[adrotate banner=”39″]
A tangy pineapple curd is completed with a fluffy, toasted meringue for a delicious tropical treat.
By Dianna Muscari
While being cautious is most definitely a positive thing in my book, my extreme attitude when it comes to food safety sometimes causes me to miss out on some really exquisite foods. I know that folks have been eating raw or undercooked food products for centuries without any ill effects, but most of the time, I opt out of preparations that seem questionable to me. {It took me YEARS to warm up to the idea of sushi!} 
Sadly, this includes some versions of homemade aiolis, ice creams, salad dressings and eggnog. And no one should ever have to sacrifice any of those tasty treats because of paranoia.
Enter Safest Choice Eggs. They are exactly what they sound like: Eggs that are made safer to eat by removing the risk of salmonella through pasteurization.
Do you know what this means for people like me? We can finally lick the beaters because pasteurization = peace of mind. And that, my friends, is a gift like no other!
Anyway, let’s talk about these tartlets. First and foremost, please note that I don’t own mini tartlet pans. So I just lined a muffin tin with foil and made my own little molds. They’re not as pretty as the real thing, but they did the trick in serving as a good base for tangy pineapple & vanilla bean curd. I love that you can see the tiny vanilla bean specks.
I topped these babies off with a swirl of fluffy coconut-scented meringue and then popped them under the broiler for a minute until they were nice and toasty brown.
Print
An EGG For Every Occasion — Pineapple Curd Tartlets with Toasted Coconut Meringue
- Yield: 6 1x
Description
A tangy pineapple curd is completed with a fluffy, toasted, coconut meringue for a delicious tropical treat.
Ingredients
For tartlet crusts:
- 3/4 cup graham cracker crumbs {about 5 graham crackers}
- 2 teaspoons sugar
- 2 tablespoons butter, melted
For Pineapple Curd:
- 1 cup fresh pineapple chunks {or frozen, thawed}
- 2 tablespoons sugar
- 2 Safest Choice egg yolks {save the whites for the meringue!}
- 4 teaspoons corn starch
- 1 tablespoon butter
- 1/2 teaspoon vanilla bean paste {or 1 teaspoon vanilla extract}
For Meringue:
- 3 egg Safest Choice egg whites
- Pinch of cream of tartar
- Pinch of salt
- 3 tablespoons sugar
- 1/4 teaspoon coconut extract
- toasted coconut flakes for garnish (optional)
Instructions
Crust
- Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Combine all ingredients in a small bowl until the mixture resembles wet sand. Scoop about a heaping tablespoon into a muffin tin lined with foil {or mini tartlet pans if you have them}, pressing down on the crumbs until a compact crust forms.
- Bake for about 5-6 minutes or until the crusts start to become golden around the edges. Remove from oven and cool completely before removing from foil or tart pans.
Curd
- Combine pineapple, sugar, egg yolks and corn starch in a blender or food processor. Blend until smooth. Pour into a saucepan and bring to a bubble over medium heat, whisking constantly. Cook for about 2-3 minutes or until thickened {it’ll be a little runnier than pudding}.
- Remove from heat and whisk in butter and vanilla bean paste until smooth. Transfer to a small bowl covered with plastic wrap and refrigerate until ready to use.
Meringue
- In the bowl of stand mixer using the whisk attachment, beat egg whites, cream of tartar and salt until frothy.
- Once foamy, slowly add sugar and extract. Beat until stiff peaks form when the whisk is dipped into the meringue, pulled out & flipped over. {Note: This may take a while. It took a good 6 or 7 minutes for me, though it doesn’t always take that long. Just keep an eye out for the meringue to get thick, opaque white and glossy.
- When meringue is beaten to stiff peaks, transfer to a piping bag with desired tip or a zip top plastic bag. Set aside until ready to use.
To assemble
- Transfer the cooled tart crusts to a small baking pan. Fill each with a scoop of pineapple curd. Pipe a swirl of meringue on top of each tartlet.
- Turn the oven to broil {500 degrees or so} and move the rack to level second closest to the heating element. Bake tartlets for about 2-3 minutes or until the meringue is just starting to brown, keeping an eye on them. {Don’t step away! This can happen very fast!}
- Top with coconut flakes.
- Serve immediately or refrigerate until ready to serve.
Notes
Meringue tends to “weep” if it’s left in the fridge and not served within a few hours. {That means it gets a syrupy puddles.} So these are best finished off close to serving time.
- Category: Dessert
[adrotate banner=”38″]
Do you scatter toasted coconut on the top of the meringue? Or do you put in coconut essence while beating the meringue?
Hi Carrie, the recipe is supposed to include 1/4 teaspoon of coconut extract in the meringue as well. Sorry for the confusion! And toasted coconut flakes on top are optional but a great addition. Thanks!