My friend Helen left the windswept Tinos and settled two years now, in another sacred place, Meteora.
There, in the shadow of the monasteries and unique rocks protected as a unique natural phenomenon by Unesco, she created inside the beautiful Antoniadis hotel at the back street side, a beautiful place “To Aroma tis Mentas” –“The mint flavor” with amazing decor where you feel like home. Helen is a warmhearted person and makes by herself the sweets she serves and that is why they are unique as the lemonades from secret recipes of her Mom. I liked also very much and the coffee and snacks. You should go there … however her recipe of our lemon pies she «trusted” to us and we greatly appreciate it.
Lemon pie
By Helen of “Aroma Mentas” Kalambaka Antoniadis hotel
Ingredients
For the tart
180 gr flour
60 gr brown sugar
Zest of one lemon with no wax
80 gr butter
1 egg yolk
Cool water
For the cream
½ cup fresh lemon juice
200 gr granulated sugar
1 ½ cups water
80 gr corn flour
2 lemon zest
60 gr butter
3 egg yolks
For meringue
4 egg whites
120 gr sugar
How to prepare
For the tart
Sieve the flour and pour into a large bowl with the sugar and zest of lemon.
Stir and add the butter.
Knead the mixture with your hands and we rub the mixture thin as fine crumbs.
In a deep dish, beat the yolk and pour it in the mixture.
Add a little cold water to the dough and knead again.
The dough is ready when it unstacks from our hands.
You may need to add a little more flour.
Cover the bowl and refrigerate to “rest” the dough at least 45 minutes.
Pour flour on the counter and spread the dough with the rolling pin.
With a brush pass with butter the tart pan and flour it lightly.
Spread the dough in the tart pan, covering the entire surface and walls.
With a fork open holes in the base of the tart to bake evenly.
Bake in a well preheated oven at 180 °C for 15-20 minutes until golden brown.
Remove the tart from the oven and let cool.
For the cream
In a saucepan pour the water with the sugar and zest of lemon.
Mix with a wooden spoon constantly, until the sugar dissolves.
Heat the syrup.
Dissolve in a glass of lemon juice the corn flour.
Once foamed initially add the foam in the pot and then add the rest and juice.
Stir and turn down the temperature of the fire.
Allow to heat until the cream is thick.
Beat the egg yolks in a bowl with the butter and we add them slowly to the mixture.
Mix well with a spatula and remove from the heat.
In the tart we baked, spread the lemon cream and with the spatula pass the surface to become uniform.
For the meringue
In the mixer bowl, beat the egg whites with a whisk until the meringue is soft. We do not want to be tight.
Add the sugar and whisk until the meringue becomes tight and smooth.
How to combine
Over the lemon cream spread the meringue.
Preheat the oven grill to 180 °C and leave it for a few minutes until our meringue gets a nice golden color controlling it to avoid burning.
If we have a torch we pass with it the meringue but it needs attention and the result is wonderful in seconds.
It is a delight…
