150g/5½oz brioche, cut into slices and left to go stale (see recipe tip)
50g/1¾oz unsalted butter, softened, plus more for greasing
500ml/18fl oz full-fat milk
1 lemon, zest and juice
1 tsp vanilla extract
25g/1oz caster sugar
pinch fine sea salt
4 large free-range egg yolks (whites reserved for meringue topping)
175g/6oz plum (or other) jam
For the topping
4 large free-range egg whites (from eggs above)
100g/3½oz caster sugar, plus extra for sprinkling
Method
Grease your pie dish with butter and preheat the oven to 170C/150C Fan/Gas 3½.
Put the brioche slices into a food processor and blend into crumbs then place in a mixing bowl.
Gently warm the milk in a saucepan with the butter, lemon zest, vanilla extract, sugar and a pinch salt, until the butter’s melted.
Whisk the yolks in a large bowl or jug, pour the warm milk mixture on top and whisk to combine, then pour this over the crumbs in their bowl and leave for 10 minutes, before transferring to the greased dish. Bake for 20 minutes, or until the top is just set, although the crumb-custard will still be wobbly underneath. Remove from the oven and set aside…
