Sarah Venning’s recipes

3oz butter
4oz lard
8oz flour
Salt
1tsp baking powder
Water
3-4 tbsp golden syrup
2 heaped tbsp fresh white breadcrumbs
Grating or two of lemon rind and a squeeze of lemon juiceRub fats into flour, sifted with a pinch of salt and baking powder. Do not over—rub. Moisten with 2-3tbsp cold water, enough to bind firmly together. Roll out 0.25 inch thick and line and trim a large pie disk. Fill with syrup, crumbs and lemon mixed together. Roll out the trimmings of paste, cut into strips and lay them criss-cross, lattice fashion on top of syrup, pressing down securely on edge of plate. Press a final strip round edge. Bake in moderately hot oven for 35 minutes.
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Blind-baked pastry case (18cm)
4 unwaxed lemons
5 medium eggs
250g icing sugar
100g slightly salted butterFinely grate the zest of two of the lemons then press the juice from all of them. Break the eggs into a bowl and whisk. After a minute or two of whisking, add the icing sugar and continue beating for a good five minutes. The mixture should become white, shiny and creamy in texture. In a pan, melt the butter. Whisk the lemon juice and zest into the egg mix, then pour in the melted butter and mix again. Pour into the pastry case and cook at 180°C/Gas 4 for c.20 minutes.
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Fuuly baked pastry case (20cm)
75ml lemon juice
Finely grated zest of 1.5 lemons
85g slightly salted butter
2 large free range eggs
110g unrefined caster sugar

Place all ingredients in a pan over medium heat. Bring to the boil, whisking continually. Allow to boil for a few seconds, still whisking, then remove from the heat. Pass through a fine-mesh sieve and set aside to cool at room temperature before pouring into the pastry case and leaving in the fridge until set.
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