Quick Lime Tart
By Emma
Certified Culinary Professional
•
Recipe tested & approved
Tangy lime curd filling nestled in crisp baked pastry shell. Uses 5 eggs, slightly less sugar, juice and zest from 4 limes swapped from original 5 limes. Classic pâte brisée replaced with graham cracker crust variant for crunch and aroma. Baked at 175 °C to prevent overbrowning. Cooking times shifted plus or minus a few minutes. Chilled until set then sliced. A tart that balances bright citrus and creamy texture. No nuts or dairy needed. A straightforward dessert that tests your feel for custard doneness.
Prep:
35 min
Cook:
38 min
Total:
Servings:
8 servings
#lime
#tart
#custard
#pâte brisée
#graham crust
#French
#dessert
#no dairy
#no nuts
#quick
#easy
Lime tart. I’ve wrestled with eggs, acidity, and texture for years. Bright citrus bites, creamy custard. Not curdled, not rubbery. The rhythm matters. Whisk eggs with sugar just enough. Too much air and bubbles, too little and dense custard. Zest—only fine, no scraping white pith or bitter ruin. Juice balance shifts every lime picked, never identical. I swapped one lime out for lemon zest recently; subtle boost. Graham crust adds crunch and flavor twist. Bread base absorbs juices differently than traditional dough—yes, tried both. Timing—own your oven heat, not the clock. Don’t wait for edges to brown too much or shrink, that’s dead loss. Texture tells you when to pull, wobble shows life. Cool, chill hard an hour or two. Slice will thank you. The tart lives in simplicity but demands respect.
Ingredients
Lime curd
- 5 eggs, room temperature
- 140 ml sugar (about 2/3 cup minus 1 tbsp)
- Zest and juice of 4 limes (instead of 5)
Crust
- 1 9-inch (23 cm) graham cracker crust or pâte brisée, prebaked
About the ingredients
Eggs—ideally room temp, they bind curd better. Cold eggs shock the mixture, causing lumps or uneven cooking. Sugar—reduced slightly from common 150 ml to 140 ml, protects balance of sweet and sour; crucial tweak after past over-sweet failures. Lime—fresh hand-zested, no pre-grated powders; zest oils release aroma only if dry and slow rubbed. Juice must be strained to ditch pulp bits, which cloud curd texture. Crust—optional pâte brisée or graham cracker shell. I recommend graham for extra crunch and simplicity; no blind baking needed if bought pre-made. Pâte brisée requires full blind bake with pie weights to stop sogginess. No nuts, no dairy, easy for lactose-sensitive eaters. If no limes, no crisis—1 lemon can substitute part or all juice but reduces lime brightness. Salt pinch optional, lifts flavor but easily missed. Keep all measuring loose; slight variations don’t wreck tart but perfect precision is amateur dream.
Method
===
- Position oven rack low, preheat oven to 175 °C (350 °F). Lower temp helps avoid too-dark edges on crust. Prebake crust fully until golden-brown and firm to touch if using pâte brisée. Graham crust usually comes ready.
- In mixing bowl, whisk eggs vigorously with sugar and finely grated lime zest until mixture lightens and shows streaks. This aeration helps texture of final curd. Combine juice of 4 limes gradually, folding smoothly but quickly. Pour carefully into crust; a thin layer but packed with tang.
- Bake in center rack about 16 to 20 minutes. Watch for gentle wobble in custard's center—firm edges with subtle jiggle inside. If center solidifies fully, tart turns dense and dull. Slight wobble means creaminess. Oven watchers swear by this jiggle test. Cooler oven temp and wider pan edges yield even cooking.
- Remove and let cool slightly on wire rack until barely warm. Then chill minimum 1.5 hours, preferably closer to 2, so curd firms and slices clean. Room temp slices get messy.
- Serve chilled, optionally topped with whipped coconut cream or thin lime slices for brightness. If too tart or thick, a thin dusting of powdered sugar tames sharp edges without drowning flavor.
- Store covered in fridge up to 3 days. Crust may soften; re-crisp by reheating crust-only slices 3-5 minutes in toaster oven but avoid heating lime filling itself. No eggshell bits—double check zest quality; pith bitterness ruins balance.
- Common trap: overbake curd until cracked surface appears—sign you lost moisture and silkiness.
- Swap note: I swapped 1 lime out of 5 for a lemon’s zest. Slight lemon note helps lift lime’s sharpness, less aggressive. Try adding tiny pinch sea salt next round for deeper depth.
Cooking tips
Oven heat is fickle—set slightly lower than usual 180 °C; in my cluttered oven, 175 °C gives even baking without burnt rim. Place rack low to avoid top crust scorching while custard cooks through. Whisk eggs and sugar to combine but no need for stiff peaks; over-beating traps bubbles that pop and crack curd during bake. Fold zest and juice last to preserve fragrance. Pour carefully so crust isn’t overwhelmed—too much liquid means soggy bottom. Watch custard around 16 minutes for those telltale ripples and just-set edges. If still liquid, give 2 more minutes; avoid bake beyond 20 minutes or curd cracks will explode surface. Cooling on wire rack prevents condensation sogginess below, chilling solidifies filling for a cleaner cut; patience here is virtue. For plating, thin lime slices or light whipped coconut cream add texture contrast but avoid drowning tart. Leftovers? Store airtight, crust softens but tart remains vivid. I reheat slices in toaster oven sans filling to crisp crust for day-old tarts. Avoid reheating whole tart; curd can split and curdle.
Chef's notes
- 💡 Room temp eggs bind curd better no lumps. Cold eggs shock mix cause uneven curd texture. Whisk sugar and eggs until streaky, light but no foam trap. Folding zest last keeps oils fragrant, avoid bitterness from pith. Juice strained no pulp—pulp ruins silk texture. Watch for gentle wobble mid bake, not firm or liquid-y. Oven at 175 °C slows browning, keeps edges tender, watch rack placement low to preserve custard evenness.
- 💡 Graham crust means no blind bake if pre-made but press firmly with butter or crumbs to avoid sog. Traditional pâte brisée needs blind bake with weights till golden, dry edges key. If curd cracks on surface you overbaked, moisture lost, flavor dull. Tent foil mid bake if crust edges burn early. Room temp after baking avoids condensation sog. Chill curd 1.5-2 hours minimum or slice falls apart gritty or messy.
- 💡 Swap 1 lime zest for lemon zest adds subtle bright lift without tart clash. Optional pinch salt deepens flavor balance but easy to miss. Sugar reduced from common 150 ml prevents oversweet, sharp lime needs balance. Powdered sugar dust tweaks sharpness if too tart or thick. Whipped coconut cream topping optional for texture contrast but avoid drowning vibrant lime flavor. Slice cold, warm cuts smear easily.
- 💡 If custard too firm, baked too long or too hot; if too runny, underbaked or oven rack too high. Watch crust edges not shriveling or burning. Reheat leftover crust-only slices 3-5 min toaster oven to crisp, never heat custard filling again or risk split curd texture. Zest only yellow, no white pith for bitterness; dry limp zest toss. Fresh zest oils fragrant when rubbed slow, dry.
- 💡 Don’t rush jiggle test edges set, center moves slightly gelatin style. Overbeating eggs traps air—curd cracks on bake. Fold juice smoothly but quickly to retain air, avoid curd collapse. Cooling wire rack prevents sog, room temp then fridge firmer cut. If no limes, lemon subs juice but brightness dulls. Timing flexible plus or minus few minutes, own oven heat key. Freeze tart ruins texture, better chill longer.
Common questions
Why room temp eggs?
Cold eggs shock curd, lumps form. Room temp helps sugar dissolve smooth, aeration better. Makes custard silkier. Quick shift from fridge to bowl can cause bad texture. Learned messing with temps ruins batch.
Can I skip blind baking pâte brisée?
No. Blind baking with weights stops soggy bottom. Butter crust traps moisture from curd. Prebaking solidifies base. Graham crust bypasses this but less traditional. Skip blind baking and crust edges undercook, taste raw.
What if curd cracks?
Overbaked—moisture lost, texture rubbery. Cracks tell you pulled too late or oven too hot. Tent with foil mid bake if edges burn fast, cut time down. Underbaking makes runny, but cracks form only with dryness. Adjust timing next bake.
How to store leftovers?
Chill tightly wrapped fridge 3 days max. Crust softens but tart stays stable. Recrisp crust-only slices toaster oven 3-5 min, no heating curd or it splits. Freezing not recommended ruined texture. Room temp slices messy; best cold.
