Blackberry Lemon Meringue Pie

Great British Baking Show: “The Beginnings” (Netflix), Season 5 (PBS)                                                   –A.K.A. The Great British Bake Off Series 3

Episode 5:                                                                                                                                                         Showstopper Challenge– Sweet American Pie

 

I’m American, so this challenge wasn’t too new for me, however of course I was going to try something different from my usual apple and pumpkin pies. Now according to Paul, the only way to make an American pie taste good is to make it more British. I don’t really know what making it more British entails, so I decided on lemon meringue pie with a twist. 

I’ve only made lemon meringue pie once before and it was a bit of a fail. My meringue collapsed as it came out of the oven and the lemon filling was a bit too sharp for me. This time around, I am more experienced with meringue, and decided to go with an italian meringue and a mini blow torch, instead of putting it in the oven. I also used a lemon curd filling that I’ve used in my lemon curd macarons which is tried and tested and delicious. Finally, the twist that I put on it is the homemade blackberry jam that went sandwiched in between the lemon filling and meringue. I was planning on a sweet shortcrust pastry for the crust, but since my parents are gluten-free, I decided on a simple almond flour crust. 

First, I started by making the blackberry jam. It was surprisingly easier than I thought it would be (which means more jam making in my future!). It just had to get a bit mashed up in the pot with some sugar and cornstarch to thicken it. It had to cook, until I felt it thickening, then I took it off the heat and let it cool. 

While that was cooling, I started on the lemon curd filling. I had to quadruple my usual recipe to get enough to fill my pie. It consists of lemon zest, lemon juice, confectioner’s sugar, and egg yolks. I combined all ingredients in a bowl that was sitting in simmering water, and then constantly mixed for about 10 minutes until I felt it thickening. Then the lemon curd came off the heat, and I mixed in butter and then left that to cool.

Up next, was the crust. I whipped up a simple crust of my own creation. I put almond flour, brown sugar, and some butter in a bowl and smushed it together. Then I added some vanilla, salt, and an egg and mixed until it was all combined. I greased my pie dish and molded the crust into it and then baked it. Then that had to cool. 

I decided to wait until the next day to make my meringue and assemble the pie, so everything else would be nice and cold. So the next day, I made my meringue when I got home from work. I made an italian meringue which requires a heated sugar syrup to be poured into the egg whites while they’re beating which cooks the egg whites. Then I continued to beat the meringue until it was completely cool. 

The only hiccup I had this time is my meringue didn’t get as puffy as it usually gets and it barely got stiff peaks. It worked just fine for the pie, but I’m thinking the egg white either had a little yolk in it or I didn’t measure enough egg whites. I had about a dozen eggs worth of whites in a tupperware leftover from when I made the lemon curd, so I just spooned out an estimated amount into my stand mixer, which possibly wasn’t enough. 

 

Now my crust, lemon curd, blackberry jam, and meringue were all ready. I took it all out, with my mini blow torch, and some blackberries I saved for presentation. All the lemon curd went into the pie first. Then an even layer of blackberry jam. Next, I put the blackberries along the outside rim and scooped all the meringue into the middle. Last, but not least, I used my mini blow torch on the meringue to give it a toasted look. If you’d like to try this yummy pie yourself, I laid out the recipe below.

 

Ingredients:

• 1 package blackberries

Blackberry Jam

• 4 c. blackberries
• 1/2 c. sugar
• 3 tbsp. cornstarch
• 1/2 tsp. lemon juice

Lemon Curd

• 12 egg yolks
• 2 c. confectioner’s sugar
• 1 c. lemon juice
• 2 tbsp. lemon zest
• 2 c. butter. diced

Almond Flour Pie Crust

• 2 c. almond flour
• 1/4 c. brown sugar
• 1/2 tsp. salt
• 1 tsp. vanilla
• 2 tbsp. butter, diced
• 1 egg

Italian Meringue 

• 3 egg whites
• 1 c. sugar
• 1/3 c. water
• 1 tbsp. corn syrup
• pinch of salt

Directions:

1. First make the blackberry jam. Combine blackberries and sugar in a small pot. Smash with a potato smasher. Take some of the liquid out of the pot into a bowl and spoon cornstarch into small bowl. Mix until its incorporated and then add into pot. Let jam come to a simmer over medium heat while mixing every once in a while. Continue to cook until it thickens, it should take about 10-15 minutes. Once it does, take off heat and let cool, add lemon juice. 
2. Using a double boiler or make shift double boiler like mine, combine lemon juice, lemon zest, confectioner’s sugar, and egg yolks in top bowl and stir constantly over simmering water until it starts to thicken. It should take about 10-15 minutes. Take off heat and stir in butter until it melts. Put siran wrap right on top so a skin doesn’t form and let cool.
3. In a medium sized bowl, combine almond flour, sugar, salt, and cubed butter and smush together. Add vanilla and egg and mix until combined. Mold onto greased pie dish and bake at 400°F for 10-12 minutes, or until golden brown. Let cool.
4. Put egg whites in stand mixer. Combine sugar, water, corn syrup and a pinch of salt in skillet over medium-low heat. Bring to a temperature of 238°F. Turn stand mixer on high and start beating egg whites. Once sugar reaches 242°F, and egg whites have soft peaks, slowly pour sugar syrup into egg whites. Continue to beat for about 5 minutes until the bowl feels cool. 
5. Once everything is cooled, scoop lemon curd into pie dish and even out. Then scoop blackberry jam onto lemon curd in an even layer. Make it as thick or thin as you wish. Use the package of blackberries to line the edge of the pie. Then scoop meringue on top. Use a mini blow torch so the top is a golden brown and the all the edges are toasted to prevent the meringue from sliding off. Enjoy! 

 

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