Delicious Italian Crostata al Limone Recipe – A Creamy Lemon Tart

With Italian desserts, you can’t go wrong. Especially if they are as luscious and delicious as this crostata al limone, a creamy Italian lemon tart packed with the lemon filling of dreams. A shortcrust pastry case made with the traditional pasta frolla to be filled with lemon cream and dressed with lattice strips – very much optional, but always good to have as an option. And with summer now in full swing, why not attempt this crostata di limone to celebrate the start of it?

I know that making a crostata right now it’s possibly not ideal. But how can you resist those lush Sicilian lemons when they are so juicy and refreshing? But one step at a time, let’s get a few fun facts about this crostata al limone. And if you do decide to bake it with this heat, well I send you my best wishes – I have been swearing through all of it because, of course, it does get sticky!

Alas, it’s such a perfect summer dessert, served as is or with a beautiful meringue made with egg white, what the Italians would call a crostata meringata. This lemon tart recipe is bound to become a favourite, especially if you serve it cold straight from the fridge at fine pasto, the end of a good meal. You will be hailed a hero, and the crema di limoni will be your sword indeed.

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Let’s make the crostata al limone together.

There is nothing more satisfying than making your own crema pasticcera, but also your pasta frolla! And if you don’t know what pasta frolla is, then just think of a good pie dough, made with cold unsalted butter or good quality olive oil. The dough gets filled with a refreshing batter of custard tasting of lemons, the crema di limone, and you can then serve it by itself or with some whipped cream.

You can decorate the top of your crostata al limone with some lattice work, cut using a smooth or fluted pastry cutter wheel. The center of the lattice can be left as is or decorated even more with anything that comes to mind, from freshly sliced lemons to some mini meringues. Nothing better than this crostata di limone!

What is this crostata al limone and where is it from?

As I mentioned before, there are some fun facts about crostata al limone we can all get down with. And no, nothing to do with the citrus fruits themselves, but more about the origins of this dessert and how everyone around the world has their own version of it.

First off, what the Italians know as crostata al limone is known in France as Tarte Au Citron and in terms of preparation and ingredients, we’re very similar. The American cousins, on the other hand, tend to create more of a pie similar to your pumpkin pie and the dough used is no longer pasta frolla, or shortcrust pastry, but with a pâte brisée making it more similar to an apple pie in consistency.

When it comes to the origins, though, while we can’t claim for this to be a 100% Italian recipe, we can most definitely discuss how it originated in Italy, even though Wikipedia claims for it to be 100% French. Here, this dessert is extremely famous in the south where, along the coasts of southern Italy, you will be able to find huge crops of lemon trees among the many citrus fruits.

The most delicious and famous lemons are found along the Amalfi coast, precisely in Sorrento and Amalfi, and in Sicily, in the area of Syracuse. Of course, if you are in the USA, Meyer lemons would be absolutely perfect for this crostata al limone! So get squeezing, dough making and oven-ing, it’s time to bake.

What ingredients do I need to make this crostata al limone?

This recipe for the crostata al limone is divided into two parts, one about the dough and one about the lemon custard. Of course, when it comes to the ingredients, we have a very similar situation. So let’s see what we need to make the dough first.

Let’s start with 1 medium egg, at room temperature. This will be of the best quality you can find, as fresh as it gets, with the egg yolks looking like small oranges or orange juice itself thanks to their strong hue. Then it’s time for white caster sugar and flour, salt and bicarbonate of soda. And last but most definitely not least is the zest of 1 lemon and the cold unsalted butter. Most of these will be in your fridge and pantry as is, so it shouldn’t be too difficult to get your hands on those ingredients for a last minute treat.

Then it’s time for the crema pasticcera al limone, which is different from your regular lemon curd. You will need full-fat milk, 2 medium eggs, the peel of 1 lemon, possibly bio and most definitely not treated. Last, but not least, it’s the sugar, cornflour – what Italians love to call amido di mais – lemon juice and an optional addition of lemon essence to get the taste of lemon to come through stronger. 

How do I make the crostata al limone?

The crostata al limone, a bit like the ingredients, has two different big steps when making it. Nothing difficult, I can promise you, but you will want to follow my instructions so that you can get the best pasta frolla and crema pasticcera you can get.

Let’s start by prepping the lemon crema pasticcera, so it has time to rest and chill. In a saucepan, add the peel of 1 lemon – also known as scorza di limone –  without the white rind and pour the milk on top of it. The white rind will make it very bitter, so make sure you avoid it as much as humanly possible. You can now put the saucepan on the hob and heat the milk up on low heat until it starts to boil. Do not boil it fully, just remove it from the heat and set aside for a few minutes as you prepare the egg mixture.

In a separate bowl, mix the eggs, sugar and sifted cornflour until everything is smooth. You can either beat eggs first with the sugar or add everything in one go, just make sure the cornflour is sifted to avoid any lumps and to make sure that the sugar dissolves fully in the cream. You can now finally remove the lemon peel from the milk and add this egg mixture to the lemon mixture with milk, making sure you combine it well.

Return the saucepan to the heat and cook it on medium-low heat for 5 minutes, mixing it constantly. It will thicken up fast so make sure you keep an eye on it. Once you reached the desired consistency, turn off the heat and add the juice of half a lemon – the succo di limone –, combine it and then transfer to a bowl and cover it with plastic wrap (or pellicola trasparente). Refrigerate the crema pasticcera al limone until you’re ready to use it, for at least an hour or so.

We can now move to the second big step in this recipe for crostata al limone, preparing the dough: beat the egg and sugar until fluffy and light, then add the flour, salt, bicarbonate of soda and lemon zest and let them combine. Move the dough on a smooth surface and add the butter cut in cubes, without working it too much. Chunks of butter are going to be fine as you fold dough quickly. Let the dough come together, press dough down and then cover it in cling film and rest for 40 minutes at least in the fridge, or even overnight.

When you are ready to bake the crostata al limone, roll out your dough on a floured surface, then cover the bottom of the cake tin of your choice with it, cover the sides and pour the lemon custard in it. We did not do any egg wash but you are more than welcome to do so. Cover the top of your crostata di limone with some extra strips of dough if you fancy a decoration, then bake it at 180°C for 40 minutes and let it cool completely before serving. 

We kept the crostata al limone in the fridge to make it a dolce fresco, a fresh and cold dessert. In this heat, there is nothing better than this!

Can I change or add something to this recipe?

Of course, as I mentioned before you can do anything you like with this crostata al limone. From adding extra lemon zest or lemon juice to decorating the crostata al limone with outside lattice pieces or even mini meringues, the world is your oyster!

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If you’ve enjoyed this crostata al limone, then why not try our recipes for biancomangiare and torta paradiso? Wash it down with the pistachio liqueur of dreams and you’ll be happy for life!

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