Lemon Curd with a Rosemary Crust #11

I know, I know. This looks like a tart...and by all definitions, it is a tart.

I would, however, beg for this to slide just this one time because the only real way to tell the difference between a tart and a pie is by the dish it's baked in and, my friends, I only have 5 pie pans and I was planning on making 6 pies...one had to go in the tart pan...it just had to.

Okay, now that we have that confession out of the way, let me boast for a second. I made this one up, and I'm kind of proud of myself for that mostly because I thought it was pretty delicious.

I've been thinking about this combination for a while and have been looking for a recipe but haven't really found what I was looking for. So, the day of the pie party, I just decided to go for it. I had prepared with the right ingredients and thought I might need something else, so I did it.

Having boasted for a second, let me also admit that it totally didn't work the way I wanted it to. The crust shrunk WAY more than expected and I didn't give the curd enough time to harden up. Not to mention that no one was even tempted to cut into it until at least an hour into the party. So, I shouldn't pat myself on the back too hard.

In any case, this was my delicious rough draft. I would encourage you to try it (maybe together we can make something even better). Or you can wait. I'm definitely not done trying to make this one into a winner.

Lemon Curd with a Rosemary Crust
(I should try and come up with a better name, don't you think? Any ideas?)

Ingredients

Rosemary Crust:
2 cups all-purpose flour
2 tablespoon sugar
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 stick (1/2 cup) cold unsalted butter, cut into pieces
1 tablespoon cold shortening
1 1/2 tablespoons finely chopped fresh rosemary
4 to 5 tablespoons ice water

Lemon Curd:
1 cup plus 2 tablespoons sugar
1/2 cup fresh lemon juice
4 large eggs
1 tablespoon finely grated lemon peel
10 tablespoons (1 1/4 sticks) chilled unsalted butter, cut into 1/2-inch cubes
Pinch of salt

Directions

Rosemary Crust:
Combine flour, sugar, rosemary, and salt. Cut butter and shortening into flour mixture until it develops into pea-sized lumps. Drizzle evenly with 4 tablespoons ice water and stir to combine.

Gently squeeze a small handful: If it doesn't hold together, add more water, 1/2 tablespoon at a time, and continue to test.

Roll out dough into and 12-inch round. Line pie pan with dough. Trim overhang and fold edge under and crimp to make even edges. Freeze dough for at least 30 minutes.

Preheat oven to 400°F.

Line pie crust with parchment paper and fill with beans or pie weights.

Bake crust in middle of oven until center and edges are golden, 25 to 30 minutes then cool in pan on a rack.

For Curd:
Combine 1 cup sugar, lemon juice, 4 eggs, and lemon peel in heavy medium saucepan and whisk to blend; add butter. Whisk constantly over medium heat until mixture thickens and coats back of spoon thickly (do not boil), about 12 minutes. Pour mixture through strainer into medium bowl. Place bowl in larger bowl filled with ice water and whisk occasionally until lemon curd is cooled completely, about 15 minutes.

Chill curd in refrigerator for 2 hours. When crust is completely cool spoon filling into crust and cool for another 6 hours* to let it set.

*I didn’t let it sit for 6 hours before I served it…it was maybe 2 hours (at best), but after the leftovers had time to set, it was much better.