Grape Meringue Placek

This cake is a cross between my grape meringue cake and placek(flat cake) with rhubarb and meringue. 

There are two parts to this cake

• Short pastry base – baked and cooled
• Grapes & Meringue topping.

Short pastry base

The base of this is made made from the recipe for  Ciasto kruche 1 – using raw egg yolks found in a previous post  – Pastry – ciasto kruche & półkruche.  

However as the topping is sweet, I used less sugar in the pastry – you might be able to omit all the sugar – I have not tried this.

Ingredients – Base

• 300g plain flour
• 200g butter – chilled
• 50g icing sugar
• 4 egg yokes
• pinch of salt

Method – Base

• Add a pinch of salt to the flour.
• Use a knife to cut the chilled butter into small pieces into the flour and then use your fingers to make the mixture like breadcrumbs.
• Add the icing sugar and mix this together.
• Add the yolks and gently mix them in
• Bring it all together into a dough – try and handle the pastry as little as possible.
• Form the dough into a rough rectangle.
• Wrap the dough in grease proof paper and chill it in the fridge for about 30 minutes.
• Preheat the oven to GM 6 – 200°C.
• Grease and line a 33 x 23 cm baking tin – use one long piece for sides and base – helps to take it out. 
• Use a rolling pin to flatten the dough a little
• Press the dough into the tin – filling it up all the sides.
• Prick the surface with a fork.
• Bake for 20 – 25 minutes till golden.
• Leave to cool.

Ingredients – Meringue

• 4 egg whites
• 200g granulated sugar
• 2 sponge fingers  – crushed
• *
• 300g seedless green grapes

Method – Meringue

• Preheat the oven to GM 2 -150°C.
• Place the whites into a grease free bowl.
• Whisk till stiff.
• Add granulated sugar and whisk again till stiff.
• Fold in the crushed sponge fingers.
• *
• Place 1/3 of the meringue over the cake base.
• Place the grapes over the meringue.
• Cover the grapes with the rest of the meringue
• Put into the oven for 50 – 60 minutes.
• Leave to cool completely in the tin.
• Cut the cake into squares when cool to serve.

Served here on  Royal Doulton – Sonnet  1971-1998