Myron Cope's Terrible Tart


I am well aware that the tag "terrible" may not make the most appealing advertisement for a sweet treat, or really, anything at all. Myron Cope chose the slogan for his now-beloved Terrible Towel back in 1975 and the unofficial flag of Steeler Nation has been anything but terrible since then - rather, wonderful! Even miraculous (ahem, Immaculate Reception). 



Yesterday, I returned to work after a day and a half of what some in this part of the country referred to as "Snow Madness." (Okay, only one person called it that, but it had a nice ring to it.) After a long day of playing catch-up at the office, a late-in-the-game text from my brother brought it to my attention that Thursday would have been the late, great Myron Cope's 85th birthday. Once I realized my fumble, I did a QB scramble and put together a gameplan. 



Now, I did something that I'm not proud of - something that I would almost never do - with the clock running down, I opted for... store-bought tart crusts. Gasp. Penalty markers down, all over the field. Neutral crust infraction, pie interference, etcetera, etcetera. 



I suppose this is the "terrible" part of the recipe. Not that it tastes terrible, but I do feel terribly guilty that a tart this terrific took such little time - not much more than 30 minutes with only about 5 of that for prep. Rest assured, while the recipe is sinfully simple, the fluffy filling is still made from scratch. 



Happy (belated) Birthday, Myron! MMMHAH!

Myron Cope's Terrible Tart
Recipe adapted from Kitchen Explorers

6 pre-made graham cracker tart crusts
1 cup sugar
2 eggs
1/4 cup lemon juice (from about 2 lemons)
1 1/2 tbsp lemon zest (from about 1 lemon)
2 tbsp melted butter
1 tsp vanilla extract
1/8 tsp salt

Powdered sugar for dusting

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Combine sugar and eggs in food processor on high speed for 10 seconds. Lower speed and add lemon juice. Turn off food processor, add zest, vanilla and salt, then mix on high speed for another 20 seconds. Carefully pour into tart shells, then bake for about 25 minutes, until tarts turn a light golden-brown. Remove from oven and allow to cool.

Dust with powdered sugar and serve. 


2 Responses so far.

  1. Katy says:

    These are the cutest little tarts I've ever seen. Love individual desserts! Going to make these this weekend to add some freshness to an otherwise cold and dreary season. Thanks!

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