Lemon Custard Pie

I've made this pie recipe from Taste of Home twice in the past month both because we liked it so much and because I always have the ingredients on hand.  It's apparently a chess pie, but I've never had a chess pie other than that and I'm a little reluctant to call it that since it appears that chess pies have cornmeal.  I substituted flour for the cornmeal both times I made the recipe, and it turned out great.  In all honesty, I'm suspicious of how cornmeal's grainy texture would be in this smooth pie!  So I'm calling it Lemon Custard Pie, since that's what it essentially is.  My husband and I both love lemon desserts, and this is like an extra thick lemon bar in a pie crust.  What's not to like?

 

One weird thing about this recipe is that both times I made it, the top browned VERY quickly. The first time, the top went from beginning to look ever so slightly like it was beginning to turn golden to way over done in about 8 minutes.  I actually ended up peeling the top off after it came out of the oven.  It came off very easily and the pie underneath looked perfect.  The second time, the top again started browning much too quickly, so I tried to cover it with foil, but the top glued itself to the foil and ended up dragging itself off when I removed it from the oven.  Oops!  Normally I wouldn't post a recipe with issues like that, but both times the pie underneath was fantastic, so I've decided to share it anyway.  Just be aware that your top may brown really quickly, and if it does, it's really easy to pull off!  I've included pictures below of both pies.

 

Also, be aware that this makes a rather thin pie and is not suited for a deep dish pie plate.  The pie plate I use is only about 1 1/2 inches deep inside.

  

 first pie before peeling off top

 

 first pie after peeling off top

 

 slice of second pie

 

 

Lemon Custard Pie

 

pie crust for a single layer pie (I used this recipe from Ina Garten)

4 eggs

1 1/2 C sugar

1 1/2 Tbsp flour

1/2 C lemon juice

1/4 C salted butter, melted

 

Drape pie crust into pie plate, cut off excess dough, and crimp the edges.  Place into the refrigerator while you prepare the filling.

 

Preheat oven to 350.

 

Place eggs in a large bowl and beat on medium speed for 3 minutes.  Whisk together sugar and flour until evenly incorporated.  Add the sugar mixture to the eggs in 3 additions, beating after each addition.  Beat on medium speed until mixture is bright yellow and thick, about 2 minutes.  Add lemon juice, and drizzle in the melted butter in a thin stream while mixing.  Continue to mix until well incorporated.  Pour filling into prepared pie crust.

 

Bake pie until set throughout, a toothpick inserted into the center should come out mostly clean.  An even easier way to measure this is to insert a digital probe thermometer into the pie filling about 2 inches from the edge, it should register around 210 degrees.  How long this will take really depends on your oven, but it should be about 40-50 minutes.

 

Remove pie from oven and let cool thoroughly before serving.  It's very good slightly warm, room temperature, or refrigerated, but be sure to store any leftovers in the refrigerator.  Lightly sweetened vanilla whipped cream goes great on top, too.

Yield: 8 servings

Ginger and Spice Apple Pie

There's something really cozy and special about apple pie, isn't there?  Well, about a week ago I was all set to make an apple pie with a filling that included a generous amount of pineapple juice that was thickened with cornstarch.  Had my apples ready to go and arranged in the pie crust, just waiting for the pineapple juice mixture, when I realized I was out of cornstarch!  What the heck?  How does someone run out of cornstarch and not even realize it?  My plans of course had to change, so I just kind of tossed some ingredients together -measuring all the way- and shoved my pie creation into the oven. 

Happily, it turned out great!  Not runny like many pies, and the spices are wonderful, but don't overwhelm the flavor of the apples.  I used a variety of apples and you could taste the difference between them, quite nice.  My husband liked the pie enough that he ate over half of it within in an hour of its emergence from the oven.  He loves pie!  I put the leftovers in the fridge and my husband reported that the remaining slices heated up great in the microwave.

Ginger and Spice Apple Pie

pastry for a double crust, deep dish pie (can do homemade or frozen, whatever floats your boat)
1/2 C white sugar
4 Tblsp flour
3/4 tsp ground ginger
1/2 tsp ground allspice
1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
5 good sized apples (I used 2 Granny Smith, 1 Braeburn, 1 Pacific Rose, and 1 Golden Delicious, but use whatever you want)
a little bit of milk and sugar for the top of the crust

Preheat oven to 350 and line a cookie sheet with foil.  Line a deep dish pie plate with the bottom pie pastry.  In a large bowl, stir together sugar, flour, and spices.  Peel, core, and chop apples into chunks about the size of playing dice.  Put the chopped apples in the bowl with the sugar mixture, and toss thoroughly until apples are completely coated.  Spoon apples into prepared pie plate, mounding them in the center.  Sprinkle any remaining sugar mixture on top (there shouldn't be much left over).

Top with remaining pie crust, cut off the excess pastry, and seal the edges with a fork.  Use a knife to cut 4 vents in the top crust.  Brush the top lightly with milk, then sprinkle with a little sugar.  Use long, narrow strips of aluminum foil to cover the crust of the pie so it doesn't burn in the oven.  Place the pie on the prepared baking sheet (this is so there won't be a mess if it overflows).

Bake until a fork can be easily inserted into pieces of apple near the center of the pie (you can poke the fork through the vents in the top crust).  You can cover the top crust with foil if it gets too brown for your liking.  The pie took about an hour and 15 minutes in my oven, but all ovens are different and I'd check the apples for doneness for the first time at about the 45 minute mark.  Remove pie from oven and let cool at least half an hour before serving.  Keep leftover pie in the refrigerator.

Cheater's Pie Crust

Are you really bad at rolling out pie crusts, or just don't like the hassle?  And when it comes to pie, are you more interested in what's in the pie rather than the crust?  If so, then this is the pie crust for you!  If you're fantastic at making pie crusts and/or love traditional pie crust with a passion, you will probably want to pass on this recipe.  It's not bad by any means- I wouldn't make it if it was a bad recipe- but it doesn't have the flaky thing going on that so many people love.  It's more like a vaguely tasty delivery system for luscious pie filling and lets what's in the pie take center stage.

Now, to the recipe.  I first made it with this pie from AllRecipes 10 years ago and have been making it ever since, with a few minor changes.  If I'm making a pie with just 1 crust and a gingersnap or graham cracker crust won't cut it, or it's something savory like quiche, then this is the recipe I use.

Sorry there's not a picture of the plain crust, I meant to take one tonight but I forgot and went ahead and poured in the filling!  Here's a picture of it once filled and baked though, you can see that it holds up just fine to being cut and served:

Cheater's Pie Crust

1 1/2 C flour
1 1/2 t sugar
1/2 t salt
1/2 C oil
2 T water

Place first 3 ingredients in a pie plate and toss with a fork to combine.  Add oil and water and mix with the fork as much as you can, then dive in with your hands to finish mixing in the flour.  Try not to over work it.  Press some of the dough up the sides of the pan, then crumble the rest into little pieces evenly into the bottom of the pan.  Press the dough down to form a solid crust without any holes or cracks.  Proceed with your recipe as if it were a regular pie crust.