Berry Fruity Strawberry Orange Sherbet Lattice Pies

OMG guys, GUYS!!! I just had to interrupt my evening to share this recipe with you. Although we are in completely different seasons to the Northern Hemisphere, there is probably one thing we can agree on and that is summer or winter pie is a good thing. This strawberry and sherbet orange lattice pie is a revelation!

I was just going to make a strawberry pie but when Louise gifted me some unsprayed oranges from her in laws' farm I added the orange zest to these pies and blow me over if this isn't the best strawberry pie I've ever eaten. I also found strawberries at an absolute steal at the markets. Save this recipe for when you find them cheap and I promise you'll fall in love too!

The key to this is both the pastry dusted with demerara sugar and the citrusy strawberry fruit filling - honestly just a bit of zest adds SO much flavour and gives it an orange sherbet taste. I actually did this recipe very last minute. The strawberries needed to be used. I spied a quantity of this pastry in my freezer, defrosted it and tinkered with my usual pie filling recipe.

Usually rhubarb goes well with strawberry but I didn't have any so the orange was used. I only did the lattice pattern as that was exactly the amount of pastry I had left. I baked them, photographed them and then left the house without trying them. I figured my main aim of using the strawberries was accomplished I didn't need to do much else.

But then I tried one. Now I'm not a huge orange eater. I get sore joints when I drink orange juice and the sides of my mouth hurt when I eat orange slices. So I tend to stay away from them which is a shame as I do like orange flavoured things. But this was so delicious I ran out to Mr NQN who had just demolished plates of dumplings, eggplant, beef stir fry and cheesecake at my parents' house and asked him to taste it. "It's amazing, it tastes like strawberry orange sherbet!" I said.

He is the worst kind of torturer. "Hang on, wait, I have to finish it and then give you my opinion," he said in an exaggerated and pompous manner. "Arrrgh I haaate you," I said. He took one bite, chewed on it slowly and it must be said, theatrically as if playing to a crowd. "It's very, very good," he said before finishing off the rest of the pie.

So tell me Dear Reader, do you ever surprise yourself with tasty treats? And do you get any side effects from eating oranges? Do you ever buy some much of one food when it is on sale that you don't know what to do with it?

Strawberry Orange Sherbet Lattice Pies

An Original Recipe by Lorraine Elliott

Preparation time: 30 minutes

Cooking time: 20 minutes

Makes 4 individual pies

For pastry

• 185g/6.5ozs. plain flour
• 75g/2.7ozs. butter
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 60g/2ozs. icing or powdered sugar
• 1 egg, room temperature
• 1 teaspoon vanilla

For pie filling

• 2 cups strawberries, hulled and sliced
• 1/4 cup brown sugar
• 1/4 cup caster or superfine sugar
• 3 tablespoons cornflour or fine cornstarch
• Zest of 1 orange
• Pinch of salt
• 2 tablespoons cream (or egg yolk mixed with 2 teaspoons water)
• 3 tablespoons demerara sugar

Note: I often make double this pastry and keep it in the freezer for when I need it. It has a lovely texture and is forgiving if you roll it out between two sheets of parchment. It is especially for sweet tarts and pies.

Step 1 - First make the pastry. In a mixer fitted with a beater, mix the flour, butter and salt for 3 minutes on low. Add the icing sugar, egg and vanilla to the flour mixture and beat for another 3 minutes on low. Roll into a ball, flatten and cover with cling film and allow to rest in the fridge for 1 hour.

Step 2 - Roll out the pastry between two sheets of parchment. I try and get the pastry very thin without breaking it. Press into the pie tins (I used 4x10cm pie tins) on the base and keep in the fridge.

Step 3 - Preheat oven to 210C/410F. Make the filling simply by mixing the strawberries, two types of sugar, cornflour, orange zest and salt in a bowl. Divide among the four pie tins. Then roll up the scraps of the pastry and cut thin strips, all of the same width.

Step 4 - Place three strips one way and then take another strip and weave it up and below, alternating. Repeat until you've got 3 strips by 3 strips each way and one around the rim of the pie dish. Brush with cream and then sprinkle the top generously with the demerara sugar. Bake for 20 minutes. Allow to sit for 30 minutes or so. Serve with ice cream or cream.