Welcome to our first recipe in our new series, Cooking with Kids! These are really easy and delicious treats that the kids will love. A big thanks to Ramona Farrelly & Irish Country Living magazine for these images.

Meringue Swirls with Lemon Curd and Cream

Ingredients:

2 egg whites

A pinch of salt

150g of caster sugar

Red food colouring

¼ tsp of vanilla extract

To Serve:

Lemon Curd (see below) & Whipped Cream

Method:

1. Pre heat the oven to 140˚C and line a baking tray with baking paper
2. Put the egg whites into a large spotlessly clean mixing bowl with the pinch of salt
3. Whisk until soft peaks form then gradually add the caster sugar until stiff peaks form
4. Add in the vanilla extract
5. Using a large spoon dollop the meringues onto the baking sheet leaving space between them
6. Place the food colouring in the bowl and dip a skewer into it
7. Swirl the skewer into the meringues to give a ripple effect
8. Bake for 30 minutes or until the base of the meringues is hard and then switch of the oven
9. Leave to cool in the oven if possible
10. Mix some whipped cream with the lemon curd and serve with the meringues

For the lemon curd

1 egg

1 egg yolk

50g (2oz) butter

90g (3oz) caster sugar

Finely grated zest and juice of 2 lemons

To make the lemon curd:

In a bowl, whisk together the egg & the egg yolk.

Melt the butter in a saucepan over a very low heat.

Add the caster sugar, grated zest, & juice, & then the beaten eggs.

Stir carefully with a wooden spoon, over a very gentle heat until the mixture thickens.

This should take about  7-10 minutes. If the heat is too high, the egg will scramble.

The curd is ready when the mixture is thick enough to coat the back of the wooden spoon & leave a definite mark when you push your finger through it.

Remove from the heat and allow to cool.