Sunday, February 05, 2006

Nectarine & Limoncello Meringue Slice Saturday 4th Feb 2006


Having a bbq tonight so last night I whipped up this slice from Allan Campion & Michele Curtis’ 2006 Seasonal Produce diary The meringue part was very easy which surprised me as I have had trouble with meringues in the past, maybe I have finally mastered them, hooray! However when it came time to sandwich the whole thing together the filling was quite runny & kept slopping over the sides. Now that it is frozen it is fine & all holding together though as you can see from the photo prob doesn’t look as good as it should! If I make this again I would prob try & make the meringues slightly concave so that I could fill them & save the mixture running out. Also because of the runniness there was only so much I could use & there is a lot of leftover filling which I have frozen, will just have to eat it later as ice cream. Will give you the recipe now & comments on the tasting to follow

Nectarine and Limoncello meringue slice

This slice is best made the day before or at least early on the day you want to serve it. The meringue doesn’t freeze completely so you get a beautiful crisp texture, with the contrast of a creamy filling.

4 egg whites
300 g caster sugar
6 nectarines
60ml (1/4 cup) Limoncello
4 eggs, separated
55g (1/2 cup) caster sugar
250g mascarpone

Preheat oven to 160c

Line 3 baking trays with baking paper. Roughly draw a 10cm x 20cm rectangle onto each.

Beat egg whites until stiff. Add caster sugar, a third at a time, and continue beating until the meringue is glossy & firm.

Divide mixture between the 3 trays, spreading mixture to reach the four corners of each rectangle. Bake in preheated oven for 30 minutes. Turn oven off and leave to cool for 30 minutes more.

Dice 2 nectarines into 1cm chunks. Marinate in Limoncello for at least 40 minutes. Beat the 4 egg yolks with the 55g caster sugar. Beat in mascarpone until smooth. Add diced nectarines & Limoncello. Beat egg whites until stiff peaks form. Whisk one spoonful through Limoncello mixture & then carefully fold remaining egg white through.

Lay 1 meringue as a base on a tray that will fit in the freezer. Spoon half the mixture on top spreading out to the corners. Add another meringue layer, the remaining mixture & then the final meringue layer. Cover loosely & freeze for at least 6 hours before serving, preferably overnight.

To serve, slice remaining 4 nectarines. Remove meringue from freezer, cut slices to suit, arrange on plate, garnish with nectarine slices.

Ok so now we have eaten the cake the verdict is delicious though a bit messy, I couldn’t seem to slice it & keep it in once piece. The meringue as promised was fantastic frozen, nice & chewy & a perfect match for the creamy frozen filling which will be very nice served as ice cream with some fresh fruit.

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