Gt Meringue Tart Recipes

Steps:

• Tip the flour into a bowl with the icing sugar and a good pinch of salt. Add the butter and rub in using your fingers until they resemble fine breadcrumbs. Mix the egg yolk with 1 tbsp cold water, drizzle over the flour and butter, then mix and knead briefly. Shape into a disc, wrap in cling film and chill for 30 mins.
• On a floured surface, roll out the pastry until big enough to line a deep 20cm cake or tart tin, preferably one with a removable base. Drape the pastry over the tin and press it into the corners, trim the excess with some scissors but leave a 1cm overhang as the pastry will shrink while cooking. Line with a piece of scrunched-up baking parchment (to make it more pliable) and fill with baking beans or rice. Chill the tart case for 10 mins while you heat the oven to 180C/160C fan/gas 4.
• Bake the pastry case for 20 mins. Remove the parchment and beans and return to the oven for another 5 mins, or until biscuit brown. Leave to cool. Now make the filling. Put the grapefruit, lemon zest and juice and the juniper berries in a pan and warm through for a few mins to help infuse the juniper flavour. In a bowl, whisk the egg, sugar and cornflour until creamy. Add the gin and mix again.
• Strain the warm juice over the egg mixture, mix, then strain back into the saucepan. Set over a low heat, stirring continuously with a spatula until the mixture thickens enough to part for a second or two when stirred. Make sure you get into the corners of the pan so none of the mixture overheats and splits. Remove from the heat and mix in the butter until it has melted and the curd is smooth. Pour into the tart case, then chill for at least 3 hrs.
• To make the meringue, put the egg whites, sugar, 1 tbsp water and a good pinch of salt in a large heatproof bowl. Place over a pan of simmering water, making sure the bowl doesn't touch the hot water and whisk until thick - this should take about 5 mins. Remove from the heat and continue whisking for 3 mins until cooled slightly and really stiff.
• Remove the tart from the tin. Pile the meringue on top, swirling it to create peaks and troughs. Serve as it is or use a blowtorch or grill to scorch the tips of the meringue, if you like. Leftovers will keep for up to three days.

Steps:

• Combine the flour, 3 tablespoons of the sugar, and 1/2 teaspoon salt in a bowl and place in the freezer for 30 minutes. Put the flour mixture in the bowl of a food processor fitted with a steel blade. Add the butter and Crisco and pulse about 10 times until the butter is in small bits. Add the ice water and process until the dough comes together. Dump on a well-floured board and form into a disk. Wrap in plastic and chill for at least 30 minutes.
• Meanwhile, preheat the oven to 375 degrees F.
• Roll out the dough and fit into a 9-inch tart pan with removable sides. Don't stretch the dough when placing it in the pan or it will shrink during baking. Cut off the excess by rolling the pin across the top of the pan. Line the tart shell with a piece of buttered aluminum foil, butter side down, and fill it with dried beans or rice. Bake for 10 minutes. Remove the beans and foil and prick the bottom of the shell all over with a fork to allow the steam to escape. Bake for another 15 to 20 minutes, until lightly browned. Set aside to cool.
• Raise the oven temperature to 425 degrees F.
• For the meringue, whip the egg whites, cream of tartar, and 1/4 teaspoon salt in the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the whisk attachment on high speed until frothy. With the mixer still running, slowly add the remaining 1/2 cup of sugar and beat until the meringue is thick and shiny, about 2 minutes.
• Immediately spread the lime filling in the cooled tart shell and pipe the meringue over it with a large star tip. Be sure the meringue covers the entire top and touches the edges of the shell, to prevent it from shrinking. Bake for 3 to 5 minutes, until the meringue is lightly browned. Cool to room temperature.
• Cream the butter and sugar in the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment for 1 minute. On low speed, add the eggs, one at a time, and then add the lime zest, lime juice, and salt. Don't worry; it will look curdled.
• Pour the mixture into a small saucepan and cook over medium-low heat for 6 to 8 minutes, until thick, stirring constantly with a wooden spoon. Whisk briskly when it starts to thicken and cook over low heat for a minute or two, whisking constantly. Don't allow it to boil! It will be 175 degrees F on an instant-read thermometer. Pour into a bowl, cover with plastic wrap and chill.
• Yield: 3 cups

Steps:

• Combine the flour, 3 tablespoons of the sugar, and 1/2 teaspoon salt in a bowl and place in the freezer for 30 minutes. Put the flour mixture in the bowl of a food processor fitted with a steel blade. Add the butter and shortening and pulse about 10 times until the butter is in small bits. Add the ice water and process until the dough comes together. Dump on a well-floured board and form into a disk. Wrap in plastic and chill for at least 30 minutes.
• Meanwhile, preheat the oven to 375 degrees F.
• Roll out the dough and fit into a 9-inch tart pan with removable sides. Don't stretch the dough when placing it in the pan or it will shrink during baking. Cut off the excess by rolling the pin across the top of the pan. Line the tart shell with a piece of buttered aluminum foil, butter side down, and fill it with dried beans or rice. Bake for 10 minutes. Remove the beans and foil and prick the bottom of the shell all over with a fork to allow the steam to escape. Bake for another 15 to 20 minutes, until lightly browned. Set aside to cool.
• Raise the oven temperature to 425 degrees F.
• For the meringue, whip the egg whites, cream of tartar, and 1/4 teaspoon salt in the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the whisk attachment on high speed until frothy. With the mixer still running, slowly add the remaining 1/2 cup of sugar and beat until the meringue is thick and shiny, about 2 minutes.
• Immediately spread the lemon filling in the cooled tart shell and pipe the meringue over it with a large star tip. Be sure the meringue covers the entire top and touches the edges of the shell, to prevent it from shrinking. Bake for 3 to 5 minutes, until the meringue is lightly browned. Cool to room temperature.
• Cream the butter and sugar in the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment for 1 minute. On low speed, add the eggs and egg yolks one at a time, and then add the lemon zest, lemon juice, and salt. Don't worry; it will look curdled.
• Pour the mixture into a small saucepan and cook over medium-low heat for 8 to 10 minutes, until thick, stirring constantly with a wooden spoon. Whisk briskly when it starts to thicken and cook over low heat for 1 to 2 minutes, whisking constantly. Don't allow it to boil! It will be 175 degrees F on an instant-read thermometer. Pour into a bowl and cool to room temperature.

Steps:

• In the bowl of a food processor, place flour, confectioners' sugar and salt, and quickly pulse to combine. Add butter and pulse until the mixture resembles coarse bread crumbs, then add egg yolks and pulse until the dough comes together. Form the dough into a disc, wrap in plastic and chill for at least 1 hour.
• Heat oven to 350 degrees.
• Roll out dough on a lightly floured surface to a thickness of 1/8 inch, then transfer it into a 9 1/2-inch tart pan with a removable bottom. Press the dough evenly over the bottom and up the sides of the pan, then trim it by rolling your rolling pin over the top of the tart pan edge. Pierce crust all over with a fork and freeze for 30 minutes. Remove from freezer, place tart pan on a baking sheet, and bake for about 20 minutes until golden. Remove tart from baking sheet and let pan cool slightly on a rack.
• Meanwhile, prepare the filling: Separate the eggs, saving 3 of the whites to use in the meringue. In a small saucepan, stir together 1/2 cup/101 grams sugar, the lemon zest and juice and the egg yolks. Cook over medium heat, whisking constantly, until quite warm. Stir in butter and continue to cook, whisking to prevent burning, for about 7 to 10 minutes or until the mixture becomes thick. Remove from heat and stir in the white chocolate until it melts into the mixture.
• Pour lemon mixture through a fine-mesh strainer into a medium bowl and use a spatula to press until just the solids remain. Discard the solids. Spoon mixture into the prepared tart shell and chill for 4 hours.
• Make the meringue: Set up a double boiler and bring the water in the bottom pan to a boil over medium-high heat. Combine the 3 egg whites with 3/4 cup/151 grams sugar in the top of the double boiler and whisk constantly until the sugar has dissolved and the mixture is hot.
• Pour the meringue mixture into the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the whisk attachment. Whip at medium-high speed for about 2 minutes then increase speed to high and whip for about 4 to 6 minutes more or until the mixture is stiff. Spoon meringue over tart and spread with an offset spatula.
• Using a kitchen torch, brown the meringue lightly, holding the torch about 2 inches away from the tart. Alternatively, place tart under a preheated broiler with the oven rack placed 8 inches from the heat source. Broil 30 to 45 seconds, watching carefully so the meringue turns golden brown and does not burn. Remove tart ring and serve immediately.

Steps:

• Make the tart dough: Place the flour, sugar and salt in the bowl of a food processor. Pulse to combine. Add butter and pulse until a coarse meal forms. Add egg and pulse just until a crumbly dough comes together. If the dough seems dry, drizzle in a teaspoon or two of water. Press dough into a disk, wrap in plastic and chill for at least 1 hour or overnight (or up to 5 days).
• Roll the dough out on a lightly floured surface to 3/8-inch thickness (about an 11-inch round). Place dough into a 9-inch tart pan, folding the extra dough in over the edges to build up the sides. Prick bottom of dough all over with a fork; chill in freezer for at least 30 minutes and up to 48 hours. (Cover lightly with plastic wrap if freezing for more than a couple of hours.)
• Heat oven to 350 degrees. Line the tart crust with foil, and fill with baking weights or dried rice or beans. Bake for 15 minutes. Remove foil and weights and continue to bake until shell is light golden, another 15 to 20 minutes. Transfer to a rack to cool.
• Prepare the filling: In a medium saucepan, combine raspberries and sugar over medium heat. Cook, stirring, until berries break down, 5 to 8 minutes. Remove pan from heat, stir in lemon juice and use a fork or wooden spoon to mash raspberries to a purée.
• In a medium bowl, whisk together egg yolks and egg. Slowly add 1/4 cup of hot raspberry purée to egg mixture, whisking constantly. Slowly drizzle the egg-raspberry mixture back into the saucepan with remaining purée, whisking constantly to keep eggs from cooking. Turn the heat to medium-low, and add butter and a pinch of salt to the pan. Cook, stirring constantly, until the mixture thickens enough to coat a spoon, about 7 to 9 minutes.
• Strain the mixture through a fine-mesh sieve, pressing hard on the solids, into a bowl. Allow to stand for 5 minutes, then whisk briefly to smooth.
• Pour raspberry filling into the tart shell. Bake until filling is set (it should jiggle only slightly in the center), about 14 to 22 minutes. Remove tart from oven and increase oven temperature to 400 degrees.
• Start preparing the meringue: Using a blender or food processor, blend the freeze-dried raspberries until you get a fine powder speckled with seeds. (The seeds won't break down so don't even try.) Set aside 1 tablespoon of raspberry powder for garnish. Combine cocoa powder with remaining raspberry powder to use for the meringue.
• Place chocolate in heatproof bowl, and melt in microwave in 10-second intervals, stirring after each, until smooth. Set aside. (Or you can melt the chocolate in a pot on the stove over low heat, stirring constantly.)
• Fill a medium pot with 1 inch of water and bring to a simmer over medium-high heat. In a large metal bowl, whisk together egg whites, sugar, cream of tartar and salt. Set the mixing bowl with the egg white mixture into the pot above the water, and whisk constantly by hand until sugar dissolves and mixture is warm (160 degrees on an instant thermometer) and has thickened and lightened in color, 5 to 7 minutes. Remove bowl from heat. Using an electric mixer, beat on medium-low speed and gradually increase speed to high, until mixture is thick and fluffy, and stiff peaks form, about 5 to 8 minutes. Be careful not to overbeat.
• Sprinkle raspberry-cocoa mixture on top of meringue. Using a rubber spatula, gently fold in mixture 2 to 3 times to halfway incorporate, but remains very streaky. (Do not overmix.) Drizzle melted chocolate into meringue and gently fold until just combined and still streaky. Take care not to deflate the meringue very much. (It will deflate somewhat.)
• Spread the meringue over the hot filling, making sure it meets the edges of the crust. Using a knife or spatula, swirl in a design. Bake until lightly browned, about 7 to 10 minutes.
• Allow to cool completely and sprinkle the top with a little of the reserved raspberry powder. (Save the extra to perk up oatmeal, smoothies and peanut butter sandwiches.)