Recipes for Lemon Meringue Pie & Baked Potatoes

Lemon Meringue Pie (using a 25cm/10" pie plate)

Rich Short Crust Pastry:

165g flour

150g pastry margarine, chilled & cubed

2 tblsp icing sugar

1 1/2 tblsp iced water

Method:

1) Process the flour in a food processor with icing sugar & butter until the mixture resembles coarse breadcrumbs (also known as the rubbing-in method). Add iced water; process just until the mixture comes together in a ball.

2) Turn pastry out onto a lightly floured surface; knead it gently until smooth & press into a 15-cm disc. Wrap in clingwarp & chill for 30mins.

3) Preheat oven to 180C. Roll out pastry to a 33-cm (13") round about 5mm thick. Pierce the base several times with a fork.

4) Line the pastry with baking papaer & half-fill with dried beans or rice. Bake for 15mins. Remove paper & beans or rice & cook for further 10mins or until light golden & aromatic. Leave pastry case to cool then spoon filling into it, smoothing the top.

Filling:

170g caster sugar

60g cornflour

Finely grated zest of 3 lemons

80ml lemon juice, strained

185ml milk

3 egg yolks

Method:

1) Put the caster sugar & cornflour in a asaucepan. Combine the lemon zest & lemon juice & the milk & add to the pan. Stir constantly over a medium heat until mixture comes to the boil. Remove from heat, add egg yolks & mix well to combine.

*You can choose to chill the filling for 2hrs if preferred.

Meringue:

3 egg whites

Pinch of cream of tartar

80g caster sugar

Method:

1) Whisk the egg whites in a bowl with the cream of tartar until soft peaks form. Add sugar, a spoonful at a time, beating well after each addition. The meringue should be thick & shiny.

2)Spread the meringue over the lemon filling, making sure it forms a seal all around the pastry shell to prevent filling overheating (which could cause it to separate).

3) Bake for 10mins or until the meringue is a light golden colour.

Baked Potatoes

2 cloves garlic, peeled

1kg potatoes, peeled & thinly sliced

100g gruyere cheese

2 cups fresh milk

1/2 cup thick cream

ground black pepper to taste

1 tsp salt

1/2 tsp ground nutmeg

4 tblsp butter

Method:

1) Preheat oven to 190C

2) Bruise the garlic & spread on a 35x23x5cm baking tray. Arrange potato slices in layers on the tray to resemble fish scales. Sprinkle cheese on top. Repeat the layering & sprinkling of cheese until all the potatoes are used up.

3) In another bowl, mix the fresh milk, thick cream, ground black pepper, salt & nutmeg. Pour the mixture onto the potatoes on the baking tray. Drop butter on top of the mixture & bake in the oven for 45 minutes until dry & the potatoes are golden brown.