This fabulous meringue pie recipe offers the essence of summer in every mouthful.

Use the freshest raspberries you can find. Serves 8 Takes 50 minutes to make and about 35 minutes to bake, plus chilling and cooling

INGREDIENTS
150g plain flour, plus extra to dust 25g caster sugar 75g butter, cubed and chilled 1 large egg yolk For the raspberry filling 800g fresh raspberries 5 tbsp cornflour 100-125g golden caster sugar, to taste 2 tbsp lemon juice 5 large egg yolks 60g butter For the meringue topping 3 large egg whites 175g golden caster sugar

METHOD
How to make raspberry meringue pie
1. Whizz the flour, sugar and butter in a processor, until they resemble crumbs. Add the yolk and 1 tablespoon cold water, then pulse until it comes together to form a dough. Wrap in cling film and chill for 15 minutes. 2. Preheat the oven to 190C/fan170C/gas 5. Roll out the pastry on a floured surface and use to line a deep, 23cm fluted flan tin. Line with baking paper and fill with baking beans or rice. Place on a baking sheet and bake for 15 minutes. Remove the beans and paper and bake for a further 10-12 minutes, or until dry and pale golden. Set aside to cool. Reduce the oven temperature to 180C/fan160C/gas 4. 3. Make the filling. Whizz the raspberries to a pure, then pass through a sieve to remove the seeds - you should end up with 675ml-700ml pure. Pour into a saucepan.

4. In a bowl, mix the cornflour with 100g sugar, the lemon juice and 1 tablespoon water to give a paste. Stir into the pure, place over a medium heat and cook, stirring, until just boiling. Cook for 1 minute, stirring continuously, until thickened. Taste and add the extra sugar if the raspberries are too tart. Remove from the heat and beat in the egg yolks and butter. Cool slightly, then pour into the pastry case and chill for 30 minutes to firm up the filling. 5. Make the topping. Whisk the egg whites to soft peaks in a large, greasefree bowl. Gradually whisk in the sugar, until you have a stiff, glossy meringue. Pile on top of the filling, swirling the meringue with a palette knife to get craggy peaks. Bake for 8-10 minutes, or until the meringue is pale golden. Serve immediately. Tip: This is best served fresh from the oven, so the juice from the filling doesn't soak into the crisp pastry shell.