Daisy Lemon Meringue Pies

Daisy Lemon Meringue Pies

Delicious zingy tarts with a set lemon curd, topped with italian meringue

makes 6 tarts in mini brioche tins, makes 4 tarts in mini 10 cm tart tins

Ingredients

Pastry:

• 125g plain flour
• 35g icing sugar
• 60g cold unsalted butter
• 1 large egg yolk
• 1 tbsp water

Lemon curd:

• 3 large egg yolks
• 1 large egg
• 150g caster sugar
• 2 tbsp cornflour
• large pinch of salt
• zest of 2 lemons
• juice of 3-4 lemons 
• 130g cold unsalted butter

Italian Meringue:

• 60g egg whites 
• 120g caster sugar
• 1/2 tsp white wine vinegar

Method:

 Pastry:

1. In a blender, blitz together the flour, icing sugar and butter until it forms a breadcrumb consistency. You can do this by hand, it will just take longer, and you want to avoid the butter melting into the flour!
2. Add the egg yolk and water and blitz again until it starts to clump. If you need a bit more liquid, add a tiny bit more water until the dough comes together and you can form it into a ball.
3. Wrap in cling film and rest the pastry in the fridge for at least 20 minutes, meanwhile preheat the oven to 170 C (fan).
4. Roll the pastry out onto a lightly floured surface to around 4mm thick.
5. Grease your mini brioche tins (I used brioche tins as they have more of a 'flower' appearance, however you can use regular mini tart tins, or even a large 8 inch tart tin) and then line it with the pastry, using your hands to gently work the pastry to the edges. 
6. Use a knife to trim off any excess pastry. Spend some time tidying up any uneven areas or cracks in the pastry to ensure it's neat!  
7. Chill the pastry again for around 20-30 minutes, this prevents the dough from shrinking.
8. Place some baking paper on the inside of the pastry and fill with baking beans. Bake for 15 minutes, remove the baking beans and bake for a further 5-10 minutes until the pastry is golden brown. 
9. Remove from the tins and leave to cool.

Lemon curd:

1. In a heat proof bowl ,whisk together the egg yolks and egg, cornflour, salt and sugar. 
2. Add in the lemon zest and juice (more or less lemon juice depending on how zingy you like it!) and then place the bowl over a saucepan of simmering water. 
3. Continue to stir the mixture until it has thickened so that it coats the back of the spoon, this will take around 15 minutes.
4. Add the cold butter, and stir until it has melted, then strain the curd through a seive to remove the zest. 
5. Leave to cool for a few minutes, then use the curd to fill the mini tarts. 
6. Place in the fridge to set for at least 4 hours.
7. If you have any left over curd, store in a jam jar - it's delicious on toast or ice cream!

Italian Meringue:

1. Whisk together the sugar and egg whites briefly in a heat proof bowl, and place over a bowl of simmering water. 
2. Continue to stir until you can feel the sugar has dissolved when you rub the mixture between your fingers there should be no grains of sugar.
3. Add the vinegar.
4. Transfer the bowl to a standing mixer, or use an electric hand mixer to whisk the egg whites to a stiff peaks. 

To assemble:

1. Transfer the meringue to a piping bag fitted with a small round nozzle, about the same size as the fluted edges of the tart tin. 
2. Carefully pipe the meringue from the edge of the tin to the middle, creating the 'petals' of the daisy, working your way around the edge. 
3. Use a small dollop of extra curd to create the centre of the flower, and there you have, a delicious lemon daisy! Of course you don't have to do a daisy design, why not swirl it, or dollop it on. Store in the fridge to ensure the curd stays set! 
4. Enjoy! 

For a video on how to make these, head to my Instagram reel @alice.fevronia, and if you give them a go, please tag me as I'd love to see!