemon tartlets:
- Spoon the lemon curd into each tartlet shell.
- Top each tartlet with a berry (optional) and serve.
Notes
*If you re-roll dough scraps you can get about 3 extra tarts.
** Size will vary depending on your tart pan size but typically 2.5-3″ diameter will work.
Keywords: lemon tartlets, mini lemon tarts, lemon curd tarts, mini tarts, mini tartlets with lemon curd
P.S. – This recipe is an update from a recipe I first published in March 2015. Wondering what my photos looked like from two years ago? Here’s one from the original post:
P.P.S. – Craving these lemon tartlets stuffed with the best ever lemon curd? Pin them for later!
Kelly, these pictures are fit for Martha Stewart!! I also love that you showed me how to set them up – my still life’s look so ugly! What kind of light did you use from the side?
Jill
Latest post: Oui Oui for Black and White Prisoner Stripes!
You’re too sweet! The side is just natural light from the bay windows in our living room!
Love the behind-the-scenes look! Totally unexpected when just looking at the finished product. 🙂
Awesome, I’m definitely going to try to share more like this!
Hi Kelly! You have a lemon tree and a mini photo-shoot studio? You are just awesome! 🙂
Haha, I’m so fancy right!? Nothing says pro like shooting your food photos on the floor on a piece of cardboard. 🙂
These are perfect for spring! I love lemon desserts and these little bite-sized tarts look incredible! Love seeing your behind-the-scenes set up 🙂
Awww, thanks Kelly! I promise they taste as good as they look!
Thank you for sharing your behind the scenes photo. Very helpful!
Awesome! I’m glad you liked it!
I love seeing behind the scenes photos 🙂 These tartlets are gorgeous!
Thanks! I’m going to try to share more, but I always forget when I’m in the moment! 🙂
Oh the reflector is a good idea! I should wrap one of my painting canvases in tin foil, I bet it’d be the same right?!
Haha, you could try it! The reflector is pretty cheap though and is a great investment!
There is no way I’ll ever be able to stop cooking with lemons this year (or… any year, I think), I love them WAY too much. I can’t wait to have a tree with an awesome supply like yours!
Also: TAAAAAARTS. Those not only LOOK beautiful, they sound delicious!!
Thanks so much Carla! I agree, I’m sure I’ll be cooking with lemons for months!
Thank you very much for posting to Yum Goggle! We are featuring your Lemon Tartlets in no less than 9 social media outlets and will tag you in as many as we can! Please continue to submit to YG as we grow from new (March 1 2015) to the largest food site on the net! Thanks, Kelli and Holli from YG
Hi Kelli and Holli – that’s awesome! Thanks so much! I’m especially trying to grow my Instagram following! (@asideofsweet)
These look gorgeous! I make similar ones, perfect for spring! Pinned!
Awesome! Thanks so much Mira! 🙂
I’m new to your blog and I gotta say you do an amazing job! Everything looks so perf! Plan on making these for a church picnic this weekend! Looks delish!
That’s so sweet Esha! Thanks for stopping by!
This was delicious! The tartlet shells were beautiful and flaky but just sturdy enough, and the curd was the perfect tangy-meets-sweet softness. However, to my dismay, I barely had enough curd to fill my shells! My shells were about half the size yours were, and I had 24 of them, but after filling 8 I was already nearing the end of my batch. I have checked and re-checked the recipe and cannot for the life of me figure out what happened. I had a bonne-maman jam jar filled to about 2/3 with the stuff. Is that right? Or did I do something wrong?
★★★★
Hi Nathalie – How frustrating! My tart shells were very shallow (about 1/2 inch high x 1.25 inch in diameter) so it only took a tiny bit of lemon curd to fill them. The apprx 1 cup the recipe yields. was enough for my use. I’m sorry yours ended up a bit short.
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Thanks so much for your quick and kind reply. Comparing my photos to yours, I guess the diameter of my tartlets was a bit larger than yours (if you’re curious you can check the photos on instagram @bakingbank). I ended up spreading a little bit of curd over all the shells and pushing the raspberry in quite far, which ended up working all right. Next time i’ll probably make 1.5x the recipe, but otherwise this recipe goes into my book as is! Thanks again!
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No problem! I’m really glad you love the recipe. You’ve totally inspired me to make them again soon! Our lemon tree is starting to produce so it’s the perfect time. Also I almost always double the lemon curd recipe when I make it because it’s sooooo good!
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You want to eat them just by looking at them in the photos!
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Definitely! They are stunning aren’t they?
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Am I missing something? My dough was so dry and crumbly it wouldn’t come together at all. I added water to it and that definitely helped… but I’m wondering was adding water a step so obvious you didn’t include it in the instructions?
At any rate my tartlets turned out delicious afterwards, so thank you for the simple and easy to follow recipe! I will be making this in the future for sure 🙂
★★★★
Hi Michelle – I’m glad you overall enjoyed the tartlets but I’m sorry you ran into trouble. I wonder if you didn’t mix the dough long enough? It starts out sort of crumbly but if you stick with it it comes together and shouldn’t need water. Hope that helps!
★★★★★
Have you even tried tripling the curd recipe? I am making something else and like your curd recipe, but I need more curd that 1.5 c. . .
Hi Anaya – I have doubled the recipe before easily and I’m sure tripling it would be fine. I have only done it with Meyer lemons because we have a tree that’s full of them but I think you could get away with traditional ones.
★★★★★
Also are you using meyer lemons or the tarter variety. If specifically one or the other have you tried the other or a mix?
I use Meyer lemons because we have a tree. Others should be fine, we just have the Meyers available and they are a bit sweeter than other lemons!
★★★★★
Do you put the lemon curd in the oven with the crust???????????
Haha nooooooooooooooo!!!!!!! Add it after they bake.
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I hope they turned out! I never have to add water but I’m sure a little wouldn’t affect the flavor too much.
★★★★★
The lemon curd tastes amazing! Should I wait for it to cool down before filling it into the pie crusts? and also, should I wait for the pie crusts to cool down before filling them? Thanks!
It’s so good right!? I think you could put warm curd into the shells but I would let the shells cool at least for 20-30 minutes before filling!
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Thanks for your reply 🙂 I ended up waiting until both cooled down almost fully, and they turned out delicious!
Hooray that’s great news! Glad you loved them!
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These look delish. If I make them the night before my party, I should refrigerate them, right? thx!
If you have time to assemble them the day of (which should only take a few minutes), make the shells and keep them in an airtight container at room temperature. You can make the lemon curd and keep it in the fridge for a few days.
If you don’t have time the fridge for the assembled tarts works too. I wouldn’t do more than overnight because I think they will start to get soggy.
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If making the day before, my suggestion is to brush the inside of the shells with a little white chocolate. Once that sets, the curd could be added in and tue chocolate will prevent soggy bottoms ?
Wow what a great idea!
★★★★★
Could I make the shells ahead of time and freeze then for a week or two? Then assemble the day of?
I frequently make the dough in advance and freeze it, but I’ve never frozen the shells, sorry!
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The lemon curd and the shells taste amazing! I love them!
But my shells got puffy and weird when baking, so they are more blobs than shells.
Not sure what happened. But I’m going to try again. Maybe I’ll freeze them for an hour before baking.
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Hi Emily – I’m sorry that you had that experience! I bet if you put a dab of lemon curd on them they will still taste delicious!
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Do you butter the tartlets before putting in the oven?
I don’t!
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Is the curd a little tart or mostly sweet. We love really lemony, slightly tart desserts!
Definitely a little tart – perfectly tart in my opinion!
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Hi Kelly, these are amazing! I just made them for a wedding and they came out great! I LOVE the lemon curd. Oh and I made the lemon curd stuffed cupcakes a few days ago for the bridal shower – also a hit!
Yay! I’m glad you loved them! That curd is sooo tasty!!!
★★★★★
Fantastic Lemon Curd AND SOOOOOO easy! I only made the curd recipe as I already had shortbread tartlets onhand. This is a keeper and next time (oh yes, there will be a next time!) I will make the shortbread tartlets recipe as well. There aren’t any Meyers Lemons offered where I live so I used the standard bulk lemons you get at the grocery store…in my opinion, the extra tartness is a bonus! Thank you Kellie for sharing…
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Hooray! I’m so glad you loved it. I can eat that lemon curd by the spoonful!
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Hooray! I’m so glad you loved it. I can eat that lemon curd by the spoonful!
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Will subbing milk and butter, or sour cream work in place of the heavy cream?
I can’t say for sure but I doubt it!
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Not sure what it’s like before, but it still worked out and tasted good and was a thick enough consistency
I ended up doing a tablespoon of sour cream, and added 3 grams of extra butter. I mixed the sour cream with the vanilla extract before adding it to the yolk/sugar/lemon mixture.
Everyone liked it so I’m definitely keeping the recipe and am gonna try with heavy cream next time, mine was expired last night and a store visit was out of the question 🙁
I’m so glad it worked out! I also never have heavy cream on hand so it’s good to have an alternate option.
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Wow that’s great! What did you end up doing for ingredients?
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how much is 1 heavy cream?
Sorry Julia I don’t understand the question. Can you clarify?
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Yum yum yum. The curd from this recipe is delish! A great combination of sweet, tart and creamy. I used Meyer Lemons and it came out great!
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Hi Joce – I love the lemon curd the way it is so I haven’t experiemented with levels of sweetness, sorry.
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I brought those tarts at a family BBQ yesterday, and my aunt (the hostess) left with the whole plate to hide it in a room so they would not share with all the guests 🙂
Easy to make, and delicious.
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This. Was. Delicious. I’m nearly 50 and had never in my life made a cure of any kind. I was mildly terrified, but the recipe was so detailed and easy to follow! I made a double batch, and I cheated on the tart cups and bought mini graham cracker crusts instead, topped them with blueberries and voila! I’m almost confident enough to go on Kids Baking Championship:) Thanks so much for the recipe and the “go for it” vibe of your post!
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Wow Janelle – Thank you so much for taking the time to write this thoughtful comment and for your kind words! I’m so glad you loved it!
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I made the shells with king Arthur gluten free 1:1 flour. Absolutely amazing! I had already bought trader Joe’s lemon curd and then found this recipe, so I haven’t tried the curd yet. Everyone loved them. The crust to beyond delicious!
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Hooray! I’m so glad you loved them! I hope you get the chance to try the curd it’s so lovely! 🙂
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I have made a lot of pies in my day and I have never worked with a more difficult dough. Very sticky. I rolled on parchment, then chilled because it stuck to parchment, still couldn’t get it to unstick.
What a mess!
Oh no! I’m so sorry to hear they didn’t work out for you!
If I don’t have a mini-muffin pan, could I use a regular muffin pan and just assume that it’ll yield about half? Any recommendations on adjusting it?
You could definitely try it. The only thing I can think of is that the shell might break under the weight of the curd. They will also be sort of messy to eat so you’d need to serve them on a plate with a fork. Good luck!
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That last photo could be framed art! Its gorgeous!
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Love the lemon curd.
Having trouble with the pastry. It’s so soft and hard to manage and roll out. Have I made a mistake?