Ultimate Cook Book_ 900 New Recipes, Thousands of Ideas - Bruce Weinstein [398]
A meringue should be placed directly over a hot filling. This way, the meringue will cook from both directions, top and bottom. If placed on a cold filling, the meringue will actually cook only from the top down and will end up undercooked—which will result in a layer of viscous liquid forming between the filling and the meringue.
Meringues should also be sealed to the crust. Once you’ve dolloped all of the beaten egg white mixture onto the top of the pie, spread it gently to the edge, and then dab and press it into place against the crust so that it will adhere to the crust and not shrink back. Make sure there are no gaps, tears, or weak spots.
Despite anyone’s best intentions, any meringue will weep—that is, form tiny brown drops of sticky liquid on its surface. However, you can cut down on the weeping by adding cornstarch, which absorbs some of the natural moisture (thus, we recommend confectioners’ sugar, which contains cornstarch).
Finally, a meringue will shrink over time as the protein chains collapse. You can lessen this natural process by (1) cooling the pie to room temperature before placing it in the refrigerator and (2) not overcooking the meringue, thereby tightening the proteins and squeezing out necessary moisture.
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Lemon Meringue Pie
To get the most juice from lemons, have them at room temperature and roll them along the kitchen counter, pressing down lightly, before slicing and juicing. Makes one 9-inch pie
3 large egg yolks, at room temperature
½ teaspoon salt
1¾ cups water
1½ cups granulated sugar
¾ cup lemon juice
6 tablespoons cornstarch
2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
2 teaspoons finely grated lemon zest
1 tablespoon unsalted butter
1 recipe Short Crust or ButterCrust, lined into a 9-inch pie plate and prebaked (for instructions on prebaking,)
6 large egg whites, at room temperature
¼ teaspoon cream of tartar
¾ cup confectioners’ sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
Position the rack in the center of the oven and preheat the oven to 425°F. Whisk the egg yolks and salt in a large bowl until smooth; set aside
Whisk the water, granulated sugar, lemon juice, cornstarch, flour, and lemon zest in a large saucepan until the sugar, cornstarch, and flour dissolve.
Set over medium heat and cook, whisking constantly, until thickened and just beginning to bubble (just 2 or 3 bubbles), about 4 minutes. Remove from the heat.
Whisk about half this lemon mixture into the yolks in a thin, steady stream; then whisk this combined mixture back into the lemon mixture in the saucepan.
Set the pan over low heat (if you’re using an electric stove, place the pan on a second, unused burner just now turned to low) and cook, whisking constantly, until thickened and just barely bubbling, about 2 minutes. Strain through a fine-mesh sieve into the prebaked crust.
Beat the egg whites and cream of tartar in a large bowl with an electric mixer at high speed until you can make foamy, soft, droopy peaks on the tip of a rubber spatula.
Beating all the while, add the confectioners’ sugar in 1-tablespoon increments. Scrape down the sides of the bowl and beat in the vanilla. Continue beating until you can form silky, glossy, and moderately firm peaks on the spatula’s tip.
Spoon the meringue onto the top of the still-warm pie, spreading it gently to the edge and gently pressing it against the crust so that it will seal tightly.
Bake until the meringue is lightly browned, about 8 minutes.
To cool: Set on a wire rack at least 30 minutes, then refrigerate at least 1 hour before slicing.
To store: Once completely cooled, the pie can be loosely covered in plastic wrap and kept in the refrigerator for up to 3 days.
Lime Meringue Pie: Substitute lime juice for the lemon juice and finely grated lime zest for the lemon zest. For a greener color, stir in 3 drops of green food coloring before straining the filling.
Orange Meringue Pie: Substitute frozen orange juice concentrate, thawed, for the lemon juice and grated orange zest for the lemon zest.
Burnt Sugar Meringue