Pineapple Curd Meringue Cupcakes
No ordinary cupcakes, these feature a bright and tangy pineapple curd filling topped with Italian Meringue. The individual serves make these perfect for a party.
How long will it take?
1 ¼ hours plus cooling time
What’s the serving size?
Makes 12 cupcakes
What do I need?
For the Pineapple Curd
- 2 large free range eggs
- 2 large free range egg yolks
- 120 mL tinned pineapple juice
- ½ cup caster sugar
- 2 tbs cornflour
- 2 tbsp unsalted butter, cut into pieces
For the Cupcakes
- 1 ½ cups self-raising flour, sifted
- ¾ cup caster sugar
- 125 g unsalted butter, softened
- 2 free range eggs
- 1/3 cup milk
- 2 tsp vanilla extract
For the Italian Meringue
- 2 tbsp water
- ¼ tsp cream of tartar
- 1 cup caster sugar
- 2 egg whites, at room temperature
How do I make it?
To make the Pineapple Curd
- Whisk eggs, egg yolks, pineapple juice, caster sugar and cornflour together in a bowl, making sure that the cornflour is fully dissolved.
- Pour mixture into a medium saucepan and cook over
- medium-low heat, stirring constantly until thickened, about 8 minutes. Remove from heat and stir in butter.
- Transfer to a bowl and cover with clingfilm, ensuring that the clingfilm touches the top of the curd to prevent a skin from forming.
- Refrigerate for at least 2 hours before using.
To make the Cupcakes
- Preheat oven to 160C.
- Line 12 x ½ cup capacity muffin tins with patty cases.
- Add flour, sugar, butter, eggs, milk and vanilla to the bowl of a stand mixer and beat on medium speed for 5 minutes or until pale and smooth.
- Divide cupcake mixture between prepared patty cases and cook for 20-25 minutes or until a skewer inserted comes out clean. Remove from oven and set aside to cool.
- When cupcakes have cooled completely, make a hole in the top of each cupcake with a teaspoon and remove about one-third of the cupcake. Spoon pineapple curd into the hole.
To make the Italian Meringue
- Bring water, cream of tartar and half the sugar to the boil in a small saucepan over high heat, stirring constantly. When it comes to the boil reduce heat to medium and cook for 4 minutes.
- Place egg whites in the bowl of an electric mixer and whisk on high until stiff peaks form. Continue beating and slowly add the remaining sugar, 1 tbsp at a time, whisking for 20 seconds between additions. When all the sugar has been added, gradually add the hot sugar mixture in a steady stream and whisk for a further 5 minutes. The meringue should be thick and glossy.
- Fill a piping bag with the Italian meringue and pipe over the top of the pineapple curd. Use a kitchen blowtorch to lightly toast the meringue until it is golden brown.
