Chloe’s Lemon Meringue Pie

Method

1. Pre-heat the oven to 180°C/ 150°C fan/gas 4. Grease and line a baking dish with parchment paper.
2. For the pastry, blend the flour and butter together until the mixture resembles fine breadcrumbs. Then add the icing sugar, eggs and two tablespoons of water and blend until fully combined.
3. Sprinkle a bit of flour on a work surface and roll the pastry out to about a 3mm thickness. Transfer the pastry on to your baking dish. Cover with cling film and place in the refrigerator to chill for at least 30 minutes.
4. Once chilled, press the top of the pastry so that it is higher than the top of the dish and trim the excess pastry off.
5. Fill the pastry with baking beans and bake for about 15 minutes. Remove the beans and return to the oven for a further five minutes. Next, remove from the oven and reduce the temperature to 170°C/ 140°C fan/gas 3.
6. For the filling, combine cornflour with the lemon zest and juice to form a smooth paste. Boil 450ml of water in a pan and stir in the lemon cornflour mixture until it has thickened.
7. Whisk the sugar and egg yolks in a mixing bowl and carefully add it to the lemon mixture and stir over a medium heat. Once that has thickened, let it cool for a few minutes before pouring it into the baked pastry.
8. For the meringue, whisk the egg whites in a mixer until soft peaks form. Then add the caster sugar a little at a time, while whisking until the meringue is stiff. Add the remaining cornflour and whisk again.
9. Spoon the meringue on top of the filled pastry and spread it over the lemon filling. Bake in the oven for about 15 minutes until the meringue is lightly golden. Allow to cool completely before cutting.