Lemon Tart
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Easy homemade lemon tart is a great citrus dessert made from scratch & using basic ingredients. It’s a perfect baking project for kids as well!
This homemade lemon tart is also perfect for beginner bakers! No special skills are required and the final result is well worth it!
I fell in love with lemon tart while living in Scotland. It was over 10 years ago. I loved everything about this citrus dessert. Even though I did not bake or cook much back then I made sure to write down this easy lemon tart recipe.
You see, lemon tart was not a common dessert where I come from back then and I dare to say that it is not much different now.
It is a shame because this is such a delicious homemade dessert! What do you think? Do you like citrus desserts? I like them a lot! Imagine thumbprint cookies or mini chocolate cups with homemade lemon curd! Easy to make desserts where lemon is the main or one of the main ingredients.
What do I like about this homemade lemon tart?
- Its sweetness & tartness at the same time.
- It’s simple preparation.
- Basic ingredients – 7 basic ingredients that don’t cost much.
- No kneading is required.
- No rolling out is needed.
- Great recipe for beginner bakers and a fun baking project for kids.
- 100% made from scratch – you can’t beat the homemade lemon tart recipe with the shop-bought version.
Guys, making homemade desserts is easier than you think!
How to make homemade lemon tart – step by step
Let’s divide the process into 2 steps!
Step 1 – Making the crust:
Everyone can do this! And I really mean everyone. Even kids! Actually, this is a perfect baking project for kids. Do you know why? Well, the answer is in this crust.
Making lemon tart crust is easy and more importantly it’s fun. This is not the type of pastry that needs to be rolled out nicely. No no no! This one you basically stick to your cake tin. So kids will love doing this. Trust me!
So it goes like this: flour, butter & sugar are combined until a sticky dough is formed. That is it. This takes about a minute. All you have to do now is cover the bottom and sides of your cake tin with it. Evenly-ish, if possible.
Step 2 – Making the lemon tart filling:
Get a bowl and throw the rest of the ingredients in. Whisk. Pour over the pastry and bake. You see, this is really easy and I am telling you, your kids will love making this lemon tart with you!
A few tips:
Homemade lemon tart is one of my favorite pies and I’ve made it several times. It always tastes delicious. To make the baking as smooth as possible check out these tips:
- Butter your cake tin well. Be more than generous. If you grease your tin properly, you will be able to take out this lemon tart without any trouble.
- If for some reason you find the pastry too hard to work with, add some extra melted butter.
- Bake until the filling is set and the crust is golden brown.
Toppings: Lemon tart tastes even better when topped with sour cream, ice cream or whipped cream. I personally prefer eating this lemon tart with sour cream.
So now that you know everything you should know about making this easy lemon tart recipe you can give it a try!
Good to know:
This recipe can be easily doubled!
Check out my other dessert recipes with lemon:
Want to see how to make Lemon Tart? Watch the video!
Simple Homemade Lemon Tart
Ingredients
For the crust:
- 1 cup plain flour (130 grams)
- 1 stick unsalted butter (110 grams)
- 4 tablespoons powdered sugar
For the lemon filling:
- ¼ cup whipping cream
- ¼ cup caster sugar
- 1 egg (large)
- lemon juice (from 1 large lemon – at least 1/3 cup)
Instructions
- Mix flour, melted butter and icing sugar in a bowl until you get soft dough.
- Press this soft dough into the base of your cake tin and up the sides. Pierce the dough several times with a fork.
- Bake it blind for 20 minutes at 375°F/190°C. Take it out & let it cool down. Reduce oven temperature to 300°F/150°C.
- In a bowl, whisk caster sugar, egg, cream and lemon juice. Carefully pour into the cooled pastry case.
- Return to the oven and bake for a further 35–40 minutes or until the filling is set.
- Take it out and let cool down completely before removing it from the tin.
- Dust with icing sugar and serve.
- Happy Baking!
Can I use a tart pan with a removable bottom?
Yes, you can!
Is the oven temperature for fan assisted or conventional ovens please. Thanks.
Hi Esther. It is for conventional ovens.
This is the most delicious lemon tart. Perfect buttery crust. Made it twice. Second time one recipe of crust and doubled the lemon. The lemon filling is wonderful.
Thank you
Hi Benita. Thanks so much for finding time to leave feedback and rating. I am glad you like this recipe as much as we do! My sister makes it all the time :)!
Great recipe easy to double or even triple my family loves it😍
Thank you so much for finding time to leave the feedback and rating, Gabby!
Can you use lemon juice instead of 1 lemon
Yes, you can!
Dear Bakers
I would like to bake your delicious Tart but my measuring cup is 250ml…so unsure about measurements.
Kind regards
Odete
Hi Odete. I am not sure what you mean…
Hi there, just want to double check I’ve understood correctly- baking the pastry blind means lining it with parchment and putting in ceramic beans or similar…is that right? Thanks so much- it looks and sounds delicious and I can’t wait to try!
Hi Hannah. Baking blind means pre-baking the pastry without its filling. You can use ceramic beans if you wish, but I don’t do it all the time. However, sometimes the pastry may rise up without them.
Hi I was just wondering how to remove the tart from the cake pan. The recipe is perfect for Easter. But since it’s not a springform pan I’m concerned. Do I just use strips of parchment underneath the crust? Thank you
Hi Nina. Sorry for the late reply. Your comment seemed to end up in spam. I always use regular what we call a sandwich pan and never had problem taking it out. The trick is use quite a lot of softened butter to grease the pan (bottom as well as sides). It’s better to over-do it with butter rather than under do it. If still worried, then simply line the bottom and sides with baking parchment. Hope this helps!
Do I have to use caster sugar or regular granulated sugar works also?
Hi Aya. Granulated sugar should work just as well. Happy baking!
Looks like my pastry around the edges shrunk. Not sure if I should continue with the filling
If there is enough pastry around that will hold the filling in place, then definitely pour the filling in.
Hi! I love this recipe and have made many times, it is so great!
Do you have a conversion for the recipe for a 9 inch pan?? Would be super appreciative! Thank you :)
Hi Ashley. Thanks so much for your feedback. I am afraid I don’t have a conversion for a 9-inch pan. However, I would probably increase the pastry ingredients by 1/2 so instead of 1 cup of flour you would use 1.5 cups, instead of 1 stick butter you would use 1.5, etc…As for the filling you could do the same or double it (you might be able to use up all of it, depending how high your pie pan is). Hope this helps. Please do let us know how it turned out when you get a chance.
Hi, Can i freeze this tart ?
I have never tried so I am afraid I can’t help here. Please do let us know if you give it a try.
My lemon filling is all bubbly on the top sadly. How long do you mix the liquid ingredients for? Maybe I over mixed?
Hi Sally, what kind of cream did you use? This recipe works only with whipping cream/double(heavy) cream only. The mixing will not affect the cooking. I would just cook it until it is set – perhaps reduce the temperature if you see the pastry crust is too brown. Hope this helps.
I had the same problem— bubbly on the top. I used the heavy cream…
Hello Hannah. Can you specify what you mean by bubbly on the top? Bubbly as not cooked or bubbly as bubbles have formed so the surface of the filling was not perfectly smooth?
A torch to it prior to baking will pop the bubbles :)
Hi,
Thanks for the recipe. I just want to know do we have to pre heat the oven. If yes what will be the temperature settings.
Thanks
Yes, you need to pre-heat the oven to the same temperature you will be cooking the tart in – 375°F/190°C.
I’ve made this several times now, as mini tartlets as well as one big tart. My family loves it! I’ve recently used the tart shell recipe to make mango tarts, since it’s mango season here and I didn’t want to miss out on the opportunity.
Thanks so much for your feedback, Nobonita! I love the idea of turning this into mini lemon tarts. I must try mango flavor too!
Hello,
I have made this recipe couple of times now and I have to say WE LOVE IT. It’s a great desert for any weather and occasion – even made it for my birthday few weeks back! Recipe is simple and the taste is just delicious.
Ada
Thank you so much for your feedback, Ada! :)
Hi, I’ve tried this twice and it is yummy! I also found that at 20 minutes it was set already. Is it okay to take it out of the oven?
If you check the tart after 20 minutes and it’s ready, then you can take it out. Thanks for your feedback!
Hello,
I recently created this recipe for my family and it was a big hit. I even added fresh strawberries sliced up and laid them all over the tart. I’d just like to thank you for helping me find such an easy recipe with as little ingredients possible.
Thanks so much for finding time to leave the feedback, Danielle! It means a lot!
We are making this today for a party tomorrow. Should it be refrigerated overnight?
Hi Amy. Yes, store it in the fridge before serving.
Hi,
I made the the lemon tart yesterday. Is yummy. Can I refrigerate the dough for the crust before lining on the cake pan? As it melts easily an the crust sink or out of shape when oven.
Hi Christine. I am happy to hear you liked this easy dessert. I haven’t tried it so not sure. What you could do is line the crust into the pan (yes, it will be very soft but there is no kneading required so you just “stick it” there. Then, try to refrigerate as is before baking. Hope this helps.