South African Style Lemon Meringue Pie

Meri Williams's Note:

My own variation on the very popular South African style of Lemon Meringue Pie. Has a biscuit base, delicious tart lemon filling and fluffy meringue. I worked out the recipe based on others I'd found and trying to approximate the pie I remembered from my childhood! Can be made either as two big pies (shallow 20cm, or in theory one deep pie with lots of meringue!) or a series of smaller ones in muffin or cupcake cases.

• Total Time: 35 mins
• Prep Time: 20 mins
• Cook Time: 15 mins

Ingredients:

Serves: 16

Yield: 2.0 pies (o ...

• 1 (200 g) package digestive biscuits
• 75 g unsalted butter
• 1 (397 g) can condensed milk
• 3 lemons
• 3 eggs
• 65 g caster sugar

Directions:

1. Crush the digestive biscuits (putting them in a freezer bag and attacking them with a rolling pin works well).
2. Melt the butter and add it to the crumbs. The mix should pack well.
3. Pack it down to less than 1cm thick in the base of either a large tin or dish, or in cupcake or muffin cases in a muffin or cupcake tin.
4. Preheat the oven to 150 degrees Celsius
5. Separate the eggs.
6. Beat the yolks with the juice of the 3 lemons and the zest of one of the lemons, until white and frothy.
7. Add the can of condensed milk and beat until fully integrated and "gloopy".
8. Spoon a layer of lemon mix atop the biscuit base(s).
9. Beat the egg whites until soft peaks form, then slowly add caster sugar. When ready, the meringue should be at the firm peak stage and lovely and glossy.
10. Spoon meringue over the lemon mixture.
11. Bake for 15 mins at 150 degrees C or until the meringue is gold on top.