Orange Meringue Pie

A recipe by Nadiya Bakes

Sweet Orange

Our 11th recipe from our first cookbook; Nadiya Bakes is Orange Lemongrass Meringue Pie on page 82.
I choose to use blood oranges, I love the colour and the sweetness of this variety. I omitted the lemongrass, just because it was difficult to find, but it would be a nice pairing.

Cornflake Crust

Really make sure you grind cornflakes to a fine crumb, my crust did not hold together very well
If you want a truly amazing cornflake crust see below link from Momokuku Milk Bar

https://www.foodandwine.com/recipes/cornflake-crunch

Making Curd

This not how I was instructed in school to make curd. I followed her recipe just to see results and I wish I hadn’t. My curd did not set properly, it was runny even after more then 24hrs in fridge. Also for my taste there was not enough curd for a 9” pie pan.
PS I have NEVER seen a curd recipe that doesn’t include butter…
Below is my suggestion for curd:

1 tablespoon finely-grated blood orange zest
1 cup/248ml strained blood orange juice
¼ cup/59ml strained lemon juice
1 cup /200g granulated sugar
⅛ teaspoon fine sea salt
4 large eggs
2 egg yolks

Place the butter and blood orange zest in a heatproof bowl. Place a mesh strainer over the bowl and set aside.
In a medium, heavy-bottomed saucepan, whisk together the sugar, salt, eggs, and egg yolks to combine. Gradually whisk in the blood orange juice and lemon juice until combined.
Place the pot over medium-low heat and cook, stirring constantly with a heatproof silicone spatula, until the mixture thickens slightly and reaches 160-165ºF on an instant-read thermometer, 5–10 minutes. As you stir, be sure to scrape the entire bottom and corners of the pan, so that the mixture heats as evenly as possible. It will start out thick and cloudy from the undissolved sugar, then will turn thin and translucent, and finally begin to thicken and turn cloudy again as the eggs cook. Lower the heat to very low as it gets closer to being done. If the mixture starts to curdle or bubble, immediately remove it from the heat and proceed to the next step.
Immediately pour the curd through the strainer and into the bowl of butter to stop the cooking. Whisk to incorporate the butter and orange zest, making sure there are no clumps of orange zest.

The exact time will depend on the temperature of your stove, about 5 to 10 minutes. Make sure the curd never boils, but a very gentle simmer is fine.
To know the orange curd is cooked: either check its temperature has reached per above(if you have a food thermometer) or check its consistency with a spoon. Dip the back of the spoon in the curd and draw a line with your finger. Tip the spoon down and check if the line remains clear. If some liquid drips over the line, it needs more time. If it stays clear, it's ready.

Meringue Topping

Italian meringue is made by drizzling 240-degree Fahrenheit sugar syrup into whites that have already been whipped to hold firm peaks. Whipping continues until the meringue is fully voluminous, satiny, stiff, and cool.