Elien Lewis is a big fan of Lodge Cast Iron for her bread making endeavours which she kindly shares on her website and via social media. Elien has created this beautiful and delicious dessert for us in our classic 26cm skillet.

This zesty Lemon Meringue Pie makes a show stopping dessert when baked in the 26cm Lodge Cast Iron skillet. The high sides of the skillet makes a deep pie which is filled with plenty of tangy lemon curd and marshmallowy meringue. This lemon meringue pie is best eaten on the day it is made, however the pastry dough can be made a day ahead and kept in the refrigerator until needed.

INGREDIENTS:

Pastry

• 1 ½ cups (225g) plain flour
• ¼ cup (30g) icing sugar
• ¼ tsp salt
• 115g unsalted butter, cold
• 1 large egg

Lemon Curd

• 1 cup (220g) caster sugar
• ¾ cup (180 ml) lemon juice
• 2 Tbsp lemon zest
• ¼ tsp salt
• 1 ¼ cup (315ml) water
• 5 Tbsp cornflour
• 5 large egg yolks (save the whites for meringue)
• 50g unsalted butter

Meringue

• 1 cup (220g) caster sugar
• 5 large egg whites

METHOD:

1. In a large bowl add the flour, sugar and salt. Stir together. Chop the cold butter into small cubes and add the cubes in. Use a pastry cutter or your fingers to further cut or rub the butter into the flour, until it resembles coarse bread crumbs. If at any point the butter begins to melt, place the bowl in the fridge or freezer to cool it down.
2. Lightly whisk the egg. Make a well in the middle of the flour mixture and add in the egg. Use a fork to combine it into a stiff dough. If it is too dry and crumbly add in ½ Tbsp ice cold water as needed. The end dough should hold together but it shouldn’t be wet or sticky. *
3. Tip the dough onto a lightly floured bench and gently form it into a disc. Don’t over knead it. Place the dough into an airtight container and chill it in the fridge for a minimum of ½ an hour until cold.
4. Once chilled, roll the dough out on a lightly floured bench into a 32cm circle. Dust your rolling pin with flour and roll the pastry around it. Unroll the pastry over a 26cm Lodge Cast Iron skillet and ease it gently into the pan, pressing it up the sides.
5. Cut off any excess dough at the top and use the excess to patch up any tears in the dough. Use a fork to prick the pastry case bottom. Chill the dough in the fridge again while preheating the oven.
6. Preheat the oven to 170°C fan bake or 190°C regular oven.
7. Lay a sheet of baking paper on top of the pastry. Add baking weights, dried rice or dried beans to hold it down. Bake the pastry for 15 minutes. Remove it from the oven and remove the parchment paper and baking weights. Bake the pastry for a further 10 minutes until golden brown and baked through. While the pastry is baking, begin the lemon curd.
8. In a saucepan over medium heat, add the sugar, lemon juice, lemon zest, salt, and 1 cup of water. Heat the mixture and keep stirring until the sugar has dissolved.
9. In a bowl, add the remaining ¼ cup of water and the cornflour and mix into a thick slurry. Whisk the slurry and the egg yolks into the hot mixture over the heat. Keep whisking it and bring it to a boil. Let it boil for a full minute, whisking constantly until it thicken. Take it off the heat and whisk through the butter.
10. Pour the curd into the baked pastry case and set it aside. Lower the oven temperature to 160°C.
11. Start the meringue. In a clean bowl, fit a whisk to an electric beater and beat the egg whites until soft peaks form. Add in the sugar, 2-3 Tbsp at a time and keep beating on medium speed until the meringue is thick and glossy and the sugar has dissolved.
12. Spoon the meringue over the curd, or fill a piping bag with the meringue and pipe it over. Either way, give the meringue dips and high peaks, this will give different textures and colour once baked.
13. Place the pie in the oven and bake for 15 - 20 minutes until the meringue is lightly browned. Remove the pie from the oven and allow it to cool right down to room temperature before serving.

*These steps (1. & 2.) can all be done in a food processor too. Combine the flour, sugar, salt and cold butter cubes in a food processor. Pulse it until it resembles coarse breadcrumbs. In a bowl, whisk the egg. Slowly drizzle the egg into the food processor and pulse until it forms a stiff dough. If it is too dry and crumbly add a splash of ice water as needed.

Feel free to post your end result and tag us @lodgenewzealand so we can see your delicious creations.