HOW TO MAKE LEMON MERINGUES RECIPES

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 140°C/fan120°C/gas 1. In a large, grease-free mixing bowl, whisk the egg whites to soft peaks. While continuously whisking, slowly add the caster sugar – 1 tbsp at a time – until you have a stiff, glossy meringue mixture. Whisk in the vanilla extract until combined.
• Line a baking tray with baking paper, fixing it in place with a tiny blob of meringue in each corner (we have a /basic-meringue-video/short video showing this technique). Using a metal spoon, place 6 craggy dollops of meringue on the baking paper, well spaced apart.
• Bake for 1¼ hours for mallowy centres, or 1½ hours if you prefer crisper meringues. Peel off the baking paper, then transfer the mallowy meringues to a wire rack to cool, or leave the crisp ones in the turned-off oven for at least 4 hours to cool slowly, then transfer to a wire rack.

Steps:

• Sift the flour and salt into a mixing bowl.
• Add the butter to the flour and then rub between your fingertips until a fine breadcrumb consistency is achieved.
• Add the sugar to the flour and butter. Using your hands, mix to a firm dough with the egg yolk and a splash of cold water.
• Wrap the dough in cling film and allow to rest in the refrigerator for 30 minutes before using.
• Preheat the oven to 190C/375F/Gas 5 and grease a 22cm/9in fluted loose-bottomed tin. Place the tin onto a baking tray.
• Roll out the pastry until it's big enough to generously fit the tin, leaving excess pastry falling over the sides of the tin onto the baking tray underneath the tin - don't trim at this stage.
• Line the pastry with greaseproof paper and fill with baking beans. Now trim the excess pastry using a sharp knife. Bake the pastry case blind for about 15-20 minutes or until the pastry is pale golden and dried out - remove the paper and beans for the last five minutes. Lower the oven heat to 150C/300F/Gas 2.
• Meanwhile, for the lemon curd, mix together the sugar, cornflour and enough water to make a paste, in a large bowl.
• Bring 50ml/2fl oz water and the lemon zest to the boil in a small pan.
• Gradually pour the hot liquid onto the cornflour and sugar, whisking all the time until smooth.
• Beat in the egg yolks, lemon juice and butter. Return to the pan.
• Cook over a low heat, stirring all the time, until thickened. Pour into the baked blind pastry case and leave to cool slightly.
• For the meringue, whisk the egg whites in a large bowl with an electric whisk until they form stiff peaks. Whisk in the caster sugar, a spoonful at a time, whisking well and at a high speed between each addition. Transfer the meringue into a piping bag (with a plain nozzle) and pipe the meringue on top of the lemon curd.
• Bake for about 35-45 minutes until the meringue is crisp on the outside and soft and marshmallow-like underneath.
• Serve warm or cold in slices.