LEMON CURD TART WITH POACHED QUINCE, MERINGUE AND CHOCOLATE SOIL

SERVES 8

“The poached quince in this recipe is so versatile. Serve it with ice-cream drizzled with a little syrup, use on cheese boards or even serve with your Sunday roast pork.” You’ll need a 24cm fluted tart tin with removable base, a sugar thermometer, a piping bag fitted with a 1cm round nozzle and a kitchen blowtorch.

250ml Pedro Ximénez (dark, sticky

sherry, from bottle shops) 250g caster sugar

Large strips of zest and juice

of 2 lemons

3 cinnamon sticks

2 whole cloves

2 star anise

1 tsp coriander seeds

2 large quince

1 x 375g frozen sheet shortcrust

pastry, thawed

LEMON CURD

4 whole eggs

4 yolks (reserve whites for meringue) 185g caster sugar

150ml lemon juice (you’ll need

3-4 lemons)

100g cold unsalted butter, chopped

MERINGUE

250g caster sugar

4 large egg whites, at room

temperature (use whites from curd)

WHITE CHOCOLATE SOIL

100g caster sugar

70g white chocolate, chopped

To poach the quince, place Pedro Ximénez, sugar, zest and juice, cinnamon, cloves, star anise and coriander in a medium saucepan with 3 cups (750ml) water over low heat, stirring to dissolve the sugar. Peel quince, cut into quarters and remove the core. Add to the poaching liquid and cover with a circle of baking paper. Simmer for 2-3 hours (depending on the ripeness of the fruit) until soft and the flesh is a deep red colour. Transfer quince to a plate with a slotted spoon. Boil liquid for 6-8 minutes or until reduced to a syrup. Strain into a jug and set aside to cool (see notes at right).

Preheat oven to 200°C/180°C fan-forced and place a baking tray in the oven to preheat. Line a 24cm fluted tart tin with removable base with the pastry, cutting and pasting the sheet to fit. Prick base with a fork. Chill for 20 minutes.

Line tart with baking paper and fill with baking weights or rice. Bake for 25 minutes.

Remove weights and paper and bake for a further 20 minutes or until golden brown. Cool on a wire rack.

For the lemon curd, place whole eggs and egg yolks in a large saucepan and whisk until smooth. Add sugar and lemon juice and whisk until combined. Place over medium heat and cook, stirring with a spatula, for 7-8 minutes until curd starts to form on bottom of pan and mixture starts to thicken. Reduce heat to low and slowly incorporate butter into mixture, stirring, until all butter is added and mixture is thick and glossy. Strain into a shallow baking dish. Cover surface with plastic wrap and poke a few holes with a skewer. Set aside to cool, then refrigerate until ready to use.

For the meringue, stir caster sugar and

1/4 cup (60ml) water in a large saucepan over medium heat, brushing sides of pot with a wet pastry brush so sugar doesn’t burn. Cook until sugar reaches 130°C on a sugar thermometer (just before it starts to colour, steam will stop and bubbles will start to subside). Meanwhile place egg whites in a stand mixer fitted with the whisk attachment and whisk to soft peaks. With motor running and once sugar syrup reaches the desired temperature, slowly add hot sugar to egg whites in a thin, steady stream and whisk on high speed for 10 minutes or until the mixture has cooled, quadrupled in volume and is white, thick and glossy. Place mixture into a piping bag fitted with a 1cm round nozzle and set aside in the fridge until required.

To make chocolate soil, stir sugar and 2 tbs water in a medium saucepan. Place over high heat and cook, without stirring, for 5 minutes or until sugar reaches 130°C. Remove from heat, add white chocolate and immediately stir with a wooden spoon until chocolate and sugar mixture is well combined and forms a soil-like consistency. Transfer to a tray and set aside to cool.

Fill tart with cooled curd and level with a spatula. Pipe mounds of soft meringue on and around the tart, then torch with a blowtorch. Slice poached quince and place on top of the curd. Spoon some quince syrup over, then sprinkle half the chocolate soil around the meringue. Serve with the remaining soil alongside.