it’s another birthday cake (tart)! this time it’s for matt
the brief from his wife was he likes “cream, lemons, and raspberries”
i wanted to do something with lemons, but not the usual lemon & raspberry duo
i dove into my copy of niki segnit’s flavour thesaurus, where she proposed lemon & lychee as a flavour combination which sounded so summery, ripe and juicy
i paired a lemon-lychee curd with a coconut tart base to keep the tropical theme going, and finished it with a barely-sweet whipped cream topping, and more lychees
serves 9-12
ingredients
coconut pate sucree
145g flour
100g butter, softened
70g sugar
zest of 1 lemon
55g desicated coconut
2 eggs
lemon lychee curd
560g tin lychees in syrup
1 lemon juice
2 lemon zest
3 eggs
2 yolks
2 tsp gelatine
extra citric acid, to taste
assembly
300g lychees (i used frozen)
350mL thickened cream
2 spoons sugar, or to taste
lemon zest
method
coconut pate sucree
in a bowl, beat the softened butter (100g) and sugar (70g) together until pale and creamy
add an egg (1) and lemon zest (from one lemon) and mix until well combined
fold in the flour (145g) and desiccated coconut (55g) until a cohesive dough forms
wrap in plastic wrap and flatten into a disk
chill in the fridge for at least 30 minutes
while chilling, preheat the oven 180C
roll out the pastry
line your tart tin
prick the base with a fork
bake for 10 minutes
beat the remaining egg (1) and brush over the tart base
return to the oven to bake for a further 5 minutes
let cool completely while you prepare the curd
lemon lychee curd
strain the tinned lychees in syrup (560g tin), reserving the liquid
blend the drained lychees until completely smooth
measure out your syrup (about 308g) and simmer in a saucepan until reduced by half (down to roughly 130g) to concentrate the sweetness and flavor
in a saucepan, whisk together the blended lychees, reduced syrup, lemon juice (from one lemon), lemon zest (from two lemons), and eggs (two eggs + two yolks)
cook, stirring constantly, until the mixture thickens into a rich curd
remove from heat, then whisk in the bloomed gelatine (2 tsp) and extra citric acid (to taste)
pour into the cooled tart base and chill until set (at least two hours)
assembly
halve the extra lychees (300g) and arrange them evenly over the set lemon lychee curd
whip the cream (350mL) until it forms firm peaks
sprinkle over the sugar (2 spoons, or to taste) and whip until combined
generously spoon the whipped cream over the top
nestle a few lychee pieces on top of the cream
finish with a sprinkle of lemon zest or lemon powder
keep chilled until serving