BloggerAid Culinary Olympics 2010 - Frangipani Pie - Australia

BloggerAid - Changing the Face of Famine is hosting a Culinary Olympics to coincide with the Winter Olympics in Canada. The aim of the event is to promote food as sport (LOL) and BACFF's mission - namely to actively promote the alleviation of World Hunger.

I am an Australian member of BACFF, so I have chosen a typical Australian (and particularly Queensland) dish for my entry - namely, Frangipani Pie. It is apparently otherwise known as Pineapple Cream Pie.

Whatever moniker you know it by, Frangipani Pie is delicious - it consists of a sweet pie shell filled with alternating layers of coconut custard and pineapple custard, and is topped with fluffy meringue. And take it from me - it is devine!!!! The smooth, creamy coconut custard is offset by the tangy pineapple custard, and the meringue gives the whole dish a wonderful, marshmallowy mouth-feel. What's not to like?

The yellow and white colours of the pie reflect those of the frangipani (plumeria) flower, after which the pie is named. Frangipani flowers are a common sight in Queensland, particularly at beachside resorts.

I don't live anywhere near the beach, but there is a frangipani tree growing in my street:

Here are a couple of close-ups of the delicate, creamy yellow and white flowers:

Of course, frangipani flowers also come in other colours, mainly varying hues of pink and white, but the yellow and white ones have my heart.

The recipe that almost everyone uses to make Frangipani Pie is this one from the Golden Circle website. Golden Circle was a Queensland-based and Australian-owned cannery for all kinds of fruit, and is synonymous with pineapple in Australia, but, like many Australian iconic brands, it has now succumbed to globalisation and is owned by Heinz.

To assist with visualisation of the recipe, following are photos of the individual components of the Frangipani Pie. Here is my pie crust (made using Matt Moran's recipe, but you an use whatever pie crust recipe you like or, to save time, buy one):

You then make the pineapple custard using crushed tinned pineapple:

followed by coconut custard (which for me, involved a dash to the supermarket at 8.40pm because I realised at the crucial moment that I didn't have any):

and finally, the fluffy meringue topping:

Assemble it all as directed in the recipe, and bake it in the oven for 15 minutes to brown the meringue, and voila:

Frangipani pie! (If you want the pretty peaks in your meringue, it's time to get your fingers dirty and muss up the top of the meringue in whatever pattern takes your fancy prior to baking - it's a little like using hair gel.)

You can eat it warm or chilled - I like it both ways.

Here's a peek inside my frangipani pie, showing the yellow and white colours:

BACFF has requested that I remind you of their wonderful BloggerAid Cookbook, which you can buy online here. The profits from sale of the book go to the United Nations World Food Program. Coincidentally, I have another pie recipe in the book - so if you like pie, check it out!

I am also sending this frangipani pie to The Blonde Duck from A Duck In Her Pond, who is hosting Glorious Pie Celebration Saturday over at The Pond. You can send your pie recipes to her by 3pm Texas time today. For Duckie's ode to pecan pie and a great pic of her Dad pouring "gravy" on his pecan pie, click here. Duckie is probably the world's number one pie fan.

Frangipani pie - flying the flag for Oz!!!

(Incidentally, Tuesday (26 January) is Australia Day, when we mark the arrival of the first white settlers in Australia.)