Tom Kerridge's Lime Meringue Pie
"I've been lucky enough to eat Key Lime Pie in Florida, where its said to originate from, and this is my take on that all-American classic." A beautiful biscuit base filled with a tangy lime filling and topped with an extravagant dome of blowtorched meringue makes this a real showstopper.
Ingredients
Biscuit base:
Pie filling:
Meringue topping:
Method
- Preheat the oven to 160C fan.
- Break the biscuits into a food processor and blend until they turn into crumbs. Pour the melted butter into the food processor and blend again until the butter is incorporated well. Tip this mixture into a 24cm loose-bottomed tart tin. Spread the crumbs evenly across the base of the tin using a spoon, pushing extra towards the sides. Then place your finger on the top edge of the tart tin and, with the opposite hand, push the crumbs upwards to meet your finger, creating a neat crust all the way around the edge of the tin. Take your time with this and use a spoon to help with evenly distributing the crumbs on the base and the edge.
- Place the tart tin onto a tray and transfer to the middle shelf of the oven for 10 minutes to lightly bake the base.
- Meanwhile, put the condensed milk and egg yolks into a bowl and whisk well. Next add the lime zest and juice and whisk again briefly. Remove the tart base from the oven, allow it to cool for 10-15 minutes, then pour in the filling. Return the tart to the oven and cook for around 15 minutes or until you can see that the filling has set. It will still have a tiny wobble to it but will set completely as it cools. Remove from the oven and set aside to cool. Once cool, place it in the fridge for at least 15 minutes to cool further.
- Now make the meringue. Put the egg whites into the mixing bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the whisk attachment but don't switch it on yet. Put the sugar and water into a small saucepan and place over a high heat. When the mixture turns to syrup, clip a sugar thermometer to the pan to measure the temperature of the syrup. As soon as the syrup hits 115C, turn the stand mixer on at a slow to medium setting. By the time the syrup hits the target temperature of 121C the egg whites will be starting to increase in volume. Take the syrup off the heat and with the stand mixer still going, carefully pour the syrup down the side of the bowl towards the egg whites. Once all the syrup has been added, increase the mixer speed and continue to whisk until the meringue mixture has cooled to room temperature. This will take around 10 minutes.
- Remove the tart from the fridge, carefully lift it out of the tin and transfer it to a serving plate. Spoon the meringue onto the tart, flattening it down with a palette knife as you go. A rotating cake stand is helpful at this stage if you have one. Continue to add spoonfuls of meringue, gradually building a dome shape with the palette knife. Lastly create a decorative circular ridge by placing the tip of the palette knife into the meringue from the base as you spin the cake stand, moving it upwards as you go.
- Finally, run a blow torch over the meringue until it is golden brown all over. Cut the tart into wedges and serve.
Rate this recipe
Overall Rating:
4.00
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