By Sheena Rawcliffe
THIS DESSERT originated in America and is a rich cousin to Lemon Meringue Pie.
Ingredients:
• Your chosen pastry case.
• 10-12 limes – this will depend a little on
their size.
• 400 ml condensed milk.
• 5 XL eggs.
• 50g butter – preferably unsalted, but ei-
ther works.
• 5 tbsp double cream.
Note: Limes benefit greatly from being at room temperature or warmed slightly in a microwave, when you will get a better yield of juice.
Method:
You will need a pastry tin (approx. 25cm diameter) and this should be lined with your chosen pastry – you can use normal short-crust pastry or sweet short-crust. For me, the normal version works better, as the mixture is quite sweet though tangy and the plainness of the short-crust sets it off well.
Firstly, finely grate the rind and then remove the juice from the fruit.
I like to spread some of the rind on the base of the pastry case before placing a circle of greaseproof paper and some baking beans into the tin. The blind baking helps to intensify the flavour of the lime rind.
Bake the pastry case ‘blind’ in an oven preheated to 170ºC for approx. 15 minutes.
Cool the pastry case.
Separate the yolks and whites of the eggs. The whites can be used for meringues (they can be frozen until you need them).
In a bowl or large jug, mix together the condensed milk, most of the remaining lime rind, all the juice and the softened butter. Mix in the egg yolks and the cream.
Pour the mixture carefully into the cool pastry case and sprinkle the remaining lime rind over the top.
Bake for approx. 40 minutes in an oven at 150ºC until just set.
Remove from oven, allow to cool and serve with (ideally) crème fraîche or any other cream to suit your taste. For citrus fanatics, lightly whip some cream and fold in a mixture of lime and lemon zest.
This is the type of dessert which can be made the day before it is needed and served in place of Christmas pudding for a lighter tangy end to the Christmas meal. But don’t wait until then to try it!
