Lemon Meringue Tart Is A Time Consumer

I am posting recent photos of a dessert I made in honor of my husband who loves lemon flavored desserts. It's a lemon meringue tart recipe that I borrowed from the Barefoot Contessa of Food Network. It was a long and, at times, frustrating process, but in the end I think it was a success. My husband tells me it's better than my lemon bars so I guess it has bumped those off my baking rotation. I continue to be fascinated by the science of baking. Everything has to be just right or it doesn't work. I love how a liquid like egg whites can be transformed into something fluffy like merigue with a little sugar and the right speed. Thank God for electric mixers!

The only "grand" mistake I made on this was to not let it chill longer in the fridge. The recipe did not say anything about doing this, but I discovered that it doesn't hold up when you go to cut into the tart unless it's had a chance to thicken from chilling. Unfortunatley, we couldn't wait. We'd been waiting all day to dig in. You may notice it's oozing a bit on this slice. No matter. It was still deliscious and I am sad to admit that we ate this whole thing in two days. What a way to blow your diet!

Also, I forgot to pay attention to the several phases and misjudged how long from start to end this would take. Does anyone else neglect to read a recipe the whole way through before you start? I've done that so many times that it's just inexcusable. I get to antsy to start a recipe that in the chaos of work and chores and the trip to the grocery store, I always overlook something such as eggs having to sit out to reach room temperature or that there will be elapsed time where something has to chill for an hour. So frustrating for the chef on the go! It turned out fine, but I ended up committing more time than I planned to this baking adventure.  The pay off was good though... mmmm.

My recommendation if you try making this dessert is good planning. Make the tart dough ahead of time to break up the time a little. Also, make sure your eggs are fresh and leave them out ahead of time to come to room temperature. The crucial ingredient? Lemon zest. I love an excuse to use my zester.