Pâte Sucrée is a sweet, short — that is, it doesn’t rise — pastry that’s buttery, flaky and a little brittle — perfect for filling with custards and meringues. It’s nice to use as a base for fresh fruit with a little whipped cream, but I use it most for the spectacular Meyer Lemon Tart I’ve adopted from one of my favorite cookbooks, Sunday Suppers at Lucques.
The recipe, after the jump.
Pâte Sucrée
1/4 cup heavy cream
2 extra-large egg yolks (or three large)
2 1/4 cups plus 2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
1/4 cup plus 3 tablespoons granulated sugar
1/4 teaspoons kosher salt
1/2 pound unsalted butter
Whisk the cream and the egg yolks together in a small bowl.
Stir together the flour, sugar and salt and place in food processor fitted with the steel blade. Add the butter and pulse until just combined and the dough looks like small peas.
Add the egg and cream mixture and pulse until you can press the dough between your finger and thumb and it stays. Dump the dough onto the counter and bring it together with your hands.
Divide in half and shape into 1-inch thick discs. Wrap both in plastic wrap and chill. You may put one in the freezer for later use.
Place the dough on a lightly floured surface and sprinkle some dough over it. Rub a little flour on a rolling pin. Starting in the middle and roll toward the edge, then turn the dough a quarter turn. Repeat until the dough is 1/4-inch thick.
Starting at one side, roll and wrap the dough around the rolling pin to pick it up. Unroll the dough over a 10-inch tart pan. Gently fit the dough loosely into the pan, lifting the edges and pressing the dough into the corners with your fingers.
To remove the excess dough, roll the rolling pin lightly over the top of the pan for a nice clean edge.
Chill for 1 hour.
Yield: Enough for two (10-inch) tarts.
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