To make the
crust, in a large bowl, cream the sugar and butter. Add the vanilla and
beat well. Mix in the flour, salt, and almonds to form an even textured
dough. Divide the dough in half and wrap each in aluminum foil;
refrigerate for at least 1 hour.
Preheat the
oven to 325F. To bake the tartlets, use either miniature muffin pans or
tartlet molds; grease them well. Roll out the dough, half at a time, to
about a 1/8 inch thickness. For a 1 1/2 inch pan, cut 16 pieces of
dough, using a sharp knife or a 2 inch cookie cutter. Press the dough
firmly into the pans. Bake for 25 minutes. Cool completely before
filling. To make the lemon curd, beat the eggs into the melted butter;
then stir in the sugar. Beat until thoroughly combined. Add the lemon
juice and rind gradually. Cook in the top of a double boiler over
simmering water until thickened, stirring constantly. Let cool before
pouring into the baked tartlets. Extra curd can be stored in the
refrigerator for a week and used as a spread on bread or cookies.
An almond
flavored cookie crust goes well with the sharp flavor of lemon.
