Strawberry meringue tart

Serves 8 Cakes, Bread and Pastries

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Method

Preheat the oven to 200C/400F/ Gas 6. Roll out the pastry thinly on a lightly floured surface and line the loose-bottomed fluted flan tin. Prick the surface all over with a fork. Line with scrunched-up baking paper and fill to the top with baking beans. Place on a baking sheet and bake for about 20 minutes.

Take out the baking beans and paper and bake for 10 minutes more until golden and crisp. Let it go cold in the tin before use. Or store in an airtight container for up to a week until ready to use.

To make the strawberry filling, chop the hulled strawberries straight into a blender with the lemon juice. Whizz to a purée then pass through a sieve. You will need 700ml of the purée. In a pan, mix the cornflour and sugar with the egg yolks and whole eggs along with a little purée until smooth. Gradually whisk in the rest of the purée. Put the pan over a medium heat and stir with a wooden spoon until the mixture is almost at boiling point and thickening up.

Cool the mixture for 30 minutes then pour into the tart case and smooth out. Set in the fridge for a few hours until firmed up.

For the meringue topping, put the egg whites in a clean bowl and add a pinch of cream of tartar. Whisk to peaks and start adding the sugar about a third at a time, whisking well between each addition until you have a stiff glossy meringue. Spoon onto the top of the tart filling within 50mm of the pastry, making swirls and peaks. Blow torch the top of the meringue gently to set and colour it lightly, if you’d like. Arrange the strawberries on top and dust over with icing sugar. Eat right away or leave off the strawberries until just before serving, and eat within the hour so the meringue doesn’t weep.