Lemon and basil are such a surprisingly delicious combination! I’ve always loved using basil in pastry, but I hadn’t tried it with lemon before. Now I can definitely recommend it!
This pie has a lovely fresh flavor, with the lemon and basil balanced by the sweetness of the white chocolate and the crisp pâte sablée.
Happy baking <
Day 1
Pâte Sablée:
- 140 g all-purpose flour
- 30 g almond flour
- 55 g icing sugar
- 90 g butter (cold)
- 25 g eggs (about 0.5 medium eggs)
- a pinch of salt
- Mix all-purpose flour, almond flour, powdered sugar, salt, and butter (cut into cubes) in a food processor. Pulse briefly until the mixture resembles coarse crumbs.
- Put the dough into a bowl and bring the dough together with the egg. Be careful not to knead the dough too much.
- Roll out the dough between two sheets of parchment paper and refrigerate for 2 hours or freeze for about 45 minutes. It should be very cold when you cut it out.
- Place a 20 cm perforated tart ring on parchment paper and line the tart ring with Pâte Sablée.
- Bake the tart for around 15 to 17 minutes at 175°C / 347°F until golden.
- Let the tart cool.
Tips & Notes:
- Grate the butter or cut it into smaller cubes, as this makes it easier to mix with the dry ingredients.
- Be careful not to over-knead the dough. Only combine until it has a sandy texture and no big pieces of butter remain.
- Quickly combine the dough with the egg, stopping as soon as it comes together into a ball and the ingredients are fully incorporated.
- It’s important to let the dough set in the fridge as the cake bases otherwise will spread and lose their shape during baking.
Day 1
Lemon Curd with Basil:
- 2.25 gelatin sheets (1 sheet = 1.75 g)
- 187.5 g eggs (approx. 3.75 medium eggs)
- 225 g caster sugar
- 225 g lemon juice (approx. 6-7 lemons)
- 180 g butter (cold)
- zest from 2.5 organic lemons
- 40-60 fresh basil leaves
- 1 tsp caster sugar (to mix with the basil leaves, depending on how strong of a basil flavor you want)
- Soak gelatin in cold water for 5-10 minutes.
- Stir lemon juice, eggs, and sugar in a saucepan. Cook slowly while whipping constantly until the curd thickens, without boiling.
- Remove the pan from the heat and sift the lemon curd through a fine sieve.
- Whisk in the gelatin and let the curd cool to room temperature.
- Cut butter into cubes, then add to your mixture. Hand blend to a creamy consistency.
- Crush the basil leaves with the sugar until very fine. Add 40–60 basil leaves, depending on how strong you want the basil flavor to be, and stir the basil mixture and lemon zest into the lemon curd with a rubber spatula.
- Pour the lemon curd on the tart.
- Let the tart cool in the refrigerator for a minimum of 2 hours.
Tips & Notes:
- Cook the curd over medium heat to avoid burning and heating the eggs too much, while constantly whisking.
- Keep whisking until the curd thickens and increases in volume. This may take several minutes.
Day 2
White Chocolate Ganache:
- 200 g white chocolate (28%)
- 120 ml heavy cream (min. 35%)
- Carefully melt the white chocolate (possibly in a bowl over a pan of simmering water/bain-marie) and put the chocolate aside in a bowl.
- Heat the heavy cream almost to a boil and remove from heat.
- Pour the hot cream over the chocolate while you stir in the middle of the bowl with a rubber spatula.
- Hand-blend the ganache.
- Pour the ganache over the tart and put it back in the refrigerator for a couple of hours until the ganache is set.
Tips & Notes:
- Only heat the cream almost to a boil, as a too hot cream will seize the chocolate mixture.
- Stir the mixture with a spatula until glossy.
Day 2
Chocolate Decoration:
- 250 g white chocolate (28%) (for the chocolate ribbon, chocolate circle, and chocolate pattern)
- flowers (edible or secured with safety seal / edible wax)
Chocolate Ribbon:
- Cut a piece of acetate sheet (3.5 cm x 67 cm) and put it on the kitchen table.
- Temper 200 g of white chocolate.
- Pour the chocolate over the acetate sheet, even the surface with a small palette knife, release the acetate sheet from the table, and run your fingers along the sides of the acetate sheet to remove chocolate leftovers. Let the chocolate set a bit.
- When the chocolate has set for a bit, put it around the tart. Fasten it with a bit of melted chocolate.
- When the chocolate has set, remove the acetate sheet.
Chocolate Circle:
- Pour the chocolate (the rest of the tempered chocolate) between two acetate sheets and even the surface with a rolling pin.
- Place the acetate sheets between two chopping boards and put the chocolate in the refrigerator. This keeps the circle even and flat.
- When the chocolate has set, cut a chocolate circle with the tart ring at 20 cm in diameter.
Chocolate Pattern:
- Melt 50 grams of chocolate and put it in a plastic bag with a tiny hole in the bottom.
- Drizzle the chocolate in circles on the chocolate circle.
- Place the chocolate circle on the tart.
- Decorate with edible flowers fastened with a bit of melted chocolate.
