Begin the day before you want the tart. Combine
the flour, sugar, cocoa, ginger and salt in a food processor and pulse to
combine
Add the butter and pulse again until the mixture
resembles coarse sand. Add 50ml of iced water and bring together to form a dough.
You may need a touch more water, if so, add 1tsp at a time
Form into a disc, wrap in plastic wrap and chill
for 2 hours
After 2 hours, allow the pastry to stand for 5
minutes then roll out slightly larger than a 9” deep sided pie tin
Line the base and sides and chill for 30 minutes
while you preheat the oven 190C
Line the tart with baking paper and baking beans
(or uncooked rice) and blind bake for 15 minutes, remove the beans and paper
and bake 5 minutes more
Meanwhile, add all the ingredients for the
filling (apart from the pecans) to a stand mixer and beat for 2-3 minutes or
until smooth and homogenous
Pour into the warm base leaving a 5mm gap at the
top (any excess filling can be used to make mini pies another day) Dot the
pecans over the surface
Bake for 40-45 minutes, or until set with a
slight wobble in the centre. If the crust is darkening too much, wrap some foil
around the edges
Allow to cool on a wire rack then pop into the
fridge to chill overnight
The next day, in a heatproof bowl of a stand
mixer, whisk all the ingredients for the meringue topping
Place the bowl over a pan of barely simmering
water and whisk continuously until the mixture has dissolved and feels hot to
your finger (it should read 71C on a thermometer)
Dry the base of the bowl and return to the stand
mixer. Beat on medium high or until cooled and a thick, glossy meringue
Pile the meringue into the centre of the pie
and, using your fingers, pull out spikes. Lightly torch the meringue in places
with a blowtorch and serve immediately
