Luscious Lemon Curd Tart with Almond Poppyseed Crust

It has finally risen above 50 degrees in Minnesota, and the sun has been out the past couple of days, which puts me in a sunny sparkly sort of mood!  It has been nice to soak up a bit of vitamin D as winter is officially over tomorrow!  I thought such sunny days deserved a sunny sort of a dessert for celebration, that and celebrating the fact that winter is over!  So a lemon tart came to mind! 

What could be sunnier than a lovely bright yellow tart with the bright flavor of lemon?  But instead of the usual vanilla crust I would pair it with, I made an almond poppyseed this time.  It was so delicious!  The crust was like an almond poppyseed shortbread cookie, nice and buttery with a light almond flavor, it was perfect for the creamy almond curd it enclosed.  The filling was luscious...creamy and dreamy, silky smooth and nice and tart just the way I like my lemon desserts! 

It was the perfect celebration of winter leaving and sunny days, one bite made me feel happy!  The best part was it wasn't difficult to make!  Here is the recipe if you need a bit of sunshine in the form of comfort food!  You will love it!

Luscious Lemon Curd Tart with Almond Poppyseed Crust

Crust:

1 cup whole wheat pastry flour

1 cup almond flour

1/3 cup powdered sugar

3/4 tsp salt

10 Tbsp organic butter

2 tsp pure vanilla extract

2-4 Tbsp water plus more if needed

1/4 cup poppyseeds

Curd:

2 Tbsp lemon zest

1 1/2 cups lemon juice 

1 1/2 cup granulated sugar

1 Tbsp plus 1 tsp cornstarch

4 whole large eggs plus 4 large yolks

6 Tbsp butter, cut into small pieces

1 Tbsp pure vanilla extract

powdered sugar for topping

To make crust, combine flour, almond flour, powdered sugar, salt in a bowl and whisk to blend.  Add butter and cut in with a pastry blender or 2 forks until the size of small peas.  Add vanilla and water and mix until dough starts to come together.  Add poppyseeds and knead a few times to distribute and bring dough together.  Press dough into a 9 inch tart pan, evenly on the bottom and up the edges.  Place dough in freezer for half an hour to chill.  Preheat oven to 375 degrees with the rack set at the center position.  Bake crust for 25-30 minutes until golden brown.  Let cool completely on a rack.  To make curd, whisk together lemon zest and juice, sugar, cornstarch, and eggs in a medium saucepan and bring to a boil over medium heat, whisking constantly. Boil, whisking, 2 minutes.Remove from heat and whisk in butter and vanilla until smooth.  Pour lemon curd through a fine meshed strainer, into a bowl, pressing with a spoon to get all the curd through and remove any lumps, then pour strained curd into cooled shell and chill until set, at least 2 hours.  Before serving dust with powdered sugar.