Grapefruit Tart with Crispy Meringue

Grapefruits are often eaten raw, sprinkled with some sugar or salt but rarely used in baked recipes. I love this fruit, and thought it was a pity it wasn't used more often!








So, I tried to twist one of my favorite dessert recipe, the lemon tart, and make a grapefruit version. The acidity of the lemon is replaced by the bitterness of the grapefruit for an absolute pleasure!







Step 1: The Crispy Meringue.

1 Egg White
50g (1/4 cup) Granulated Sugar

Set the oven to 100C (200F).
Whip the egg white until soft peaks. Add slowly the sugar and keep mixing until stiff peaks.
Spread a thin layer of meringue on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper. Bake in the oven for 3 hours or until the meringue is dry.

Step 2: The Dough.

190g Softened Butter
5g Salt
50 mL Milk
250g Flour

Mix the butter with a wooden spoon (or with the paddle if you have a mixer) until it's soft. Add the salt and the milk. Mix for one minute. Add the flour and mix until it combines. Form a ball by hand. Wrap it in a plastic film and leave it to rest for one hour in the fridge.
Line your tart tin with the dough. Poke some little holes in the dough with a fork. Cover the base with baking parchment and fill the tin with baking beans. Bake for 15 to 20 min. Remove the beans and parchment. Bake for 5 more min or until the crust is golden.

Step 3: The Filling.



375g (1 cup 3/4) Granulated Sugar
75g (3/4 cup) Corn Starch
Zest of 2 Grapefruits
375g (1 cup 1/2) Grapefruit Juice
Juice from one Lemon
75g Butter
6 Egg Yolks






In a sauce pan, mix the sugar, the corn starch and the grapefruit zest. Add the grapefruit juice, the lemon juice and the egg yolks. Mix well. Bring the mixture to a boil. Take the pan off the heat. Add the butter and mix until melted.

Strain the filling to remove the zest. With a blender, mix the filling for 5 minutes.

Pour the filling into the tart shell. spread it evenly (you can use a spatula). Place the tart in the fridge for at least 3 hours.

I even added some grapefruit pieces before pouring the filling into the shell for extra 'gourmandise'!


Just before serving, cut the meringue into pieces and place it on the top of the tart.







If you want a lighter version, you can replace the meringue by grapefruit pieces.

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