Gooseberry Meringue Pie

It's been a while since I blogged about something sweet (a very concious effort, I can assure you!) but after all, it's Saturday! And besides, I need to tell you about this lovely pie before it's too late and none of you can find gooseberries anymore. In fact, it might already be a bit late - but hopefully some of you have some, or at least some in the freezer. Frozen works just as well here.

The idea comes from a BBC Good Food recipe, and it made total sense to me. After all, gooseberries are tart and sweet, much like lemon, and treating them like lemons is not a very far stretch.

The pie crust will make too much for what you need, so just freeze any leftovers and use them for another day. And be aware that this is a fairly sweet pie, so serve it with strong coffee, in small slices.

Gooseberry Meringue Pie
Serves 6-8

Pie crust:
100 g butter
100 g sugar
20 ml milk
1 egg
200 g flour

Run butter, sugar, milk and egg in a food processor. Add the flour and run until the dough starts to form a ball. Let the dough rest in the fridge for at least an hour before rolling it out.

Filling:
50 g butter
100 g demerara or muscovado sugar
500 g gooseberries

Meringue topping:
2 egg whites
100 g sugar
1 tsp cornstarch

Roll out the pastry and line a greased pie dish. Use pie weights if you have them, and blind bake at 180°C (160° if using a convection oven) for 15-20 minutes, or until the pie shell turns lightly golden.

For the filling, mix butter and sugar in a large pot. When the sugar has dissolved, add the gooseberries and cook for a few minutes until they start to burst. Stir well and let it cool.

Beat the eggwhites for the meringue until fluffy. Add the sugar a spoonful at a time, and beat until stiff and glossy. Add the cornstarch.

Pour the filling into the pie shell and spread the meringue on top. Bake at 140°C (120°C with a convection oven) for about 40 minutes.

Recipe in Swedish:
Krusbärsmarängpaj