February 12, 2012

A whole new dimension to sweet and sour!

Sometimes it’s just about the baking

other times it’s about mastering techniques. A lot of the times it’s about time, but all the times it’s about you. Taking the time, incorporating patience, applying balance, mastering a skill, perfecting techniques, studying outcomes, finding varieties, changing the look… it’s a whole new makeover worth every second. Then there are times when it’s just about the baking!

You see, there are many ways to look at any one thing, but in the end everything we do, and especially if we invest in our time and effort, becomes a rewarding experience full of growth. It is only when we rush, only when we do halfheartedly that nothing comes out of it, and we deem the experience unnecessary and a waste of time. Just like we brush up on the outside, the inside always needs examination and little tweaks here and there. The inside is the essence, it is who we are and unless we take the time and give it as much attention and consideration we risk losing ourselves to the whims of the outside world!

So take the time, and as you perfect new baking skills teach your inside a thing or two about patience, perseverance, balance, good choices, developing new skills, and adapting to changes… yes that can be learnt observing the beating of egg whites, balancing sweet and sour flavours, hardening the shell with a torch, spreading a dough, thickening a curd…

Everything is a matter of how we see it! And I see a deeply beautiful lemon meringue pie…

Ingredients

1 recipe lemon tart (freshly made and filling still warm)

For Meringue

150ml egg whites (from about 5 large eggs)
a squeeze of lemon juice
134g caster sugar
1 tbsp cornstarch
90 ml water
1 tsp vanilla essence

Make the lemon tart following the recipe on the link above.

Once done and ready to finish, make the Meringue. You can go for a classic Italian Meringue or the meringue in this recipe.

To make this meringue,

Whip the egg whites with the lemon juice on high speed in a stand mixer until it triples in size. (if you are using a handheld mixer make sure to make cornstarch mixture before you start, once done transfer the cornstarch mixture from the cooking pan into a bowl to stop the cooking process). Gradually add the sugar, turn to medium speed. Continue whipping until soft peaks, do not over beat.

While the egg whites are beating, make the cornstarch mixture.

Place the cornstarch in a saucepan and gradually add the water stirring until the mixture is smooth. Bring the mixture to a simmer while constantly stirring. Once the mixture becomes translucent, cook for 30 seconds extra. remove from heat and stir in the vanilla.

Turn the mixer back to high, and immediately add the cornstarch mixture to the egg whites. Whip to stiff peaks. Do not over beat, stop immediately once stiff peaks are achieved.

Immediately cover the tops of the still warm lemon filling, making sure to touch the crust on all edges, leaving no gaps, in order to make sure that the meringue does not shrink. Once the whole top is covered with meringue you can create shapes by pulling your spatula upwards, or swirling it. Just make sure that there are no gaps. Alternatively you can pipe the meringue over the top if you like.

Bake in 375F oven for 10 minutes or until the meringue is lightly browned.

Refrigerate for several hours before serving, in order for the filling to set.

Come back again soon for more & don’t forget to spread the love 🙂