Lemon, fig and limoncello tart

This lemon, fig and limoncello tart is a lovely way to celebrate the start of fig season! It has a crisp, buttery pastry case filled with a silky lemon filling made with sweetened condensed milk. The filling is creamy, not too sweet and has a hint of cheesecake about it. Fresh figs make a beautiful topping, while a splash of limoncello adds a delicate lemony note. It’s easy to make, looks gorgeous and tastes even better than it sounds 😉

Ingredients for the shortcrust pastry:

• 200 g plain flour
• 90 g cold butter, diced
• 30 g cold lard*, diced
• 60 g icing sugar
• a pinch of salt
• 2-3 tbsp cold water

Sift the flour into a bowl. Add the butter and lard, then quickly chop them in with a knife until the mixture resembles breadcrumbs. Add the icing sugar, salt and water, then quickly bring the dough together. You can also prepare it in a food processor. Shape the dough into a ball, flatten it slightly, wrap in cling film and chill in the fridge for at least 60 minutes.

Grease a 24 cm tart tin with butter and dust with plain flour. Tap out any excess flour. Roll out the chilled pastry to approximately 3 mm thick and use it to line the tin, pressing it firmly into the base and sides. Return to the fridge for another 30 minutes.

Preheat the oven to 220°C. Lightly dust the chilled pastry with flour, cover with baking paper and fill with ceramic baking beans. You can also use dried beans or rice. Place the tin in the oven and immediately reduce the temperature to 200°C. Bake for 15 minutes. Remove the tin from the oven, carefully lift out the baking paper and weights, then reduce the temperature to 180°C. Return the pastry to the oven and bake for another 5-8 minutes, until lightly golden. Remove from the oven.

Ingredients for the lemon filling:

• 400 g sweetened condensed milk
• 2 large egg yolks
• freshly squeezed juice and finely grated zest of 1 large lemon
• 3 tbsp limoncello

Place all the ingredients in a bowl and whisk together until combined. Pour the filling into the hot pastry case and level the surface.

Reduce the oven temperature to 170°C and bake for approximately 20-25 minutes. Remove from the oven and leave to cool.

Additionally:

• 6-7 figs, thinly sliced
• a few tablespoons of smooth, sieved apricot jam, for glazing (raspberry jam also works)

Arrange the sliced figs over the cooled tart, slightly overlapping them.

Warm the apricot jam and press it through a sieve. Gently brush the figs with a thin layer of the glaze, just enough to give them a lovely shine.

Lard makes the pastry extra crisp and crumbly, but you can replace it with the same amount of additional butter.

Enjoy!