Lemon Meringue Pie

So here it is, the most anticipated recipe of the weekend. As I explained in my post about the brownies, I was handed a bag of lemons the other day. Now while most people's response to that would be - TEQUILA! I knew it could only mean one thing. I had to make pie. To say I was fearing this would be an understatement. First, take into account that everyone likes their pie with different degrees of tartness, add to that the various ways people prefer their meringue and finally put on top the fact I've never made anything like it... Recipe for disaster! My friends are lucky I love them!

Not too bad even if I do say so myself!

Lemon Meringue Pie
Serves: 12 (maybe more maybe less) I used a 23cm pie dish  so it really comes down to how big your slices are
Prep Time: 1 hour (plus extra for cooling) Cook Time: 40mins

For the Base:
2 1/4 cups plain flour
3tbs icing sugar
190g chilled butter (chopped)
3 3/4tbs chilled water

1. Place icing sugar and flour in a bowl, rub the butter into the flour mix until it looks like fine breadcrumbs.
2. Add the water and use a spatula to stir until a dough forms. Use your hands to bring the dough together. Turn onto a worktop and roll out to 5mm thickness. Line your pie dish and trim the excess. Place dish into the fridge to cool for 30mins
3.Preheat oven to 180C. Cover the pastry with baking paper and weights (I used beans because they're all I had). Bake for 15mins, remove weights and paper cook for a further 15-20mins, or until crisp and golden. Allow to cool. (I made this the day before just to give me a bit more time).

First time using my new pie dish and I must say I am impressed

For the Filling:
75g cornflour
3/4cup water
1 1/2 cups lemon juice
Zest of 1 lemon
1 1/2cups caster sugar
90g butter
6 egg yolks

1. Combine the cornflour, water, lemon juice, zest and sugar in a saucepan. Use a whisk to stir over medium heat for 4mins or until boiling. Continue cooking and stir constantly for another minute. Remove from heat, whisk in butter and egg yolks. Pour mix into a bowl, cover and put in the fridge for 3hrs or until completely cool.

Zesty lemony goodness

For the Meringue:
6 egg whites
1 1/2cups caster sugar

1. Preheat oven to 190C. Use an electric beater to beat the egg whites in a clean dry bowl until soft peaks form. Add the sugar one tbsp at a time until the mix is thick and glossy.

Making the pie:
Spread the filling over the base of the pastry case. Spoon the meringue mix over the top, making sure it goes out to the edges. Use the back of a spoon to form peaks. 

Pie - pre oven
just so I had proof it looked good at one point in case the meringue collapsed

Bake in the oven for 5 mins or until the meringue peaks are light golden. 
Set aside to cool.


For all the fear I had of this dish, it wasn't too bad to make, but it was time consuming and a little stressful - I sat on the floor of my kitchen watching the meringue cook just to be sure it didn't burn. Also evidenced by my lack of photos during the process, always a sign that I am preoccupied.
It hasn't had a taste test yet either but my friends will be here soon so time will tell. I guess if they don't like it they can always make their own and show me how it's done...

Braided Fruit Loaf

I love bread, have I mentioned this before? The trouble is the bread here is sweet and well, awful! The altitude messes with the rising process and it seems the bread will either taste yeasty or they'll have loaded it with sugar so that you can't taste the yeast. As a result I bought myself a bread maker for those times that I want a fix of what bread is meant to be like. However, as this is a bucket list item and it infuriated me (when I didn't have a bread maker) when a recipe called for proofing the loaf in a bread maker, I have made this loaf from scratch. The sun was playing hide and seek this morning so I had some trouble getting things to work, but nothing that sitting the dough in front of a hot oven can't fix.

I love bread...

Braided Fruit Loaf
Serves: 2 loaves (or 1 with a 6 strand plait)
Prep Time: 2 1/2 hours (includes proofing x2) Cook Time: 45mins

120g butter
1/3 cup milk
1/3 cup caster sugar (we can't get this here so I throw normal sugar in the blender for 10 seconds)

2 2/3 cups flour
1tbs dried yeast
3 eggs (beaten)
1 cup dried apricots (chopped)
1tbs flaked almonds

1. Melt butter with milk and sugar in a saucepan on low, stir until sugar is disolved. Cool until lukewarm.

Getting ready

2. Place flour and yeast in a bowl and mix together. Add the eggs (keep 1 tbsp to brush) then the milk mixture, beat for 10 minutes until dough is soft and elastic.
3. Place on a floured surface, shape dough into a rectangle, scatter 1/3 of the apricots then fole the dough over. Repeat until all the apricots have been used. Knead for 2 mins.

Adding the apricots

4. Make a ball and place it in a lightly oiled bowl and cover with lightly oiled plastic wrap. Let stand in a warm place for 1hr (or until doubled)

Plaiting, easy when you know how!

5. Punch down dough and divide into 6 pieces. Roll each into a long strand. Press the tops together and form the loaf by creating a 6 strand plait. (Alternatively make 2, 3 strand plaits). Place the dough onto a baking tray, double lined with baking paper, cover again and leave to proof once more.

Ready for baking

6. Preheat the oven to 180C, brush the loaf with the reserved egg and sprinkle flaked almonds on top. Bake for 40-45mins until lightly golden. I was worried about this bread not being cooked so I checked online and discovered an internal temp of 190/200F is right for a loaf so I went with that.

All done

7. Cool on a wire rack.

This smelt great, it hasn't had the taste test yet as it's being served this afternoon, but if appearance counts for anything, then it's a winner. I'm hoping if this looks good enough, when my meringue is a flop, no one will notice.

Tandoori Salmon

I warned you it was a bucket list kind of weekend... Here's item 2 of the 4 I have planned. I decided Rory and I should have something nice for dinner and this seemed like an easy way to get this. We actually picked up some tandoori powder (ok some might be a slight understatement, try 5 boxes) while we were in Australia, but should we use all of that up before we get chance to replenish supplies, then I thought I'd try making the powder from scratch.

Dinner, just delicious.

Tandoori Salmon
Serves: 2
Prep Time: 5 mins (plus 4+ hours to marinate) Cook Time: 10 mins

500g salmon
150g yoghurt
1tbsp lemon juice
1 clove garlic minced
2tsp ginger powder
1tsp cumin
1tbsp paprika
1/2tsp turmeric
pinch of salt and pepper
pinch of cilantro

1. Prepare salmon into 2 fillets and place skin side down in a glass dish.
2. Mix together all the remaining ingredients to form the tandoori paste.
3. Pour paste over the top of salmon and make sure they're completely coated. Cover the dish with plastic wrap and place in the fridge for at least 4 hours (no longer than 24)

Fillets marinated and ready for refrigeration

4. Take fillets out, remove excess marinade and place them, skin side up, on a greased grill for 5 mins.
5. Turn fillets over and baste with remaining paste. Grill for a further 5 mins or until the salmon flakes apart when tested with a fork.
6. Sprinkle top of fillet with cilantro.

This was delicious! Better than the packet stuff (even if I do say so myself). We had it with hasselback potatoes, sprinkled with paprika to keep with the theme. I had wanted to have asparagus with it but I'm beginning to think the supermarkets here make a choice between asparagus and lemons... Regardless, divine.

White Chocolate, Cherry and Almond Brownies

OK so a friend at work handed me a bag of lemons the other day, it was her subtle hint to get me to make lemon meringue pie. Now the thing is lemons are rare in these parts so I understand her excitement but sheesh, talk abut pressure. As a result I have decided to make a weekend of bucket list creating, then have some friends round for afternoon tea tomorrow. So in an attempt to avoid the pie for a little bit longer, I made this...

You'll notice the pinkish tinge caused by the cherries...

White Chocolate, Cherry and Almond Brownie

Serves: 15 

Prep Time: 5 mins Cook Time: 45mins

200g white chocolate

125 g butter

200g glace cherries (halved)

1 cup caster sugar

1 1/4 cups flour

2 eggs

50g flaked almonds

1. Preheat oven to 180C. Line a baking tin (20x20 square) with paper.

2. Melt the chocolate and butter in a double boiler making sure you stir constantly, allow to cool slightly.

3. Put cherries, sugar, flour and eggs in a bowl and mix together with the chocolate and butter.

Ready for mixing

4. Pour into the baking tin, smooth over the top with a spatula and sprinkle with almonds.

Pre-oven

5. Place in the oven and cook for 45mins, or until a skewer inserted into the centre comes out clean.

6. Allow to cool completely in the tin and then cut into pieces.

Post-oven

I was a little disappointed with the end look of this, I think my glace cherries must have retained too much liquid (I went for ones from a jar because they're about 1/10 the price of the dried ones) and it tainted the colour of the brownie (it's now a cute pink colour) and the brownie itself is almost too moist still despite being cooked properly, next time I'll leave the cherries to dry out for a bit longer. That said, the taste is good, and I'll still put it out on offer for my guinea pigs tomorrow, so really what else matters. :)

Spinach and Ricotta Triangles

It's been a while since I've had chance to do anything blog worthy... Rory and I went home for Christmas and despite the temptation to use that opportunity where yellow lemons were plentiful to make Lemon Meringue Pie, I just never got around to it. Not that I spent 4 weeks having other people cook for me, but there wasn't really the time for creative cooking. Rather we had 4 weeks of enjoying all those things that we miss most and dining on Christmas-time favourites.

I'm back into the swing now, until I go back to work on Monday, so here's another item crossed off the list. Which reminds me I really must get around to updating my list...

Delish

Spinach and Ricotta Triangles

Serves:8

Prep Time: 10 mins Cook Time: 20 mins

300g Ricotta Cheese

300g Spinach

2 eggs

Pinch of salt and pepper

1/4 tsp paprika

1/4 tsp chilli flakes

Filo pastry sheets

1. Preheat oven to 180C. Lightly grease a baking tray. Cook spinach in a small saucepan of boiling water until just wilted. Drain and rinse under cold water. Squeeze excess water from the leaves.

Everything ready...

2. Place ricotta, eggs, salt, pepper, paprika, chilli flakes and spinach into a bowl and mix well.

All mixed up

3. Take 1 sheet of pastry and cut into thirds. Place a spoonful of the spinach and cheese mixture on it and fold into a triangle.

Folding into triangles

4. Place on the tray and cook for 20mins until golden and crisp.

Golden crispy goodness

Quick, easy and perfect for a jet-lagged brain and body!