Blackberry Meringue Bars
 
Prep time
Cook time
Total time
 
These pretty layered Blackberry Meringue Bars feature a brilliantly purple blackberry curd nestled between buttery almond shortbread base and a pillowy meringue topping. They take a little bit of effort to prepare, but trust me... they're well worth the hassle!
Serves: 12
Ingredients
Crust:
  • ¾ cups all-purpose flour
  • ¼ cup ground almonds
  • 3 tbsp icing sugar
  • ¼ tsp kosher salt
  • ½ cup butter, cut into small cubes
  • 1 tsp water
  • ½ tsp almond extract
Filling:
  • 2 cups fresh blackberries
  • 1 cup sugar, divided
  • 2 tbsp lemon juice
  • 3 eggs
  • 1 tbsp cornstarch
Meringue:
  • 2 egg whites
  • ½ cup sugar
Instructions
  1. Preheat oven to 350F. Line a 9x9 square baking pan with parchment.
Prepare the Crust:
  1. In the bowl of a food processor, combine the flour, ground almonds, icing sugar and salt. Add the butter, and pulse until the mixture looks coarse and sandy. Add the ice water and almond extract, and pulse again until a loose, crumbly dough starts to form. Press the dough into the bottom of the prepared pan in an even layer.
  2. Bake in preheated oven for 20 minutes, or until golden brown and firm. Set on a wire rack to cool for 15 minutes.
Make the Filling:
  1. While the crust is baking, combine the blackberries with lemon juice and ¼ cup sugar in a small saucepan set over medium-high heat. Bring to a simmer and cook for 5-7 minutes or until the berries are soft. Set aside to cool for 10 minutes.
  2. Using an immersion blender (or a clean food processor), puree the berries until smooth. Using a fine mesh sieve set over a medium-sized mixing bowl, strain puree. Discard the solids.
  3. Measure out ¾ cup of puree, and transfer the remainder, if you have any, to an airtight container for another use. (I like to stir a spoonful of this puree into soda water for a fruity, fizzy refresher.)
  4. Add the eggs, cornstarch and remaining ¾ cup sugar to the blackberry juice, and whisk until smooth. Pour onto the cooled crust. Bake for 20-25 minutes, or until the curd is mostly set (it's okay if it's still a teensy bit jiggly in the middle).
  5. Remove from the oven and reduce the heat to 325F.
Make the Meringue:
  1. While the curd is baking, beat together the egg whites with an electric mixer on medium-high speed. Beat until soft peaks, then gradually sprinkle in the ½ cup sugar and continue beating until you have stiff peaks.
  2. Spread the meringue onto the still-hot filling in an even layer, making sure to spread all the way to the edges of the pan. Using the back of a spoon, swirl the top of the meringue. Bake for 15-20 minutes, or until the meringue is set and lightly browned on top. (If you prefer a more browned meringue, you can run the broiler for a minute or two to finish browning the top.)
  3. Let cool completely on a wire rack, then cut into bars and serve. These are best eaten the day they're made, but leftovers will keep for a day in an airtight container in the fridge.
Recipe by Crumb: A Food Blog at https://www.crumbblog.com/blackberry-meringue-bars/