Poppy Seed Cookies With Meyer Lemon Curd And Swiss Meringue Recipes

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Bring lemon juice to a simmer in a small saucepan over medium heat; cook until reduced by half. Add 1 stick butter; stir until melted.
• Whisk together flour, baking powder, and salt. Cream remaining stick butter and 1 cup sugar on medium speed in the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment. Mix in egg and lemonbutter. Mix until pale, about 3 minutes. Mix in vanilla and 2 teaspoons zest. Mix in flour mixture and poppy seeds.
• Stir together remaining 1/2 cup sugar and 1 1/2 teaspoons zest. Roll spoonfuls of dough into 1 1/2-inch balls; roll them in sugar mixture. Place 2 inches apart on baking sheets. Press each with the flat end of a glass dipped in sugar mixture until 1/4 inch thick. Sprinkle with seeds.
• Bake until just browned around bottom edges, 10 to 11 minutes. Transfer to wire racks; let cool completely. Store in an airtight container up to 1 week.

Steps:

• Cookies: Whisk together flour, sugar, baking powder, salt, and poppy seeds in a large bowl. Make a well in center of mixture. Add butter, egg yolk, and vanilla to well, stirring with a wooden spoon or rubber spatula to combine. Knead a few times to form a cohesive dough, then transfer to a sheet of parchment or waxed paper. Form dough into a 12-inch-long, 1 1/4-inch-diameter log. (It's okay if it cracks in places.) Wrap in parchment, pressing top and sides to ensure a tight, uniform log. Refrigerate until firm, at least 1 hour and up to 2 days.
• Preheat oven to 350 degrees with racks in upper and lower third. Unwrap dough, cut into 1/4-inch-thick rounds, and space 1 inch apart on parchment-lined baking sheets. Bake, rotating pans halfway through, until cookies are firm in center and golden brown around edges, 12 to 15 minutes. Cool on baking sheets 5 minutes, then transfer to wire racks to cool completely.
• Curd: Beat together butter and sugar with a mixer on medium-high speed until light and fluffy. Reduce speed to low and add whole egg. When thoroughly combined, gradually add egg yolks, then lemon juice. (Mixture will appear curdled.) Transfer to a medium saucepan and cook over medium heat, stirring constantly, until mixture has thickened and coats the back of a wooden spoon, 5 to 7 minutes. Refrigerate curd until cold, about 2 hours.
• Swiss meringue: Whisk together egg whites, sugar, cream of tartar, and salt in a bowl set over a pot of simmering water until sugar is dissolved and a candy thermometer inserted into mixture reads 160 degrees. Remove from heat and beat with a mixer on high speed until stiff, glossy peaks form and mixture is cool, about 10 minutes.
• Assembly: Place cookies side by side on a baking sheet. Top each with 1 teaspoon curd. Place meringue in a pastry bag fitted with a 1/2-inch round tip (Ateco #806) or a gallon freezer bag with 1 corner snipped to make a 1/2-inch hole. Pipe spirals of meringue on top of each cookie. Lightly brown meringue in places with a small kitchen blowtorch.