Strawberry-Rhubarb Tart with Lemon Fluff Topping

I don't claim to be the best chef in the world. I also don't claim to know everything there is to know in the kitchen. My pots and pans may not be the most expensive brand you can find at the store (in fact, my husband bought the set for Christmas last year from JCPenney's...not exactly the gourmet chef's choice). My pictures will never be perfect, even if I were to have a studio style setup in my small apartment and bribed my sister to take all of the pictures (she's seriously got some photo takin' talent). I will claim this: if you join me on this journey, you will not be disappointed. I know I'll make some mistakes along the way, but my successes will hopefully make up for them.

With that said, I'd like to start this blog off right with a variation of a tart I found on David Lebovitz's blog (the man truly is a genius). I'm borrowing his recipe for a strawberry-rhubarb compote that was to be part of a rhubarb tart which got the dreaded FAIL from the man himself. Now when David makes something and claims it a FAIL, and it still turns out amazing, then you know he's onto something. I'm telling you...GENIUS! I'm also borrowing a unique recipe he posted for the tart shell (and I do mean unique...).

To top off this yummy-scrummy rhubarby goodness, I've got a lemony-fluffy-so-sweet-but-oh-so-delicious creamy concoction. My sister and I had a crepe-fest one night shortly after my husband left for his third deployment (the joys of being married to the military...*sigh*). Anyway, we found a recipe for what was called "Lemon Snow Filling." Being that we both adore anything lemon flavored, we rushed straight to the nearest grocery store (Wal-Mart at 8:30 at night is always an interesting experience)...Let me apologize now to the grocery store purists. Wal-Mart is right around the corner from my apartment. I could literally walk there if I wasn't so lazy and didn't live next to a questionable, if not seedy, neighboring apartment complex. I do go to actual grocery stores (my favorite being Petty's Fine Foods...Tulsa, OK does not have the most options for grocery stores, and I have been known to hit up Food Pyramid from time to time. So "Lemon Snow Filling." The recipe came from my very first foray into the world of food: All Recipes. With some tweaking, the filling is absolutely fantastic (although it was really great to begin with).

I hope everyone enjoys the tart as much as I did. My sister doesn't do rhubarb so I couldn't get any kind of opinion on the tart as a whole, but she loved the lemon snow. I think her exact words were, "Omnomnomomnom" but I can't be too sure since she had lemony goodness dribbling out of her mouth (as did I).

Strawberry-Rhubarb Tart with Lemon Topping

Tart Shell
Recipe by David Lebovitz

3 oz (3/4 stick) unsalted butter, cut into pieces
1 Tbl vegetable oil
3 Tbl water
1 Tbl sugar
1/8 tsp salt
1 slightly rounded cup all-purpose flour

Preheat oven to 410° F (220°C).
In a medium, oven-safe bowl (Pyrex) combine the butter, oil, water, sugar, and salt.
Place the bowl in the oven for 15 minutes, until the butter is bubbling and starts to turn brown just around the edges.
When done, remove the bowl from oven (be careful!), dump in the flour and stir it in quickly, until it comes together and forms a ball which pulls away from the sides of the bowl.
Transfer the dough to a 9-inch tart mold with a removable bottom and spread it with a spatula.
Once the dough is cool enough to handle, pat it into the shell with your hand (David suggests using the heel of your hand, I had better luck with my fingertips). And use your fingers to press it up the sides of the tart mold. Reserve a small piece of dough for patching any cracks (about the size of a raspberry).
Prick the dough all over with the tines of a fork about 10 times, then bake for about 15 minutes or until the dough is golden brown.
Remove from the oven and if there are any sizable cracks, use the bits of reserved dough to fill in and patch them.
Let the shell coolk before using

Rhubarb-Strawberry Compote
Recipe by David Lebovitz

4 stalks (approx. 1 lb) rhubarb, washed and trimmed
10 blushing-red strawberries, hulled and quartered
½ cup brown sugar (light or dark; David used muscovado)
Juice of half a lemon
1 Tbl kirsch or other liquer

Preheat the oven to 375°F (190°C).
Slice the rhubarb lengthwise in half and cut into 3-inch long batons. Mix in the baking dish with the strawberries and remaining ingredients.
Cover the dish tightly with foil and bake for 20-30 minutes until the fruit is soft and fully cooked through.
Remove the foil, reduce the heat to 325C° and bake for another 10 minutes.
Allow to cool completely before filling tart shell.

Lemon Snow Filling
Adapted from a recipe on All Recipes

1 package cream cheese, softened
1 ½ cups powdered sugar
Zest from one lemon
Juice from half a lemon
1 cup heavy whipping cream

Place cream cheese in stand mixer. Mix until creamy.
Slowly add powdered sugar and mix until smooth. Add zest and juice. Adjust amounts according to tastes
In a separate bowl, whip heavy cream to stiff peaks,
Gently fold lemon mixture into whipped cream.

To assemble, place compote in tart shell and smooth. Top with lemon topping with as much or as little as you want. Enjoy!