ALMOND MERINGUES WITH SLOW-ROASTED NAARTJIES
Nuts always team brilliantly with meringues and the naartjies add a citrusy twist.
1 quantity plain meringue (See recipe below)
100 g flaked almonds
8 naartjies, washed and cut in half
500 ml freshly squeezed orange juice, strained
125 ml golden syrup
7 allspice berries
100 g white sugar
BEST MERINGUES
This is the best meringue recipe I have ever come across. You can use it to make any size meringues, from tiny bites and luxurious dollops to pavlova bases. I even use this mixture for the top of my lemon meringue tart.
4 large egg whites
225 g castor sugar
1 teaspoon cornflour
Preheat oven to 150°C. Line a baking tray with baking paper. To make the meringues, place the egg whites and sugar in the top of a double boiler and heat, stirring, until the mixture is just warm. Pour into a bowl and beat on high for 15 minutes until soft peaks form. Mix in the cornflour.
Scoop dollops of meringue onto the baking tray and bake for 1½ hours. Turn off the oven and allow the meringues to cool in the oven – this is what gives them gooey centres.
For almond meringues: Scatter the meringues with the flaked almonds before baking them.
To make the slow-roasted naartjies: Preheat the oven to 180°C. Place the naartjies in an oven dish, cut sides up, and pour the orange juice over them. Drizzle with the golden syrup and scatter over the allspice berries. Cover the tray with aluminium foil and roast the naartjies for 1½ hours. Remove the foil, sprinkle the sugar over the naartjies and roast, uncovered for a further ½ hour. Allow the naartjies to cool.
To serve, place a meringue on each plate, top with two naartjie halves and drizzle with the juices from the pan.
LEMON MERINGUE TARTLETS
This is the most delicious pastry I have ever come across. It took me two years to find and perfect the recipe and I call it my ‘well-behaved pastry’ because that is exactly what it is – it doesn’t shrink down the sides of the tin and when you bake it blind you don’t have to bother with baking beans and paper. It is just the BEST!
Well-Behaved Pastry:
225 g butter
200 g castor sugar
2 large eggs
500 g flour
Lemon Filling:
3 X 385 g condensed milk
juice and zest of 3 lemons
4 large egg yolks
Meringue Topping:
8 large egg whites
450 g castor sugar
To make pastry: Combine the butter and sugar in a blender and while it is still running, add the eggs, one at a time. Add the flour and blend until it forms a dough. Refrigerate for at least 1 hour before using.
Preheat the oven to 180°C. Press the pastry into 20 tartlet tins (5 – 7 cm diameter), refrigerate for 30 minutes, and then bake blind for 10 minutes.
Meanwhile, make the lemon filling. Combine the condensed milk, lemon juice, lemon zest and egg yolks in a bowl and mix until well combined. Spoon the lemon mixture into the cooked tartlet shells and bake at 160ºC for 20 minutes. Allow to cool.
To make the meringue topping: Place the egg whites and the sugar in the top of a double boiler and heat, stirring, until the mixture is just warm. Pour into a bowl and beat on high for 12 minutes until soft peaks form. Scoop dollops of meringue onto the top of the cooked lemon mixture and brown the top of the meringue on each tartlet lightly with a kitchen blowtorch. (Every baker’s kitchen should have one of these!) This recipe can also be used to make one large 30 cm tart.
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