Lemon meringue cupcakes

Lemon Meringue Cupcakes

Cupcake

2 cups cake flour

1 ½ tsp baking powder

½ tsp salt

1 stick butter room temp

1 ½ cups sugar

4 eggs

¾ cup buttermilk

½ cup lemon juice (half Meyer lemon if available)

2 Tbls zest of lemons

Mix flour, baking powder, and salt, set aside.  In a separate bowl, cream together butter andsugar for about 5 minutes.  Add eggs oneat a time beating thoroughly between each egg. Beat in flour and buttermilk alternately starting with flour and endingwith flour.  Mix in lemon juice andzest.  Bake at 350 for 15-20minutes.  Let cool completely.  Preferably overnight.  Makes 18 cupcakes

Lemon Curd

½ cup lemon juice (half Meyer lemon if available)

1 Tbls zest of lemons

1 large egg

4 large egg yolks (save the whites for the topping)

½ cup sugar

2 Tbls butter, softened

In a small bowl, combine the lemon juice and zest and sit tosoften.  In a metal mixing bowl whiskeggs, egg yolks and sugar together.  Addthe lemon juice and the zest.  Place bowlover simmering water (not touching the water) stirring constantly until mixturehas thickened like pudding 5-6 minutes. Remove bowl from heat and whisk in butter.  Strain mixture through a sieve into a bowland cover with plastic wrap directly onto the surface of the curd to prevent askin from forming.  Refrigerateovernight.

Meringue Topping

4 egg whites

1 cup sugar

¼ tsp cream of tartar

Whisk egg whites and sugar together in a metal bowl.  Place bowl over simmering water (do not letbowl touch the water) whisking constantly until you feel no sugar grains in thesauce or to a temp of 140 about 7 minutes. Remove bowl from heat and whisk on high after 3-4 minutes add cream oftartar and whisk another 5-6 minutes. 

Cupcake assembly:

Top each cupcake with lemon curd, pipe on meringue using M1tip.  Brown top of meringue using acooking torch or oven broiler (be careful burns fast).

I hope you enjoy this recipe as much as I do.