Start with making a pastry cream. Heat the milk and vanilla in a saucepan until it starts to simmer.

In a separate bowl, whisk together the sugar, corn flour, and egg yolks.

Gradually pour the hot milk into the egg mixture, whisking continuously.

Pour the mixture back into the saucepan and heat it over medium heat, whisking constantly until it thickens.

Transfer the pastry cream to a bowl and cover it with plastic wrap, pressing it directly onto the surface to prevent a skin from forming. Let it cool for at least 2 hours.

For the creme diplomate, add the chilled pastry cream into the heavy cream until soft peaks form - be careful to not overwhip otherwise the cream will become liquid.

In a bowl, beat eggs with the sugar until pale in colour.

Sift in and fold the flour into the egg mixture.

Pour the batter into a 8” or 7” pan greased with butter and lined with baking paper at the bottom.

Bake at 180 degrees C for 20 minutes or until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean.

Combine egg whites and sugar in a heatproof bowl set over a pan of simmering water.

Whisk constantly until sugar is dissolved and mixture has warmed to about 160 degrees C.

Remove the bowl from heat.

Beat on high speed until mixture is cool and stiff peaks form.

Continue beating until meringue is fluffy and glossy, and completely cool (test by touching the bottom of the bowl), about 10 minutes.

Once the sponge cake has cooled, cut it in into 4 layers

Spread a layer of the creme diplomate between the layers of cake

Finally, spoon the meringue over the cake, spreading it evenly and creating peaks with the back of a spoon.

Use a blowtorch to lightly brown the meringue.