Lemon Meringue Marshmallows

Method

1. Add the gelatine leaves to a shallow bowl of cold water and set aside.
2. Spray a 20 cm square cake tin with sunflower oil. Sift together the icing sugar and cornflour. Then dust the tin with this mixture and tap around the sides for an even coating.
3. Whisk the egg whites in the bowl of a food mixer until stiff.
4. In a medium, heavy-based saucepan, mix together over a low heat the sugar, glucose syrup and water. Stop stirring when the sugar has dissolved, insert a sugar thermometer and turn the heat up.
5. When the sugar syrup has reached 128°c the ‘hard ball’ stage, remove from the heat.
6. Start the mixer again on a low speed and pour the very hot syrup mixture down the inside of the bowl. Remove the leaves of gelatine from the water, squeeze the water out and add to the mixture.
7. Gradually increase the speed to high and meanwhile break up four of the meringue nests into small pieces.
8. Continue mixing until the mixture is thick and holds its shape for a moment on the whisk when you lift it out. It will have tripled in size and be snow white and billowing.
9. Fold through the meringues and zest with a wooden spoon, rather than with the whisk, to stop them sticking to the whisk.
10. Pour half the mixture into the tin, smooth the surface with a wet spatula and dot half of the lemon curd over it. Then swiftly spread the rest of the marshmallow and smooth. Swirl the rest of the lemon curd on top, then scatter over it all the last two broken up meringue nests.
11. Place a food cover over the tin and stand uncovered for four hours at least, or overnight, somewhere cool, but not in the fridge.
12. When the marshmallow is set, dust a chopping board with the icing sugar/cornflour mix, then pass a knife around the edge of the marshmallow to loosen it and turn out onto the board. Cut with a wet pizza cutter, and then coat each cube in more of the icing sugar/cornflour mix. Arrange on a pretty platter and stand by as they vanish in moments!