KŪMARA & MANGO CREAM PIE

SERVES 15 / PREPARATION 60 MINUTES PLUS OVERNIGHT SETTING / COOKING 40 MINUTES

This is a dense, nutty kūmara pie with a crumbly base, mango custard and a creamy, custardy meringue topping. I like this pie because it uses kūmara, a key vegetable here in Aotearoa, and it's something that my New Zealand friends can relate to and love.

BASE

125g butter

⅓ cup sugar

1 egg, beaten

3 cups gluten-free flour 1 teaspoon baking powder 3 tablespoons cornflour a pinch of salt

Heat the oven to 170℃ fan bake. Cream the butter and sugar until light and creamy, about 7 minutes. Gradually add the egg. Gently fold in the dry ingredients – it will appear very crumbly but soft to work with. Press into a 25cm pie dish and chill for at least 15 minutes. Blind bake for 15 minutes at 170℃ fan bake, then reduce the heat to 160℃ fan bake and bake for another 10 minutes.

NOTE This amount makes more than you need for one pie but it will keep in the freezer for 3 months.

KŪMARA FILLING

1 small kūmara, peeled 1 cup coconut milk a pinch of salt

Cut the kūmara into small pieces and boil in water until soft. Drain off the water, add the coconut milk and a pinch of salt and bring to the boil. Take off the heat and mash immediately while hot. Set aside in a warm area.

MANGO CUSTARD FILLING 1 cup frozen mango pieces ¼ cup sugar

1 cup milk

¼ cup custard powder

Cover the mango with water and bring to the boil. Add the sugar and simmer for 15 minutes. Use a stick blender to blitz to a purée. Combine the milk and custard powder, add to the mango purée in the pot and stir regularly on a low heat until it thickens. Set aside.

CREAM CUSTARD TOPPING

1 cup cream

1 cup condensed milk

4 egg yolks (save the egg whites for the meringue) juice and zest of 1 lemon

Put all the ingredients in a bowl and stir until the yolks are broken down. Set aside.

MERINGUE TOPPING 4 egg whites

½ cup caster sugar

In a clean, dry bowl, whisk the egg whites with a beater until doubled in size. Add the sugar gradually, beating until soft stiff peaks are formed.

To assemble, spread the kūmara evenly across the pie base. Top with mango custard and then evenly spread the cream custard filling on the top of the mango. Gently add the meringue mix and, use a fork to fold the meringue through the cream mix. Bake for 40 minutes at 160℃ fan bake. Allow to set overnight before cutting into portions.