Lemon meringue pie

Serves:

Ingredients

Sweet pastry:

• 100g wholemeal flour
• 100g plain flour
• pinch salt
• 125g butter, in small cubes
• 1 egg, lightly beaten
• 50g sugar

Filling:

• 150ml water
• 100g castor sugar
• zest of one lemon
• 2 tablespoons lemon juice
• 3tablespoons cornflour
• 3 tablespoons water (extra)
• 25g butter
• 2 egg yolks

Topping:

• 4 egg whites
• 200g sugar

Method

Pastry:

In a medium bowl sift in flours and salt.

Add butter and rub together to form breadcrumbs.

Make a well in the middle and add sugar and beaten egg.

With a fork gently stir to combine. When dough starts to form, use your hand to push together and knead slightly. When dough is well combined, wrap in glad wrap, push down on it to make a disc shape and put in the fridge for 30 minutes to firm up.

When dough is cold, roll out on a floured board into a disc and line a tart tin (with a removable bottom). Prick the bottom with a fork to prevent rising then place back in the fridge to firm up. Preheat the oven to 180°C and bake for 15 minutes. Remove from the oven a cool.

Filling:

In a small saucepan add water, sugar, zest and lemon juice. Bring to the boil.

While boiling, mix cornflour and extra water together- blend until smooth. Whisk this mixture into boiling ingredients and continue whisking.

Once thickened, remove from the heat and add butter followed by the yolks. Whisk until well combined then pour into baked pastry base. Cool

Topping:

Place egg whites into a mixing bowl along with a pinch of sugar. Beat until fluffy and stiff. Gradually add remaining sugar.

Once thick and glossy (about 5 minutes) place meringue on top of set lemon filling in a decorative pile.

Brown in a 220°C oven for 5 minutes, allow to cool and serve.

Notes

• Making this from scratch looks harder than it really is. But if you don’t have time then buy a pre-made pastry base – and if you’re really strapped for time, you can even buy a good quality lemon curd from many delis.
• Remember when whisking the whites you MUST have a clean, dry bowl to achieve the best results and add sugar only when you have firm peaks.
• I chose this method for the curd because it’s economical and uses a little less butter than many recipes, however any lemon curd recipe will be fine.
• A classic dish with a fabulous WOW factor!
• Recipe created by Camilla Baker for Kidspot, New Zealand

Serving Suggestions

Note