Roll the shortcrust pastry between two sheets of kitchen paper and cut out two round shapes with the pastry cutter. Place the shapes in the small molds, press slightly with your fingers and put a round piece of kitchen paper on top. Put rice on it to prevent the base from sticking during the baking. Bake in the oven at 160° for about 8 minutes.

Meanwhile prepare the custard. Put lemon zest and fresh squeezed lemon juice in a bowl, being careful to remove all the seeds. Add corn starch and stir well with a whisk. Then, add the eggs and sifted powdered sugar. Blend lemon zest and juice in it.

Cook the custard in a bain-marie, stirring until it gets thick. Turn off the burner and remove the bowl with the custard. Take out the shortcrust pastry, remove the rice and the kitchen paper, pour the lemon custard in it and add the cherries (4 for each pie). Put back in the oven at 130° for 10 minutes.

Place the meringue in a pastry bag with a plain tip. Take the pies out of the oven and garnish with the meringue, after having cooled them down a bit for few minutes. Burn the meringue with a kitchen torch and serve.