Ene's Recipe Book

Method

1. Making the meringues
2. Preheat oven to 110°C. Cover the base of an oven tray with baking paper.
3. In a small bowl, beat the egg white until stiff peaks form.
4. Gradually add the sugar, beating all the time until mixture is thick and glossy.
5. Fill a piping bag with the mixture and pipe 18-20 small twirls on the tray, using a teaspoon to press down any peaks on the meringues.
6. Bake for 20-30 minutes until the meringues are dry and leave the baking paper easily.
7. Store in an airtight container lined with greaseproof paper until required.
8. Making the lemon curd
9. Finely grate the zest of the lemon and squeeze the juice.
10. Strain the beaten eggs through a sieve to remove the extra
11. In a double saucepan or a basin over a saucepan of simmering water, combine the butter, lemon juice, zest and sugar.
12. Stir over the heat until the ingredients are well mixed.
13. Remove the basin or top section of the double saucepan from the heat and stir in the beaten eggs, mixing well.
14. Place the top section or the basin back over the boiling water and stir constantly with a wooden spoon until the mixture has thickened. Test the thickness of the curd — the mixture will coat the back of the spoon or it will separate when you run your finger down the back of the wooden spoon.
15. Pour into a bowl and allow to cool, or store in a sterilized jar in the refrigerator for 2-3 weeks.
16. Making shortbread pastry
17. Grease a 12-hole mini muffin tray and preheat the oven to 180°C.
18. Cream the butter and icing sugar until fluffy and creamy in colour.
19. Add the sifted flour and mix to a soft dough.
20. Assembling the tarts
21. Divide the dough into 12-16 portions and roll each portion into a ball.
22. Place a ball in each muffin tray hole and, with a floured finger, make an indent in the center of each ball to take a teaspoon of lemon curd.
23. Spoon a teaspoon of lemon curd into each hole, taking care not to overfill it, and bake for 20 minutes.
24. When cooked, allow to cool slightly before removing from the tin. Add a little extra lemon curd if necessary. Dust with icing sugar and top with a baby meringue.